[Closed] Manitou forks - anyone else find them magnificent?

I had 3 sets of 29er Towers on different bikes just after Manitou's sort-of resurgence. All very good forks, even the budget versions, might try and find a pair of 140s to replace the Recon on my Eccentric when I feel like upgrading.

Do Manitou do a trail fork (similar to a Pike) in a 29er 120mm at around 5-600 quid?

Quite fancy giving them a go as I've got some Circus Expert on my DJ bike.

I got some Mattoc Pro's a few years ago when they were only recently released, I can't compare with all forks but have found them better than Pikes, Lyriks, 34's, Deville. I really rate them and were far cheaper than any other premium fork.

I wanted a set for when I built up a 29er but unfortunately couldn't come across a pair so ended up with some 34's, they're ok.

I've had no issues apart from finding the QR hexlock a pain, it's either brilliant and takes seconds to remove a wheel or somehow gets stuck and has me throwing my toys out the pram

I've got a pair of Tower Pros on my bike. They're a great fork and I agree, the bolt through is a pain in the arse. Who is good for getting them serviced?

Aye, Mattoc Pro3 in 100 or 120mm sizes. Boom!

Nice one, I'll have a look a them 🙂

Funny you should mention this, Been using my hard tail for what seems like forever with 2015 pikes.
Took my full suss out the other day and the Mattoc felt so much better. Felt odd at first with the extra support, led me to mess around the Pike a lot for not much improvement.

I was all geared up to order a Pike Select from one of the German sites, but I think I might go for the Mattoc instead.

It will be going on a hardtail 🙂

i swear i was going to write this exact same post earlier
i bought a set of mattoc pro for my aeris 145 for super chepar at under £350 from crc
i've had multiple flavours on my hardtail and settled on pike dual pos.. which are just ok, better after some tokens
but the mattocs? wow.. set them up as recommended.. havent messed with them...thought they were too soft, but no.. still haven't got past 2/3rds travel, the IVA? is a genius solution, have had the hexlock come loose once.. and the LSC knob from the factory was missing the actual bit you grab.. but i don't mess with it anyway
they are so good i've had to sit on my hands not to buy another set for my hardtail

I know of a couple of suspension tuners on MTBR who rate them very highly. I've not used them since a set of Mach 5 that would actually worked better as a water pump.

Might have to give them a try. I've often though that a great fork would be one that could be tuned inside by the owner rather than adjusted from the outside. From what I hear, manitou are one of the closest to that.

I think you need to be careful which ones you get. I've not tried one of the recent ones with the top level damping but did own a set of Magnums with the Comp damper and it wasn't a good fork. It dived through travel far too easily, there was no support at all. I'm not great at telling the difference between good forks, I'm perfectly happy with Motion Control damped Rockshox forks, but the damper used in Manitou's lower end forks was noticably poor.

Also, the through axle is terrible, a real faff to used compared to rival systems.

Yes the Pike Maxle is better also getting a mudguard to fit the Mattoc 2 is a pain. I ended up making one from Kydex thermoplastic stuff.
I believe the 3 has its own bolt on fender.
Parts supply seems less available than SRAM, you used to be able to buy almost every part on CRC, however once you've made or bought the tools, all you really need is oil and grease to keep them smooth.
Can't comment on the lower end dampers, I've only used the Pro with the Dorado damper and IRT.

I absolutely love my Mattoc pro 2's on my Chromag hardtail, far better than the 34's that they replaced. Planning on getting the new Mezzer Pro's for the big bike in a few weeks.

Minute Pro on my old 26er.
Very much a no nonsense, do it nicely, reliable and trusty set of boingy bits.

I have not tried other manitou but love my Mezzer Pro I bought for the Smuggler & now moved onto my Ripley V4. It’s a very adjustable & very stiff fork that performs better than any other fork I have owned, only fork that comes close is my Deville, but not as stiff

The Manitou Nixon Elite, which was coil spring with TPC+ damping, was my favourite fork ever.

Its a shame Manitou lost their way with a bazillion different forks and pushed their damping into 'platform' territory.

Had a mattoc and now got a mezzer pro. amazing fork - tracks wonderfully, best air spring and damping out there and the 37mm stanchions looks sexy as. Had a minute elite years ago as well that used a coil and air spring plus decent damping. Travel change is piss easy in the current forks too.

SPAFF!!

lovely example ^

Hurrah! Man(itou) love!

But, Shhh, don't tell anyone else 🙂

Hayes seem to be on a bit of upswing these last few years, good on them!

Those Mezzers look the biz, here's my Mastodons in glorious monochrome magnificence

Tower pro 100mm fork on my 29er for about 8 years.
Never missed a beat.

