Just when you were just getting used to 2018, and starting to pay off the credit card accrued in 2017, RockShox comes along and announces its 2019 lineup. And with forks starting to appear from March, it’s not going to give you time to get saving. But regardless, let’s see what’s available in the more affordable end of fork world from the Big R. The main developments (apart from the bold new graphics) is in the addition of RockShox’ new Fast Black stanchion coating across the line, which should help keep the forks smooth and slippery in action (though it does make it hard to work out which fork is which as they now all look nearly identical at first glance). Other changes include a Boost-only model in the Sektor, though the Reba looks to still cater for those ‘old fashioned’ 100mm hubs.
And if bringing you the future isn’t enough, RockShox has obviously spent a ton of money on some of the latest creative writing. We’ll just present the write ups as they appear in the press release because, well, we can’t really imagine being able to do any better.
Rockshox Sektor RL
With aluminium uppers, outstanding stiffness-to-weight and DebonAir, new Sektor offers more than ever before. Tyre clearance and axle to crown measurements match Pike and Revelation. The chassis takes styling cues from BoXXer for integration with oversize frames. And new controls and graphics cement Sektor’s place among the RockShox greats and on today’s bikes.
FEATURES
- New DebonAir; air spring is highly responsive and helps maintain traction in a wide range of conditions
- Motion Control; RL damper provides low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- New BOOST;-specific chassis, light yet stiff
- 32mm aluminum Fast Black upper tubes
- Can accept Bottomless Tokens for air spring tuning
- OneLoc; remote compatibility
- £429-499 (Prices inc VAT)
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox Reba RL
Reba has always signified RockShox quality and performance. Even more so now, with chassis options that allow Reba to be a frontrunner in any role, from XC to trail riding. With technologies developed on SID, Reba and Revelation, Reba is the one-stop solution to everyone looking for the unmistakable RockShox performance in a proven package.
FEATURES
- Motion Control; damping featuring low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- OneLoc; remote compatibility
- Updated graphic package to complement the RockShox lineup
- £499-569
- RETAIL: APRIL 2018
Rockshox Recon RL
The RockShox Recon sets a new benchmark for value-based performance. Recon represents a perfect partnership between 32mm Revelation’s crowns and lower legs, and bombproof RockShox new steel Fast Black upper tubes. Adopting this proven chassis allows for shorter upper tubes, which means Recon just went on a serious weight-loss program. With the addition of its now-standard Motion Control; damper, the re-invented Recon is the new silver standard for fun.
FEATURES
- Motion Control; damping featuring low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- New Fast Black finish for steel upper tubes
- New compression knob and air cap
- New cable-remote spool compatible with OneLoc; remote
- Updated graphic package to complement the entire RockShox lineup
- Price: £249-319
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox Judy Gold
Who says entry-level bikes can’t get all the latest features and performance? Judy is built around a brand new chassis, designed with the same philosophy of the award winning Pike for the demands of modern mountain biking: stiff, yet very light. BOOST; means also room for Plus tires, up to 2.8″ in both the 27.5″ and 29″ models, while Torque Caps compatibility adds additional stiffness and control to the fork/wheel ensemble. Judy Gold also sports a Motion Control; RL damper, compatible with OneLoc; remote and Fast Black upper tubes for an unmistakable RockShox look and performance.
FEATURES
- Motion Control; damping featuring low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- Fast Black aluminum upper tubes
- OneLoc; remote compatibility
- BOOST;-specific chassis, light yet stiff
- New compression knob and air top cap
- Updated graphic package to complement the entire RockShox lineup
- Price: £379-449
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox Judy Silver
Who says entry-level bikes can’t get all the latest features and performance? Judy is built around a bold chassis designed with the same philosophy of the award-winning Pike for the demands of modern mountain biking: stiff, yet very light. BOOST; allows extra room for Plus tires, up to 2.8″ in both the 27.5″ and 29″ models, while Torque Cap compatibility adds additional stiffness and control to the fork/wheel combo. Judy Silver features a new Fast Black finish for steel upper tubes and RockShox’s proven TK damper.
FEATURES / BENEFITS
- TurnKey; lockout compatible with PopLoc; remote
- BOOST;-specific chassis, light yet stiff
- New Fast Black steel upper tubes
- New compression knob and air cap
- Updated graphic package to complement the entire RockShox lineup
- Price: £299-329
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox 30 Gold
Light (actually, very light)? Check. Easy to set up? Check. RockShox ride quality? Check. Too good to be true? Not if you are referring to the RockShox 30 Gold, featuring Motion Control; damping.
FEATURES
- Motion Control; damping featuring low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- Fast Black aluminum upper tubes
- New compression knob and air cap
- New cable-remote spool compatible with OneLoc; remote
- Updated graphic package to complement the entire RockShox lineup
- Price: £349-439
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox 30 Silver
A day of slicing through sweet ribbons of singletrack on a bike sporting our 30 Silver will leave you smiling – all the way to the bank. Lightweight and packed full of legendary RockShox technology, the 30 Silver is sure to strengthen the level of your riding without breaking your wallet in the process.
