Should you fit a 170mm Fork on a Hightower LT?
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- Опубліковано 27 лют 2018
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So a few of you smart folks will no doubt chime in with "But I thought you hated the slack seat angle... this only makes it worse.... blah blah blah." You are correct! The reason I did this is because climbing to me is a necessary evil and descending is why I ride mountain bikes. I will happily make climbing harder if it make descending more fun and comfortable.
I found steep climbs to be marginally more difficult mostly due to the higher bars rather than the slacker angles. That could be combatted by lowering the stem height but like I said in the vid, I like the high bars for descending and I can easily tweak my body positioning to get balanced grip for cornering.
This is a change that works for ME, it won't suit everyone.
Thanks to my film crew:
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Ben Cathro
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DOWNHILL
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Flipping stoked that hand is up to a bit of punishment now. If you're after more details there's some info up in the vid description!
Hey, I was wondering what song you use for the intro cause I've never seen it linked in any of your vids?
Otis Mcdonald - Scarlet Fire Sting
Ben Cathro first vid I've seen of you . Subbed . Insane rider , awesome man ! And bike does not give a shit lol . Boss.
I love having a 170mm in the front, even with a 150mm back. More stable and less sketchy on the steeps. Also slightly raises the BB, but i wanted that. Lyriks/ yaris all have the range of 150-180mm by replacing the air shaft.
Ben Cathro Does this invalidate your warrenty?
Thanks for the shoutout!! Big forks feel so good 😂🤘🏽😍
r u ded again
No problem, was genuinely scratching my head when I saw your bike check vid. Had to fire up google and check the facts. Glad I watched your vid!
Yo Alex!
this should be on a top ten most satisfying videos video. absolutely loved it.
Sick video you killed it! I switched from the GoPro to the Sony last year and I love it. I can't believe how shaky my old videos were with the GoPro. The picture quality, color, sound, and most of all the image stabilization is so much better on the Sony X3000.
Damn straight! Excited to see what footage I can get out of this little beast.
Great video! I really dig the different slo-mo angles, shows the bike and rider doing their thing. Subbed!
Wow man, I'd watch a whole video of RAW 3rd person riding footage from you, your style is absolutely sick!
Cheers dude, it's hard to look good when your this lanky!
for the way you ride, 170 seems perfect, that was rad ripping. normally slowmo is so overdone but the way you do it shows the technique and bike working. great stuff.
Sick Video! I've actually ordered my new Bike with 170 in front instead of the standard 160, can't wait to try it once I get it 🤟🏻
Watching you shred in those British Pie films makes me understand why you need those on a 29er! Bike is sick AF! 👌 💯 keep em’ coming Ben!
loved the video keep shredding!!!bike looks even better than it already did
Another great vid. I’m on Santa Cruz XXL as well. Bumped my Tallboy to 130mm up front. But on my Hightower LT I think 160mm is where I’ll stop. I don’t send it like you do! Great riding.
Upgraded my specialized status single crown with a boxxer (mainly for optic purposes first) then I really fell in love with the new feel of sitting more IN the bike and not on a bike
Great video and yes I love upforking my bikes too! I'm running a Fox 36 160mm on my 2016 Transition Smuggler with 115mm rear travel. The big fork gets you through the gnar and the rest of the bike will follow!
Brilliant video! Loved the mic'd up bit at the push up - the audio was mint and makes such a difference from a lot of mtb vlogs you see on UA-cam 👌
Thanks Ali, just had the mic plugged into the Sony Action cam, worked pretty good!
I'm loving 130 out back with 160 up front. Loads of confidence for me!
I got the Jeffsy since October 2016, came with 140mm front travel, i extended it to 160 for few months, just hated it ... Then I reduced to 150mm, but added that Vorsprung Luftkappe and low friction SKF seals ... The front feels so sweet since !
The sony camera is sick so much better and one of my favourite videos of your so sick love it
Sweet riding, Ben!
New camera looks class 🤘🏻
I loved the quality of the vid man! I hate it when gopro footage digitizes and looks blurry when watching on my phone. Looking forward to more vids.
