forks still get muddy and rubber gaitors can weight that much???

allegedly mud got inside them and made things worse. I never saw that happen though personally (mine only had a tiny hole to allow air out)

because they invented seals that, largely*, seal (I reckon the "holding grit/water" thing would be irrelevant now, since the seals work better anyway, the solution to each problem is the same and sleeves are irrelevant)

*I don't own a Fox

Fashion police

i think jcrompton's on the money…

headshoks and lefty still use them, mines pretty much airtight, presumably the air hisses in and out through the bearings as it takes a while for them to return to their normal shape after a few hits.

They did a good job but looked rubbish. I like the look of that magura shock thing with the rubber gaitor thing that was on the ST homepage a while ago, but not seen anything of it since. Much better than the 'bellows' look of the traditional type.

Must say though, I'd happily run them on the bike over the winter, rubbish look or not.

I cut them off my 1999 Manitou E Verts and have not seen them since (except in Tescos and Toys r us)

cos they are F'ugly ?

If you look after your forks (and they have decent seals) you don't need them, if you don't look after your forks they'll cover up the nasty stuff going on underneath, loads of trapped grit, scratched stanchions, leaking oil, even corroded holey stanchions (as I found on a neglected commuter bike a long time ago)

Yeah, fashion police, and we end up buying new forks/stanchions/parts when they wear through cos of all the mud/grit/stones wearing away the coatings … on another note, the anodizing/coatings on the alloy stanchions seems to be a lot thiner than say 5+ years ago ?? ??

Use forks designed propoerly for use off-road and you won't need them, and won't have the problem of trapping mud inside either as they don't exist.

My coatings have never worn off, but I'm using older bombers. Strangely I have never had a fault with them, they're buttery smooth and control my wheel motions perfectly well, every time I've stripped and cleaned them they've been clean inside, the bushes last ages and I've never looked after them more than basic maintenance. Theyre a smidge heavier than the current offerings, but then I like to ride my bike, not protect it from its environment and panic that it's not been cleaned and stripped this week and my coatings might vanish with a hint of abrasive.

thisisnotaspoon – Member

headshoks and lefty still use them, mines pretty much airtight, presumably the air hisses in and out through the bearings as it takes a while for them to return to their normal shape after a few hits.

Both of those forks are upside down designs, so any trapped grit or water isn't going to sit next to the seal.
As stated above, current fork seals work very well and the last thing forks need is a rubber boot trapping grit next to vulnerable alloy stanchions.

Both of those forks are upside down designs, so any trapped grit or water isn't going to sit next to the seal.

But the stanchions are a lot closer to the ground and flying rocks, maybe the gaiters are there as a bit of impact protection too?

Hijack….

Donk, went down Wilderswood last night. It was rubbish and I cant believe you fell off on such an unassuming bit of trail. Noob. 😛

Leftys need them as they have odd shaped (square?) stanchions so they point in the right direction!

Hijack….

Are you not a WW regular then? I will be returning next week – tho I might be going a bit slower.

Not ridden it in years. I remember why now. Worst descent from rivi there is.

HIJACK cont:
2mins from the top gate to the path at the bottom. Bet you cant do it in three you slow sod.

Dont like WW why?

If you are having a problem with mud and rubbish getting trapped inside gaiters then it's badly designed.

I used them on my BMW R75 for several years in the Oz outback with many a ride through deep mush and nothing got in. That's because they had a breather to allow air to come in and out. The breather was vented to the fork shrouds which contained clean air and a filter. Gaiters without breathers expel all their air, then suck in whatever is out there, hence the grit and rubbish.

It's a fashion thing derived from motorbikes. Racing bikes didn't use them, so the fast wannabes removed their gaiters to look cool. The manufacturers were happy to leave them off because they were able to sell more forklegs. Besides motorcyclists tend to bend them before wearing them out anyway 🙂

Twisty/turny/loose rock/fixed rock/smooth/fast/drops
Whats not to like? Which do you prefer that side of the hill? I shall have to come on one of your rides to see 🙂

He does not prefer any on that side as none of them end near a pub

The ICR, Gardens and The Dentist (the one going down to the school) are all better IMO.

He does not prefer any on that side as none of them end near a pub

Ner a truer word spoken.

As coffeeking says. I too have a 9 year old fork that still has its coatings, and work perfectly, oh its a Marzocchi from when they were the fork of choice.

Never herd of the "Dentist" is that the cobbled downhill down to the back of Rivvy School ? 😀

Someone smashed their teeth out on it or somert ? 😳

ICRs good but a bit rocky for an average ride. (walna scar is fantastic but i wouldn't wanna do it everyday)
Gardens which one? must be a hundred routes through there.
dentist? not done it, will have to remedy that if you rate it so highly.

Both of those forks are upside down designs, so any trapped grit or water isn't going to sit next to the seal.

You missed the point, there is no 'seal' which is why those two forks are the most stiction free on the market. The loss of gaiters was a definate step back in fork performance in that respect.

Worst descent from rivi there is.

I regularly take the beginners down there and then back up the tarmac – a nice little loop 🙂

The Dentist.

That one you mark is a dry weather down mate, plus halfway down turns into a concrete road.

I always thought that a fork boot, carefully designed not as an tight complete cover, but as a simple sheild against the worst of the flying grit/muck would possibly work better. Certainly any forks I've had had with exposed stanchions seemed to have much faster wear than the earlier generations of booted forks.

Ah dentist, now I have been down that one. Once, long straight cobbled road, fell asleep midway woke up when I hit the gate at the bottom

Sorry last hijack, these sort of discussions should be had in the pub post ride, pint in hand 🙂

Gators disappeared around the time lots of fancy coatings and materials start being used for the stantions. If you are going to gold nitride something theres no point in hiding it.

You have to see the money

lol at the pic 😆

I'll say it again, decent forks don't need protection.

Fashion Police +1

Ah dentist, now I have been down that one. Once, long straight cobbled road, fell asleep midway woke up when I hit the gate at the bottom

Ahh the commonwealth down or the school climb?

you always see them on cheap supermarket bikes, so i presume that the forks on these bikes haven't got good seals, so they need gaiters to keep out the grit/water.