Replacing front fork on mtb?

Question

it appears that the front fork is held in place by 1 bolt, and the old fork slides out and the new fork slides in, is is that easy, brakes notwithstanding

Answer 1

The fork is held in by a few options. One option is this...and then it would be that easy:

The one bolt you are talking about holds it all in. First you have to loosen the bolts on the stem (part that holds the handle bars in) Undo the top nut with an allen wrench, take off the cap, the stem, and the spacers. If you undo that, the fork will come out and you can put the new one in. When you go to retighten it, that is the tricky part. Put the spacers back in, put the stem back in, but don't tighten it, and then put the cap and bolt back in. If you tighten it too much, then you will get binding and it won't turn smoothly. If it's too loose, then it will rattle. After you tighten it, put on the front brake and try to rock the bike back and forth. If you feel any play, then you need to tighten it more. Then tighten the bolts on the stem. Be sure you tighten them down good otherwise you may go to turn the bike and the handle bars will turn but the front wheel won't.

If that isn't the kind of handle bars you have, then I have no idea. It has to do with the rings at the top part of the frame where the handle bar stem connects.