Hi Ben, I love your style and that is what I mean exactly. I am sure you ride fast but some riders are just charging and the clock shows FAST, and some dancing on the bike and you are this guy and clock shows FAST as well. But it is so cool to look at you riding :) :) :) It looks like you pump every little hole to get speed.
Pump into every hole for traction and smoothness! 👌
Super COOL !!! Waiting for your next real start and see how fast you are on your new bike :)))))))))
Me too!
100% agree Ben. Day one with my Hightower 2017 I removed the Pike 140 and replaced it with a Lyric 160 and never looked back. An extra 20-25mm in the front is the best. Who cares about climbing. Climbing is going to suck period so might as well make the downhill as fun as we can!
Did the exact same with my OG hightower but I also stuck a custom 55mm stroke shock and ran the flip chip in high to give 145mm on the rear.
I knowe I am a bit late but I question myself, if you could tune my 180-140 talas and make it a 190-140? 🤔 I'm a newbie but it'd be probably too dangerous doing that with a non-double-crown fork anyways.
Those bikes are crap at climbing at the best of times
Actually just found this video because I was thinking of putting a 170 fork on my XXL Hightower hahaha. You definitely sold me on it, so thanks!
You look amazing on that bike! What a Trail! I love it.
When Ben cater makes a 29er look like a 26 and 800ish bars look like those old 600mm T handles!
+Ben Cathro the real question is: How strong is the placebo effect?
Reeeeealllll strong. 😉
I run a 180mm Lyrik on the front of my Mondy Dune. One thing i notice, other than the fact it steamrollers through the rough stuff is that the extra travel means i can run it really plush, with quite a bit of sag and not bottom out, which means terrific traction over wets roots etc
I took my lyrics down to 160mm. I found my kona 153 (2016) more balance know.
More in. Adéquation with the frame....
Nice video !! Thanks a lot
I'm doing something similar with my shorter travel Fuel EX. Stock 140/130 with Sektor Silver Boost in front. By removing a travel limiter, the fork can be extended to 150mm. Nice entry level fork for me with adjustable travel.
I agree! Increased my Yeti SB5+ from Fox 34 150 to Fox 36 160. Loving it. Also shortened stem form 50 to 35. Noticing the climbs are tougher but like you the downhills are more fun!:)
Currently running the little brother to your LTTB3 with a 140mm Fox 34 Just great fun , and enough trail bike for most of my riding
Sounds like a best of both worlds trail bike 👌
Brilliant video dude 🤘
We want more , we want more !
Nice video mate! Always good to have a lot of front suspension isn't it :D and also really like to Sony, I've been using an older one for a longer time now and especially the sound is so much better I think!
Love your videos Cathro you're a legend
From one tall guy to another, I really enjoyed the slo’ mo footage. Able to take a lot of tips away from your riding, thanks! Glad the hand is better 👍🏼
This was the first day it didn't hurt too much, stoked I can go fast again!
Your new camera is great, very stable
Awesome vid as always chief. Like yourself I'm a tall chap with long legs compared to arms, and opted for 180mm on the front of the Dune instead of 170mm with a bit of stack and 40mm rise. Makes a lot of sense for helping to keep your weight low at the front on the steep descents and gives you a bit more stroke to play with if you are on the heavier side (giggity). You do lose a bit of reach depending on your pre-existing head angle, and I agree the climbing situation ain't ideal but that's more down to stupid slack seat angles. Suspension is so good these days (especially with some pro input) that turning down extra travel is just a bit daft I reckon.
What probably took that man 13 minutes would take me 4 hours.
The track looks like fun. You made great work of it too.
I stuck a 180mm Yari on my 150MM travel frame, but have it sag to 30%, so it comes right back nearer the 150 normally spec'd. :-0
Love the videos Ben. Just to give our two cents. Got a 2013 Bronson here and recently swapped the old Fox 34 with 150mm travel to a Fox 36 with 160mm travel. Immediately felt a big confidence boost on the descents and way more grip. Climbing seemed very similar in fairness so its a thumbs up for slightly more travel up front from us 🤘🏽
doing the same swap but also going from 27.5 to 29er , what could I expect 🤔
Hey Ben great vids. I rode with Alex a couple of weeks ago, dude is a charger. I love that Sony cam, but the form factor is a little weird. The picture quality is far superior to GoPro though. Makes a great side mounted helmet cam.
