Hi,

I am thinking about some maverick DUC forks for my tandem, any comments from users, current or previous on this fork?

reliability, stiffness, set up, errrm other..

thanks

Andy

Mate had a set on a 5 Spot, they spent more time being repaired than being ridden. Unsure whether that was just his luck or not.

never had a issue with my SC 32's basically the same fork

Mavericks are Marmite Forks btw

Some people like them

Some people don't

Reliability issues have all but been solved (unless you buy an older fork that has not had the newer seals fitted etc.).

I like them, easy to setup, easy to service myself, work VERY well for such a lightweight XC fork (well they should do with 150mm of travel!).

Wouldn't consider one for a tandem though, don't think it's beefy enough to be fair. A Tandem is going to put some massive stresses through any fork, and I'd be looking at something much more burly than a Maverick to take the strain for sure…

If you fancy one though, I have one I'm willing to part with for cash. It's been spare since I got another bike last year, JUST serviced (and not ridden since), and in overall not bad condition. Couple of bits of cable rub here and there etc, but overall not bad.

I have tuned/serviced a pair for a customer who has them on a tandem. He's been using them for a couple of years, with no problems.

Although it may be a good idea to contact Maverick to see what they think!

Craig.

Light, nice action, and very flexy.

Use on a Tandem? I'd be wary.

I had a long lend of an Intense with some DUCs fitted a few years back. I found them to be prone to diving (which may have been a factor of bad damping set up on my behalf) and they were the most flexy fork I have had the mis pleasure of using.

Good points:
Light (for a 6inch fork)
Easy to service (I'm told – never had to yet!)
Plush

Bad points:
Divey, although to be fair this is only a problem for me when braking hard. When riding I don't find it an issue.

I've read countless comments that they are flexy, but have yet to notice it as a problem when riding. Maybe I have never ridden long travel stiff forks so not got a comparison.

In summary they are an ace long travel XC fork that I have used happily in some very rocky terrain in the Sierra Nevada, Scotland, Peaks, Lakes, Dales, Wales etc. I've done (not many) 6 foot ladder drops with them too.

Got a pair on my Whyte. Never found them flexy. Always worked nicely. So nice that I am constantly trying to find something bad with them so I can change them. Easy to service. Only complaint I have is that they can get a bit noisy after a while. I think it's the Finish Line oil I use – it seems to become aerated after about 10 hours of use. Doesn't affect the action though .
Don`t forget you need the 24mm hub too.

Bad points:
Divey, although to be fair this is only a problem for me when braking hard. When riding I don't find it an issue.

Easily fixed by correct damper tuning/setup. Out of the box, they're very divey yes, but it's a 15 minute job to take the fork apart, change the damper shims and oil, and put it back together.

I've read countless comments that they are flexy, but have yet to notice it as a problem when riding. Maybe I have never ridden long travel stiff forks so not got a comparison.

Flexy compared to what? They're less flexy than people think, certainly I've never really noticed it. I also have an SC32, which is more flexy for certain, but still not really an issue.

Only complaint I have is that they can get a bit noisy after a while. I think it's the Finish Line oil I use – it seems to become aerated after about 10 hours of use. Doesn't affect the action though .

Decent fully synthetic Motocross fork oil such as Silkolene Pro RSF or Putoline makes the difference here…

MaverickBoy – I'll try some synthetic oil next time. Was going to use something else last time I serviced them, but it was over Christmas and all the local motorbike shops were closed so had to use the Finish Line crud again.
Do you stick with 5wt?

What order do you recomend for the shims – never felt the need to change them round but it's so easy to do I might give it a try.

Cheers

KevPP

I'm 12st but like a farily active fork. I've stuck with the original order for the shims, along with 5wt Putoline oil.

I have put a quite a few cc's more oil into the air spring though to combat the ultra linear spring rate as standard.

Works for me anyway…

I've just taken some off my Yeti 575. I ran them for just over 2yrs. They replaced some Fox Vanilla 130. They felt stiffer than the Fox, but i did get to the end of some technical sections and the stem (bolted to top crown) wasn't facing the same direction as the wheel…. 😯 Thing was i couldnt feel it when i was riding. They were stiffer fore/aft which had been the problem with the old Fox. I've replaced them with the latest Vanillas with QR15. 1st impressions are the new forks are stiffer than the ducs.
They were very easy to service, not that they needed a lot. They were also very reliable.
The reason for changing was the ride. They just weren't as supple as the vanillas. Now that ive ridden the new QR15 forks i've also found an new characteristic that i hadn't noticed before. The DUCs weren't as stable were jumping. They always turned on take off, i'd put it down to me being useless, but the Vanillas don't do it.
Overall, a good light fork, but a bit marmite. They may be fine on a tandem, depends how much stick you give it guess.

andy i have some you can have if you want.
they need a dropout repair but if you can be arsed to sort it out they should be ok.
email me your adress and i will chuck em in the post.

Sounds interesting, I'll pm you.

Agree with Maverick Boy. Mine were scarily divey until fettled by tuning the shim stack and changing the oil for heavier motocross stuff. I bought a litre of 10wt that'll last me well over a 100 years….:-)

They don't dive now and go boing very nicely. Servicing is aldo a POP….

still agree but duplicate post. Forum having a 'moment'?

I am a big fan too and have used them exclusively for about 4 years. Very easy to tune and service and have never had issues with stiffness or flex.

My mates Fax talas 36s do feel stiff, but weight twice as much so should do I guess!

I quite like the fact that you don't see many of them about and they always attract attention and interest at trail centres.

very spikey in my experience

good fork if you are tall! sadly the stem adjustment leaves you with limited options, ok fork and very stiff with a 24mm bolt through. divey yes but i still think the main problem is the height, having said that mine where the 29" version. center of gravity was far to high and bike felt like it wanted to fall over in every corner.