FEATURES
- TurnKey; lockout compatible with PopLoc; remote
- External rebound adjustment
- Updated compression knob and air top cap
- Updated graphic package to complement the entire RockShox lineup
- Price: £169-209
- RETAIL: MARCH 2018
Rockshox PIKE DJ
Here’s how the Rockshox ‘trying a little too hard’ press release puts it:
Just like a DJ spins sweet tunes, Pike DJ spins… off jumps and drops. Jumps are getting bigger, tricks are becoming crazier, and the slope style and dirt-jumping crowd needs a fork that facilitates the progression. Enter Pike DJ: little brother to the award winning Pike; a stout 35mm chassis, light enough to boost higher and stiff enough to shred berms. The custom tuned Charger; damper and specific Solo Air; system provides for heaps of bottom-out progression to help butter the landing. Everything you love in Pike, but cleared for the biggest take offs.
FEATURES
- Charger; Damper with specific Dirt Jumping/Slopestyle tune (extra-firm compression)
- Specific Solo Air; top cap for extra bottom out progression (tunable with Bottomless Tokens)
- Updated graphic package to complement the RockShox lineup
- Price: £839
- RETAIL: APRIL 2018
Rockshox Bluto RCT3
You’ve probably observed more and more riders are on bikes that look “different” on your trails. Bikes that have wheels and tires of gigantic proportion – and we’re not talking about 29ers here. The thing is, even though fat bikes were created to float on top of snow, they’re just too damn fun not to ride on dirt. So how do you amplify your fat bike adventures even further? With a supercharged, ultra-efficient, first-of-its-kind fat suspension fork called Bluto. We started with the features you’ve come to love from RockShox: Fast Black aluminum upper tubes, stout 15mm Maxle, remote or crown adjustable damping, tapered steer tube, and the infinitely tunable Solo Air; spring. Then, the chassis got the fat treatment by re-engineering it to meet the unique needs of fat tires and wheels. Everything from crown, to arch, to axle has been optimized to tackle the increased torsional loads of its wide stance. With more traction and control than ever before, you’ll never be happier you went fat.
FEATURES
- Motion Control damping featuring 3-position compression adjustment (open/pedal/lock)
- Updated graphic package to complement the RockShox lineup
- Price: £689
- RETAIL: APRIL 2018
Rockshox Bluto RL
You’ve probably observed more and more riders are on bikes that look “different” on your trails. Bikes that have wheels and tires of gigantic proportion – and we’re not talking about 29ers here. The thing is, even though fat bikes were created to float on top of snow, they’re just too damn fun not to ride on dirt. So how do you amplify your fat bike adventures even further? With a supercharged, ultra-efficient, first-of-its-kind fat suspension fork called Bluto. We started with the features you’ve come to love from RockShox: Fast Black aluminum upper tubes, stout 15mm Maxle, remote or crown adjustable damping, tapered steer tube, and the infinitely tunable Solo Air; spring. Then, the chassis got the fat treatment by re-engineering it to meet the unique needs of fat tires and wheels. Everything from crown, to arch, to axle has been optimized to tackle the increased torsional loads of its wide stance. With more traction and control than ever before, you’ll never be happier you went fat.
FEATURES
- Motion Control; damping featuring low speed compression adjustment to lockout
- OneLoc; remote compatibility
- Updated graphic package to complement the RockShox lineup
- Price: £719
- RETAIL: APRIL 2018
So there you go! And even if you’re not rushing out to buy new forks right now, you’ll start to see these new forks appear on bikes in a bike shop near you starting in a few short weeks. We’ll hopefully get one or two in for test once they’re out too so make sure you check the pages for when that does happen.
Rockshox 2019 – the future is already here. (It plays havoc with Christmas shopping…)
Comments (7)
Comments Closed
Very clever copywriting from Rock Shox. I read this posted on IMB and assumed it was their own copy until I read it again here.
Shame that in the rush to publish, nobody feels they have the time to write their own though.
An interesting point, Alex. However, this is a press release about some new forks, which no one here has seen or touched. We have no more information on the forks than on this release – which arrived yesterday. So there’s not too much extra we can at at this time. Besides, when there’s epic marketing speak going on like that, who’s going to argue? 🙂
At least we’ll admit that that’s how it was on the press release…
Yes, I didn’t pay as much attention to the opening para as I could have. I just thought they’d realised that press releases just get published as-is sometimes and tried to write it in a way that could have been written by the publication.
Anyway – to dissect the line-up a little, Motion Control has made its way through a lot of the range. The most interesting thing for me will be to see will be what price bikes these end up as OEM on. There was previously a bit of a gap under the Revs/Pikes – hopefully the Sektor RL can fill it.
Ignore me – I’m getting confused with the Charger damper
That Pike DJ commentary is absolutely horrendous.
“Reba has always signified Rockshox quality and performance”.
That is a wholly damning statement.
Reba was the worst fork (1+ 2 others on warranty) I have ever owned, and Sramtech’s behaviour was pure bloody-minded ignorance.
Rockshox are not just for Christmas – SO DON’T GET ONE.
Hmmm, I don’t see anything significantly new apart from Sector. Reba/Pike DJ – same as for the last few years, and I think the unchanged Bluto with those 32mm legs is the biggest let down for anyone looking for a stiffer forks on their fatty.