I don't think it's a massive difference between the two but the image is a little better out of the sony. My main reason was for the optical stabilisation. Yeah, form factor is weird for body mounting but mint for hand holding. I've never liked side mounting but I'm working on something special for it.
Why not?! I lengthened travel on my Santa Cruz 5010 Pike fork to 150 mm from 130 mm, rear is 130 mm. Works great for me on the trails I ride in western North Carolina.
Damn...you're charging pretty hard ona proper sick looking track!
Btw now you should probably call it a Highertower from now on :-P
Lieutenant Highertower 👌
I did the same way with my OG Hightower 29er, air shaft install to my Rockshox Pike from 140mm to 150mm and its sweet.
Yeahhh, I took it to 160mm on my OG Hightower 🤘
Bronson CC with 160mm here! Great vid brother!
Sounds like a sick setup!
Definitely something I've thought about for the 5.5 Yeti, but was reserved because of the 140mm rear end. Loving the new camera fella, really clear and stable, and a nicer feel than the gimbal in my opinion.
I agree on the gimbal thing. Got a few tweaks to make to the mount to remove a bit more shake then it'll be ideal.
I ran a 29er 140mm on my 27.5 hardtail (designed for 140) for awhile. I think the combination of more offset and 20mm taller made it a bit twitchy at speed. I've since gotten a proper 27.5 150mm fork and it's loads betters all around. I'm still pushing the fork length by 10mm, but all in travel and now with a smaller offset. More stable, still descends great. I'm on a 2015 Chromag Wideangle.
I moved my lyriks on my yt capra to 170, pretty much had similar thoughts to you. However I put in a single offset shock bushing to drop the BB down and slacken it out a little more. Love the vids 🤟🏻
Been looking at offset bushings, can I deal with an even slacker seattube angle 🤔
Haha that’s true, shouldn’t be too long until someone makes extendable saddle rails though 😂
I've only ever run a 170mm on my Cube Stereo 20inch frame 26inch wheels. I love having the big fork it feel great on the trails in Glencoe.
Too right, Glencoe’s got some proper chunk!
Im on a 2016 Capra Pro Race....160 Fox 36 up front 170 at rear. The Capra Pro from that year is 170 front and back, so the frame is built for it no question. Upping my race to 170 is something I would consider but I plan on doing a bucket load of climbing this year so....probably not worth it. God knows I dont ride downhill like you anyway ya beast.
Agree totally. My son Daniels' Radon Swoop came with 170mm Lyrik, but changed to 180mm. Combined with the 170mm back end he now has a truly All Mountain bike he uses for the gnarly steep off-piste and smashing the DH/Bike Park stuff. I think if you ride hard enough it's an easy upgrade.
Aye, Daniel's bike is a total machine!
i have 140 rear and 160 front, but it is a 26" that i bought in 2010
I swapped out the air spring on my '17 130mm 34's for '18 140mm. I prefer it and as a bonus the new air spring added EVOL :) I also swapped the GRIP damper out for the '18 FIT4, again, feels better.
Enjoyed the vid mate, that course is mental! Love it!
Oh and the camera looks spot on. Might get one myself :)
Yeah man, Evol is the biggest difference of everything you mentioned, so supple!
Love the vid, and definitely prefer the vid quality of the FDR-X3000, hands down!
Smacked a 170 dvo diamond boost on my 160 orbea r4. Now it climbs like a dh bike. It’s insane on the way down. Cheers....
You're a machine on the bike Cathro. I like your sony footage, it is better than a go pro 5/6 as standard but definitely below the gimbal level. Part of the reason your content is so good though, is that raw, rough riding though .. So tough call man :). 🚲
Im riding a 2013 SC Tallboy LTC with a 140 FOX Factory fork. I added 15ml of fluid to stiffen it up and another 5-8 psi. I also installed a Works Components 1 degree headset to get me out to 67.5.