I don't think it's just manitous that are decent, I needed some 160mm forks for the wife's bike, but didn't want to spend a load on fox or rockshox, but still wanted something decent, so went with suntour auron rc2 (did buy some manitou mattoc second hand from ebay but they turned up broken), and they're remarkably good for the money (265quid brand new).

It's got me questioning the wisdom of spending loads more for fox stuff.

Those look great Poah - was looking at the Bomber Z1 for a hardtail build later this year but an option would be a set of Mezzer Pro's, swap the Fox 36 grip2 from my jeffsy to the hardtail build (option for a proper size bolt on mudguard is essential as it'll get used through winter) and put the mezzer pro on the jeffsy 29er, I'll have probably gone rear coil by then on the jeffsy too...

i meant to say that as well, the fact they encourage rebuilding your own shim stacks to suit? and offer guides.. epic..

i also picked up a set of r7's for my lads bike.. ridiculously light.. swapped out the remote lockout for a different damper to simplify matters..

Re mudguards. All you do is cut a couple of holes further down to match up with the arch. No issues with my Mattocs and a mudhugger.

I've got the RRP proguard bolt on version on my fox 36, never going back to a zip-tied mudguard.

I have some 4 or 5 year old 160mm Mattoc Experts on my 456C. I’ve been very impressed with them.
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The best Manitou forks go at the back 🙂

I bought some old Manitou Skareb for a budget build, sold as faulty for parts all they needed was a bit of air. They were super plush and no issues despite never servicing them, much better than Fox forks of similar age. After that I bought a couple of pairs of R7s again great reliable forks.

There was a time when both of my bikes were running Manitou forks. A 170mm Sherman Breakout+ on the Yeti ASX, and a 145mm Nixon Elite on the DB Prince Albert. Both were excellent, although the Sherman needed a lot of love and attention to keep it running properly. I've not given Manitou much though over the past few years but the Mezzer is tempting.

Well after the advice on here, I went for a Mattoc Pro 3 in 120mm for my DV9. Fitted it and went to the woods behind my house to set it up.

I followed the initial set up guide as a start point and did a bit of tweaking etc.

This is easily the best fork I've ever had! Really supple, easy to tune and is very supportive mid-travel. I was pleasantly surprised by the newer Debonair Yari on my Slash (used to have an older one), but this is in a different league!

I've had all sorts from Rockshox and Fox (including a factory 34), but the Manitou is head and shoulders above them all.

The only minor negative is the fender wasn't in the box despite the product description saying it was included. I've emailed R2 Bike to see what they'll do. I had a quick look around to see if I could buy one, but had no luck.

Does anyone know if the new Mezzer allows the user to change shim stacks like you can with the non bladder forks?

yes you can adjust the shim stacks

Manitou need better PR or some big names on their forks to make people forget about the crap they made in the past. I cant think of any pro on manitou, I'm sure there are but I cant name one. Their products are definitely under the radar.

Well, let's hope we're right. Just pulled the trigger on a set of Mezzer forks.

I'm happy with the budget Machete's I've recently fitted to my Tarn. They do not feel like their price point or only a 32mm fork. Very smooth. Also love the fact they can be upgraded easily to a better damper if I wanted. Just need a decent set of graphics now to match the colour scheme (the indiprint / indibike ones are not even close to the right shape and size).

Bought a set off here (Magnum Pro) few weeks ago, gave them a service with some homemade tools and WOW proper good.

Was always wary (second hand) but had heard some good reports on Manitou so wanted to try!!!

They are real plush love them

Just sold my Enduro bike that had mattoc pro 2's, absolutely loved them, best forks id ever tried. Problem is trying to sell a bike with them won't get you the same money if say you had a pike, lyric, or 36

I can just never get past the look of the reverse arch, just looks wrong to me.

can just never get past the look of the reverse arch

Do you look at your forks much when riding your bike?

This thread has seriously piqued my curiosity over the last few weeks, I've always been a rockshox devotee because of how user servicable they are.

I've got one of the cheap Scandals a few months back and was assuming I'd put some Pikes on, I'm thinking I'll get some Mattoc Pro 3's though (29", not plus and 120mm). Is this the most suitable fork in the manitou range? Thoughts on this fork specifically? and also where's best to get them from? I've found these on starbike

yup
they appear to be the pro model with the second air spring for ramp up control
got the 27.5's on my Aeris 145 that is the best Mattoc available and AFAIK the only option, Mezzers wont go that short i don't think
best place, hard to say, i was lucky with mine and got them from CRC on sale

Can shorten the Mezzer lower if you want. only thing is they say the air spring won't be balanced.

I reduced my Mattocs to 100mm for my pump track bike.

