3/16/15 12:53 AM

I just purchased a 2014 Lynskey Sportive frame on closeout from Chain Reaction. Now I need a fork for it that will fit 28mm tyres. Lynskey sell such a fork, but as it has an aluminium steerer, I'm not keen on purchasing it, and most manufacturers are pretty coy about giving an indication of what size tyre will fit in their forks. Any suggestions?

The Lynskey fork has 43mm rake and 367mm axle centre to crown race seat, so any 3rd party fork needs to be reasonably close to those dimensions...

3/16/15 6:03 AM

Enve claims they fit 28c max tire width on their Road 1.0 and Road 2.0 forks. Possibility?

David

3/16/15 7:28 AM

How important is weight? Surly's Pacer and Steamroller forks have dimensions close to what you want and clear 32 mm tires or larger but are all Cr-Mo steel and weigh 1000 to 1150 grams.

3/16/15 1:58 PM

I got a use Kono straight steel fork when I did the SS conversion on my Strong. Like it a lot on the road and like the look of it as well. Off a Kona Kapu, has chrome crown and black legs.

The crown to axle is 380mm

<img src="http://coupekiss.host-ed.me/images/pics/S_Foco-ENO-med-fr.jpg" width=384>

Last edited by Sparky on 3/16/15 2:12 PM; edited 1 time in total

3/16/15 1:59 PM

Thanks for the suggestions. The Enve looks as though it would do the job. I've also found that a couple of Australian framebuilders offer the Pegoretti Falz fork as an option with their frames, and it also is supposed to clear a 28mm tyre and have the correct length/rake, so I'm waiting to hear back from them.

3/16/15 2:17 PM

I have come to like the feel of a steel fork over carbon.

I have a lot of steel forked bikes too. ;)

As soon as I sell off a few items when this weather breaks, Carl is getting another order from me. And I plan to have him make the steel fork as well. Something monster crossie with discs. I figure @ 58year old in May, one last custom horray is in order. ;)

3/17/15 11:42 PM

I eventually purchased a Pegoretti Falz fork from the Australian distributor, as I could get it from him a couple of hundred bucks cheaper than an Enve fork was going to cost me from anywhere else. Here's a shot of a Grand Bois Cerf (nominal 700x28, actually measures 27 high by 29 wide on an Open Pro rim) in the fork. The brake in the shot is a Campag Record - a Shimano caliper gives slightly more clearance. The fork is no featherweight - about 520g with uncut steerer. Some blurb on it here: http://www.framebuilderscollective.org/dario-pegoretti-falz-fork/

3/24/15 8:54 PM

I also found Planetx Bikes selling Dedacciai F14 forks at over 60% off, and as that fork is the correct length and rake and can take a 28mm tyre, I bought one as a spare: http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/FODEF14/dedacciai-f14-road-fork

Who knows how long good quality forks with a straight 1-1/8" steerer will be available - everything these days seems to be going to tapered steerers with oversize bottom bearings, and the number of aftermarket forks is getting smaller and smaller as more and more frames come supplied with a fork - and in many cases the frame and fork are both shaped to match each other. I was looking at a friend's Neil Pryde frame today, and the way that the head tube and seat tube swap around the back of the fork crown means you'd have difficulty getting anything other than the manufacturer's fork to fit.

4/17/15 12:01 AM

Well, after realizing that I wanted about 70mm of spacers under the stem (the XL size frame only has an 18cm head tube), I decided that that was probably pushing the limits of reliability with a carbon steerer, and I went for a steel fork instead. One additional advantage of a steel fork is that the fork crown is not as deep, so for exactly the same length of fork I get about an additional 5mm of clearance under the crown compared to either the Pegoretti or Dedacciai fork.

One item on the bike that is definitely a success is the Brooks Cambium saddle. I bought it out of curiosity after reading a few good reports, and it's as comfortable as any saddle I've ever sat on, and unlike a leather Brooks, you don't have to suffer a break-in period. It also weighs rather less than a full leather Brooks, though still more than a racing saddle. It's actually made from vulcanised rubber with a cotton top.

4/17/15 6:44 AM

I am so-o-o envious. Not of the bike, but of the fact that you can have a Mercedes B-Class in Australia! They only have the B-Class as an all-electric vehicle here in the US - with about 80 miles of range.

4/17/15 12:13 PM

Seems odd that a sportive bike would have such a short head-tube.I would think that purchasers of this frame would want a similar handlebar drop that you went for with that huge tower of spacers.

David

4/17/15 8:36 PM

Sportive=24 spoke rear wheel also? Are you 150 lbs? Or is that Audax that need more stout wheels?

Glad to see a steel fork with all those spacers though.

4/17/15 9:08 PM

64kg last time I stepped on the scales (~140lbs), so I'd say I'm stressing a 24-spoke rear wheel less than a 220lb rider would be stressing a 32-spoke wheel. The Schwalbe 28mm tyres actually measure 30mm on those rims, which are 23mm wide, and I run them at 65psi front and 70 rear, so there's a fair bit of cushioning over the bumps as well.

My wife, who weighs about 52kg (~115lbs), has been happily riding around for quite a while on all sorts of road surfaces, both sealed and unsealed, on a set of Dura-Ace C24 wheels, which are 16-spoke front, 20-spoke rear, and about 1400g for the pair. They've remained dead true since new.

4/18/15 6:29 AM

How do you like the bike? Any noticeable differences from other, similar type bikes you have? (I seem to remember you have various audax, road, or light touring type bikes). I guess the main goal of a "sportive" bike is comfort over a long day with reasonable handling?

I'm riding a sportive in a week, just using a conventional steel road bike. Also have Schwalbe tires, 25mm Ones.

Enjoy the bike!

4/18/15 4:42 PM

Only three rides on the bike so far, though each of them three or four hours long - I'm very happy with the ride and handling. Lynskey also make a disc brake version of the same frame, but I decided to stick with rim brakes, as we have a pretty dry climate here and rims take a long long time to wear out.

I also have a lugged steel randonneur machine as well, with the same tyres, and I'd say the two have very similar rides. The lugged machine is a bit heavier, that's all.

4/18/15 5:38 PM

quote:

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64kg last time I stepped on the scales (~140lbs), so I'd say I'm stressing a 24-spoke rear wheel less than a 220lb rider would be stressing a 32-spoke wheel. The Schwalbe 28mm tyres actually measure 30mm on those rims, which are 23mm wide, and I run them at 65psi front and 70 rear, so there's a fair bit of cushioning over the bumps as well.

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