Climbs great but descends much better now.
I need a SC HT with a 160 fork and 27.5+ wheels at 2.8 tires. Next bike.
Yes - back in 2004 when I mounted a 180mm travel Boxxer to my '98 Yeti Lawwill DH-6, which was designed around a 150mm Boxxer. For those that might not remember, the DH-6 was able to be fitted with a E-type XTR front derailleur and a triple front ring (this was way before 1x was a thing; and I was running 8 spd).
The additional 30mm of travel totally transformed the bike and made it much better on descents without really making the climbing any worse - well, as worse as you can imagine for a 35 lb trail bike. I was also running Mavic D3.1 UST tubeless wheels as well on the bike (the wheels and fork were taken off my 2000 M-1 after I quit racing DH and sold that frame).
I actually still have that Yeti, although I haven't ridden it in years since getting bitten by the "big wheel" bug. Now have 29er and 27.5 trail bikes and a 27.5 DH bike (yeah... retirement didn't last...).
I changed my XC bike from 100 to 120mm... and I haven’t been on that bike since! I’m thinking about selling it and getting a all trail as opposed to an xc
Luv the vid... 👊🏽😎
Sony footage looks great Ben :)
Raised up my 150 pikes to 160. Dropped the spacers.. beautiful... 140 on the rear. I will live with the climping👌
I've got 170 Lyriks on my 2010 Pitch pro replacing the OG 140 pikes and yeah it's lost it's climbing edge but there really is nothing like having get out of jail free travel that lets you plough!
Awesome video man
I have a 170 36 on my enduro 29. I added an offset bushing to lower the bb a bit and slacken the whole thing out and man that thing rips!
Did you put two offset bushings in or just one?
Just about to throw my Fox 34 150mm Rhythm in the bin and put a fresh 170mm Lyrik on my trance. I'm frothing to try it out. Im Inspired! Damm you were sending it!
Mint.
Course you could get that 10mm bar rise back by wearing 70's platform shoes and putting your saddle up.
Camera looks amazing. Upgrading 150mm pike on Bronson to 160mm soon
That's what I run on my Bronson mate and it works a treat
Great footage on the Sony
170 looks sick!
Love the camera, I ride with a gimbal but it dumbs down the trail. You need to feel the turns and speed!! Ugh now I need a Sony!!
Totally agree Watty!
Now this is a damn great video
I love the reverse mullet on trail bikes. At the moment, its a 140mm fork on a 105mm Banshee Phantom. Was wondering about a 170 or 180 fork for the new Capra 29 -- non Pro version with 160mm rear.
Great vid man! The Sony camera seems pretty sick actually, didn't know there was action cameras out there with stabilisation like that!
Yeah, mega stoked with it. Got a lot of experimenting to do with it to get the best image possible.
Nice vid mate. The Sony footage is great. Just fitted a 2018 170mm lyrik debonair to my canyon strive cf. Upgraded from a 160mm pike. Much prefer the higher and slacker front end plus the boost lyrik is a much more burly front end. Ideal for the bigger chaps!
Big Fellas Unite!
Great stuff Man!
Thank you for the video. Ordered Fox38 170mm. Do I need to replace the standard 150mm rear too?
I through a 170mm factory orange fox 36 on my trek slash that came with a 160mm... could not be happier. Big forks for the win.
that's why I used a double position fork, when i increased the travel of my fork on my trail bike, so uphill won't be an issue
I'm using Sony X1000V attached to a Fox roost guard and it gives very smooth footage. The normal strap chest mount shakes too much on rough trails.
have you tried lowering the handlebar removing the spacers on the sterer tube bellow stem if any left? You could regain that 10mm from 20 added on the fork travel in term of handling. But i assume that with those 20mm additional travel the geometry couldn't be compensated (maybe with the tuning rear shock like someone mentioned in comments).
I am in dilemma should I go to lyrik 160 or 170 from 150 on my Bronson....