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Weird issue with steerer not set properly in crown, so after a few big hits it feels like your headset is wobbly

This is dangerous, no? Took my Fox 34s in for a service and this diagnosis meant the CSU needed replacing or sooner or later the steerer tube will have come away from the crown 😯

@mat
I've got those exact forks (bought on the back of this thread) on my DV9. I reckon they're the best forks I've ever had on a bike, and I've had a few!

Unfortunately, I've got the bike up for sale with the forks attached. If they went to 160mm, I'd have stuck them on my Slash without hesitation!

I got mine from R2bike in Germany.

As this is a great Manitou love thread I should say that if anyone wants some Mattoc 2 Pros for 660b I’ll be selling some shortly so PM me. Lovely fork but moving to a 29er and couldn’t find any Mattocs at the right price.

2 pairs, an R7 pro and a black. Both are excellent.
And yeah well under mosts radar which I think is good for those of us who have used manitou for a while. Outwith their triple clamp the price is just ideal. And theyre one of the oldest fork makers so despite their reputation from people who arent really familiar with the brand, have been doing it for so long theyve best suited to the specific market.
Possibly why theyre effectively the same forks year on year when everyone else is tweeking it or offering slight changes, and asking top money.

I previously had my Mk1 Mattocs on my BFe, now about to put them on my Aeris 145. I loved them on the hardtail so I'm interested to try them properly* on a full susser.

*I briefly had them on my old full susser when I was having my other forks serviced and found them faultless.

Has anyone done the IRT upgrade? I'm tempted but also don't have any issues I'm looking to iron out.

IRT is the best thing you can do with these forks.

Doesn't the IRT work the opposite to tokens?

Tokens reduce volume and cause ramp up towards the end of the stroke.

Doesn't the IRT keep a chunk of volume in reserve until the two pressures equalise and then work like a larger air chamber towards the end of the stroke?

I can see how the IRT would make an air spring more linear (which I think is no bad thing).

IRT works soooo much better than tokens.

increases mid stroke and ramp while letting you keep an initial softness from the main chamber but keeping the spring more linear. It doesn't ramp up like tokens suddenly do which makes for a much nicer landing. a couple of psi can make significant differences in the airspring feel which provides great tune-ability that some reviewers (e.g. pinkbike) didn't understand.

All air springs should run twin positive chambers.

First setup ride on my Mezzer yesterday - super impressed both in terms of feel and stiffness.

Felt about the same as my old Ribbon Coil in terms of initial suppleness but way more controlled - and I'm still tweaking from base settings.

Big takeaway though was stiffness in turns - suddenly finding myself going in much tighter, I assume from less flex related understeer.

All in, very impressed!

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Is there anywhere selling these at a good price at the moment? I missed them when CRC had them cheap recently.
I'm after a 27.5 160mm

Spicer, if you can wait a week I'll have a non-boost 650b Mattoc2 Pro, currently at 140mm but adjustable without parts to 160mm.

Starbike

I've been rocking a Mattoc for quite a few years now, early 26" version. Absolutely love it, by far the best damping of any fork from that time. Not ridden any new fork since then so no idea if the competition have caught up yet or not.

I also like the way the dials have a sensible number of clicks of adjustment. I guess the speed sensitive damper automatically puts you roughly in the right zone and then you just give it a little tweak to get it perfect. Makes bracketing and setting up the fork so much easier.

Anyone tried any of their rear shocks? They seem to get even less attention than the forks?

Loving my Manitous, shortened to 150mm travel for the Mullet, and shortening them is very easy to do.

Nice bike!

starbike

630 euros doesn't seem that good a deal when they were <£300 on CRC recently though!

The Mattoc Pro's damping is up there amongst the best at dealing with repeated big ugly hits, feels nearly as smooth as a big DH fork! The excellent HSC damping in combination with the HBO gives an almost bottomless feel.

They are quite fussy to setup though. The air chamber/s are small, so sensitive to air pressure changes, especially with the IRT. 1 or 2 PSI can make a noticeable difference to the forks performance, therefore you need an accurate shock pump! 5 or 10 PSI can go from nice, to harsh feeling small bump compliance IME.

The HSC and LSC clicks are more like fine adjusters rather than drastic differences between clicks. Especially the LSC, which I feel could do with a slightly wider range, as air pressure changes can leave you outside and ideal range of adjustment!

My Mattoc Pro's arrived from Germany today, they look very nice! One question though, I ordered 120mm travel, everything on them says 120mm travel (including sticker on the fork) but I can see almost 160mm stanchion! is this to be expected?

Well, just cancelled my order for some lyriks and ordered some mezzer pros. Hope I don't regret it!

bump - anyone have any thoughts on the amount of stanchion showing on my new 120mm Mattocs (post above)?

