Bicycle Suspension Forks?

Question

I'm looking towards buying a bicycle before school starts. I'm looking for the ones WITH suspension forks (the one in the front of the bike). My dad says they don't give a smoother landing after jumping over a sidewalk which I do constantly. I say they do and it feels different for me when I'm on a bike the DOES have suspension forks, and one that doesn't. Help me out guys, how do these things work and do they actually give a smoother bounce?

Answer 1

They will help you with jumping/landing.  Mostly forks help you keep your front wheel in contact with the ground as you traverse bumping conditions.  They also give you some 'spring' as you take off.

Answer 2

This is a long answer but will give you the info. Show it to your dad.

There are a few different kinds of forks out there and not all of them will do what you want.

First is a "high frequency" (HF), or comfort fork. These have 65mm or less travel and usually use elastomers (rubber plugs) as "springs". They are intended for riding on surfaces such as cobblestone or rough paved roads, but NOT jumping or technical riding (such as rain rutted trails and such). These are found on hybrid bikes and comfort bikes.

Close to the HF fork is what we call a "toy" fork. These are found on bikes sold for under $200-250 and really aren't good for anything except to say you have a suspension fork. They sometimes have elastomers OR metal springs but really don't do a good job of anything except holding the front wheel on the bike... they sometimes don't do that very well either. Should you decide that a bike like this is "good enough" and proceed to do what you propose, don't be surprised when it fails and don't blame the bike, the manufacturer, or the dealer. It's all you.

Then there is the ATB fork. These usually have up to 100mm of travel and often have available adjustments such as preload (to allow the adjustment of shock sag) and lockout. These can have elastomer, coil, or air springs, or a combination of them. These are found on bikes from about $300 to maybe $800 or so. There are a couple of jump bikes in this range and most will have a shock that is specced well for it's price but you must choose carefully. These bikes are definitely not department store specials.

Next is the MTB, or all mountain fork. These are made with longer travel- as much as 140mm or more, and have similar construction to an ATB BUT are much beefier and performance oriented. Most jump bike have this type of fork. These are rarely found on bikes under $800. The cost of the fork alone often exceeds the price of an entire ATB bicycle! If you are ramping and jumping and "bouncing" (something you really shouldn't do), THIS is the fork you want.

VERY important... when you get to the better forks you'll only get the performance you expect by careful calibration with help from a professional. This is usually free. There is also the requirement that the fork be maintained... oil changes and reliability checks are all part of the responsibility of having a good piece of engineering holding you up.

Also, remember that shocks are to keep the wheels on the ground for better handling, NOT for comfort, and that no shock will make up for poor riding (or jumping) technique.

There are a couple other types of forks- if you want to learnabout them let me know and I'll edit my answer.

Answer 3

Suspension forks will made all the difference in the world as long as you get one from a bike shop.  The ones from Walmart just are not worth having.