I put a 140 pike on my '18 tallboy (vs 120 stock) and it absolutely slays. Minimal effect on the climbing but so much better on the descending. Never going back.
Nice Video Ben. The sony footage looks on point, it's definitely better than a gopro due to the optical image stabilization. There are some videos saying that the dynamic range of the Gopro is better, but I think that is just because the gopro resolves brighter from the raw data than the sony (DXO mark havent got a dynamic range test for either Hero6 or the Sony X3000).
I have been running a 170mm fork on my Mega Tr for a couple of years and love it. Plus a -2 angleset. Makes it long and slack. I also run old school 26" wheels too as I wanted the 440mm chainstays from the 275 mega frame (I am too tight to move over to bigger wheels yet). So a low BB. She loves to blast a good descent.
Yup, the new digital stabilisation of the 6 is impressive but falls short in certain spots. Dynamic range isn't mega important to me but stabilisation that doesn't turn off when the shutter speed drops below 1/30 is. The key is going to be making the chest mount solid to remove as much camera shake as possible. Then it'll hopefully just be smooth video that shows all the leaning, pumping and body movement without the shake.
The sony cam was superb, if ya ask me.
Enjoyable and well made video:)
I have a talas but want to change to a fox 36 as i only use the higher setting.
Loved the video, you could put a coil shock on the rear to make the ultimate mini DH that climbs too! Would be the ultimate enduro machine
I'm mega tempted to try a coil. Frame came with the air so trying that first. To be fair it feels pretty mint.
have you seen the rylo 360 video camera? I'm sure you'll be able to make even more awesome vids with it!
Great video. I've been thinking about the suspension on my bike. Been riding a 140mm aggressive hardtail for years and recently purchased a 160 enduro bike. I love it but feel out of tune or just not used to the rear, would adding volume spacers to the shock be the answer 🤔
No idea. I feel like you need to get used to the more vague feeling at the back end. Volume spacers are used if you are blowing through the travel and bottoming out too easily.
Pushed the fork on my Smuggler out from 130mm to 150mm and it's been all good. I wasn't flying up hills to begin with so no harm done.
suspension mechanic here , and if im honest the new airshaft for the fork was more fun to see than the bike with a 170mm fork ( lol)
Ben have you considered fitting A luftkappe neg upgrade ?
Nice work. Glad you're enjoying the HT LT. Too bad they don't make the Nomad in your size...
I bumped the Fox 34 on my 5010 from 130 to 140. I didn’t notice much difference in handling.
I didn’t notice much difference in fork feel/performance either…until I dropped a token. It would be interesting to switch back for comparison purposes, now that I’m used to the current setup.
I snapped my forks and first Swiss forks to replace it but I measured the travel and it’s closer to 160 than the original 140 of the old fork feels lush when I’m riding it
My first bike was a 120mm Spesh, and I slammed a 180mm fork on there! I don't claim it was good, but i rode some pretty gnarly dh tracks on it and didn't realise how tough that must have been on the bike!
I've been running a Sony cam for a while and I'm pretty happy with it (I've got the AZ1). Only criticism is that with the small size of mine it's got pretty short battery life.
Yeah, I've realised you've got to put it in airplane mode and have it turned off between filming. Got 2 spare batteries as well.
Ben Cathro yeah I picked up some spare batteries and the portable charging case things so I can have them recharging in my backpack off a battery bank as I ride.
Big Ben!! Enjoying the video bro! Just wondering if you considered Push ACS-3 coil upgrade instead of going to the 170mm as you did. Have you tried a coil front and rear on your HTLT?
Not got the money to try these unfortunately. I keep blowing it all on camera gear 😂
I'm extending the 36 my Hightower LT size XL to 160mm soon. My only worry is that it'll further reduce the reach. I'm 6.1 and feel that the XL is a bit short with just 468mm... Slapping a 60mm stem on solved the problem for now.
Great vid Ben, what travel do u run on the rear shock?
It's 150mm on the back.
I figured it out, your accent reminds me of the actor *Mark Strong's* character in that kick-arse movie, *Kingsman: The Secret Service*