I'd pull them open with the service book to hand, that shows you where the spacers should be for various travel options. Maybe they just forgot to change the travel to 120?

Love manitous, have had multiple sets over the years including a set of Travis on the Dh bike that were set up buttery smooth after I cracked the lowers!

Had a set of Mattocs for 4 or 5 years now, never really set them up properly but still great.

Anyone found a decent mudguard to fit the reverse arch?

My normal bent-plastic mudguard from Cotic fitted fine once some extra holes were punched in.

Not very stealth ad: selling a Mattoc 2 Pro here https://singletrackworld.com/classifieds/advert/manitou-mattoc-2-pro-650b-non-boost/

this is what I'm worried about, bit annoying! especailly given it doesnt look as if I have 40mm of spacers for the fork...

Remove all the air and cycle it through its travel. How much does it move?

That amount of exposed stanchion is normal. See also https://forums.mtbr.com/shocks-suspension/manitou-mattoc-899836-18.html#post13590843 .

If they were to use the entire length of exposed stanchion the tyre would touch the crown/steerer.

Good suggestion nixie, I may still do that to satisfy my curiosity.

Thanks for that otsdr! That's the kind of answer I wanted to hear!

ostdr is correct, and nixie has the way to check - they do have more 'leg' showing than the travel, coz they are dead tarty like 🙂

I was pretty sure I wasn't getting full travel on my machete's because I hadn't got the air pressure right yet. Think I need to take my own advice :D.

How annoyed am I?
when I randomly looked through my ebay purchase history the other day, id actually bought a set of cheap mattoc pro's and resold them, due to some cock up on deliveries... only to have bought another set for my full sus later on
and since then, id converted my dual pos pikes on my hardtail to coil as the mattocs were so good, when id originally bough my first mattocs for that bike and never fitted them 🙁

How easy are they to service at home?
Last time I checked it wasn’t as easy as Rochshox or DVO

For all you folks setting up Manitous for the first time, there are a few 'features' that are important to follow, esp related to travel.

Because of the, I think, very sensitive negative air chamber, it is critical that the fork is unweighted when you attach the pump to add/remove air (connecting a shock pump also opens the valve between -'ve and +'ve chamber)

I've learned over the years, and after much confusion and frustration, that it is advisable not only for the fork to be unweighted (manitou says to turn the bike upside down), but for something to be actively pulling the fork to full extension.

In the workshop, this means on a stand with the front wheel adding the weight to pull it down. If out on the trail, either have the front wheel unweighted, or if it's upside down actively pull up on the wheel/lowers to ensure full travel.

If had a few instances where after the changing the IVA I'd lost travel, or on my sons bike the forks getting progressively lower over the year and every time I added air it seemed to get worse (because as soon as you attach the pump it opens the valve to both chambers). let out all air, attach pump, pull on lowers, pump to desired pressure. Job-jobbed.

It is a way to look like a magician if you are helping someone new to Manitou 🙂

Having the Manitou tools helps, though they are not essential (there are ways around that are a tiny bot more 'faffy'), but I find them very similar if not slightly easier than Rockshox. Never used DVO.

Changed all the oils and seals/wipers, for lowers, and the damper oil. Never actually serviced/changed or replaced anything in the damper circuits however.

Travel change is also a piece of piss, which is really rather helpful. That is waaaay simpler than any other fork I've used.

Seems I am on my own here. I have 130mm Minute forks on my 2017 Ragley Marley and have been very disappointed in them. They appear to have no initial small bump damping at all. I have tried many different preload and pressure combos and the forks either feel far too solid, or way too soft. But it's that initial small bump damping that is poor. In fact, I'd go as far to say they have no small bump suspension at all. It's like they are stuck for the first 25% of their travel.

The forks don't have a huge amount of use to bo honest, I've put maybe 200 miles on them since owning they bike.

At 200 miles I'd be surprised if any fork was bedded in properly!

They've been the same since day one. I know new forks take time to bed in, but I'm guessing I'm either not setting them up right or they just aren't for me. But finding an alternative 130mm non-boost fork is like trying to find a neddle in a haystack.

Hmm, I'm not sure that minutes are in quite the same league as Mattocs, Mastodons and Mezzers, however... lack of sensitivity is not something you can aim at them I think

I've 2 pairs of Minutes - one from 2008 that has the weird additional coil spring to the air spring - they don't work great at all for a big fat bloke as they are either way to easy to blow through the travel or rock hard, but lack of sensitivity is not something they are guilty of.

Same for the 2014 set on my wife's bike - they are actually really quite nice forks.

Recommendations - pop the lowers off, drain and clean, bit of SRAM butter or whatever around the dust seals, top up with appropriate fluids for the lowers and off you go.

200m is not a lot, nixie is correct, but they should not behave the way yours are.