Why Is CRC selling old Bombers, and what’s next?

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Proving that 26 ain’t dead – or that it just keep on coming back, as shed finds are brought back to life – the Singletrack Forum was all of a flurry as a batch of brand new unused Marzocchi forks hit the Chain Reaction Cycles listings.

Marzocchi Bomber Z5

£349.99 gets you this orange retro wonder:

‘Boasting a hard-wearing alloy construction, 100mm travel and a retro look, the Marzocchi Bomber Z5 Fork is an ideal choice for finishing your vintage bike build or breathing new life back into your retro mountain bike’

Marzocchi Bomber Z4

£349.99 gets you this slightly more understaded black 80mm Z4:

Marzocchi Bomber Z3

Or, £179.99 gives you the choice of two colours which may only have coordinated with a bike back in 2000, plus the choice of a whopping 70mm or 80mm of travel:

We’re trying to find out quite why these have hit the shelves now, but there are a few theories kicking around. One is that in the great shipping container shortage of 2020, someone found a forgotten container lurking in the corner of a dockyard somewhere. Another is that the CRC/Wiggle reorganising has unearthed some lost stock. Perhaps these aren’t originals, but are actually new copies, whipped up to meet the great shed bike restoration demand?

Whatever the truth (and we’ll let you know if we find out), they’re not likely to hang around long, so if you’ve got a bike that just needs these forks to bring is back to life, act now.

If there has been a shipping container or warehouse find, what else might there be? What would you hope to uncover? Marzocchi Monster T or Shiver fork? Anything by Pace? How about a whole PRST1? Or something more practical, like the mech hanger or brake mount for that bike you have in the shed that just won’t roll without it?

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Hannah Dobson

Managing Editor

I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones. More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They're environmentally friendly and create friendly environments. I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.

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Home › Forums › CRC selling old Z3/4/5 forks

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Viewing 19 posts - 41 through 59 (of 59 total)
1 2
  • CRC selling old Z3/4/5 forks
  • iain1775
    Free Member

    Was my first thought too. We just need CRC to turn up some other old stock with weird ass proprietary mounts that look almost like normal

    There is always Planet X for that, 50p plus £8 postage

    Posted 3 years ago
    nixie
    Full Member

    The orange ones have a really old skool disc mount.

    Posted 3 years ago
    dyna-ti
    Full Member

    I think thats a hayes mount. But im not sure they are that old for that mount to be there which could suggest the origin is not the UK. Possibly the US.
    The hayes mount pre-dates the No4 caliper 48mm mount

    Posted 3 years ago
    walleater
    Full Member

    The orange Z5 has a bolt on disc brake mount. Which doesn’t appear to be included with the fork. I’m a little surprised that I can’t find a google image of it but it was a loooong time ago. The QR20 models had two hole in the lowers the the bottom of the lowers were hollow. You attached a plate inside the lowers that had threaded holes, and lined up a proprietary IS adaptor on the outside of the lower and bolted it into the plate inside the lower, or something like that 😉 A picture would help….

    Posted 3 years ago
    kiwijohn
    Full Member

    $300 for that Z3 would look great on DBR Axis TT, but I really need to put the money towards a pair of Crossmax SL’s.

    Posted 3 years ago
    ribena
    Free Member

    Just for reference, here’s an original (paper) ad for CRC…

    Posted 3 years ago
    munkyboy
    Free Member

    Dual crown Sid..

    Posted 3 years ago
    cakeandcheese
    Full Member

    A rough estimate using an inflation calculator suggests z1s would cost £435 now by those measures (edit – assuming £279 z1 bam for reference).

    Given the improved performance and scale of 2021 fork, I don’t think we’re doing so badly given a new one is ~£600 (+37% above inflation over 22 years).

    I do like those pre-internet adverts though! All the info you need, nowt you don’t.

    Posted 3 years ago
    thols2
    Full Member

    Dual crown Sid..

    I bought a secondhand Giant NRS with some of those way back in the day, then sold it after riding it about five times. Never understood the rationale for those things. Ended up buying another NRS frame and put some of the first Rebas on it. Much, much better fork.

    Posted 3 years ago
    mashr
    Full Member

    I had a set of the Z1 Duals, really should’ve kept hold of them

    Posted 3 years ago
    binners
    Full Member

    No MX Comps? Surely the best value for money piece of kit ever. Cheap as chips and absolutely bomb-proof!

    Posted 3 years ago
    bobodaclown
    Free Member

    Not sure if already linked…
    Apparently this place is a good source of some spares, service and info related to old Bombers

    https://dr-marzocchi.projectweb.de/

    Posted 3 years ago
    endomick
    Free Member

    Those were the days, look at how colourful forks used to be, bring back polished crowns.

    Posted 3 years ago
    apedoctor
    Free Member

    CRC used to do (probably still do) a lot of buying of containers of stock, sight unseen direct from factories, or sometimes it’s just a whopping pile of stuff, and you dig around before ordering all of it or nothing. It’s then transported back to the UK where warehouse staff would sort it and box it etc. It’s why you get loads of random stuff turning up all the time, cost peanuts.

    That is what’s happened I expect. Though by no means for definite.

    Posted 3 years ago
    squirrelking
    Free Member

    Those brake mounts were proprietary mounts as mentioned that only came in IS format, I had to get one for my Z1 QR20s (which had a Z4 serial number) and they were thin on the ground in 2004. I’d say they’re damn near impossible to find now but that Dr Marzocchi guy may turn something up and there’s another goldmine in Germany with an internet site.

    I definitely don’t remember Z5 20mm forks, plenty of Z3 and the occasional Z1 but Z5 must have been OEM.

    Ah yes QR20. Anything but “quick” and the dangly bits sometimes wound off in transit.

    That was the 2003 successor, QR20+. QR20 was literally a 20mm QR mount with a QR 20mm axle, basically what you were left with when the stupid cams or barrel screws disappeared.

    Posted 3 years ago
    vinnyeh
    Full Member

    Z4’s 70mm now £100, Z3 and 5 still same price.

    Posted 3 years ago
    snotrag
    Full Member

    I’m sure my 2001 Kona Chute came with a Z5 with ‘QR20’ 20mm thru axle.

    Posted 3 years ago
    kraemit
    Free Member

    > Might be difficult if one of the “O” rings at the top of the forks goes.

    Drop me a note, if you need replacement parts for the older Z2.
    –> https://dr-marzocchi.projectweb.de/

    Best Regards

    Posted 3 years ago
    spooky_b329
    Full Member

    I thought they all sold out when this thread first started…are these the returns back on sale?!

    Posted 3 years ago
Viewing 19 posts - 41 through 59 (of 59 total)
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