Cyclocross - Pedalforce cyclocross fork or other suggestions

I've have a Rob Roy from the group buy a couple years ago that I was using as a commuter but is now just sitting around not being used. I'm reluctant to sell it so I decided to modify it into something a bit more fun. One of the major changes I'd like to make is replace the heavy steel fork with something significantly lighter. Since I don't really need this bike, I want to stay reasonably cheap (less than $200). I also want to maintain the option of fenders, so I'm confining my options to forks with eyelets.

I was thinking of ordering the Pedalforce CHK02...
http://pedalforce.com/online/product_info.php?products_id=13567
which is meant to be paired with their CX1 cyclocross frame. It seems like the best deal out there ($158 + shipping) for a full carbon fork and it does have fender eyelets. The specs look like it would work with a RR frame.

Anybody care to comment on this fork, or offer a better suggestion? I'm a big guy (205lbs) and would probably use this bike for a mix of light offroading, winter snow riding, and some commuting/road riding.

Edit: it just occured to me that this fork is made for frames with integrated headsets, which the RR is not. I think that rules it out, though I'm not sure. Anyway, any other suggestions are appreciated.

I've have a Rob Roy from the group buy a couple years ago that I was using as a commuter but is now just sitting around not being used. I'm reluctant to sell it so I decided to modify it into something a bit more fun. One of the major changes I'd like to make is replace the heavy steel fork with something significantly lighter. Since I don't really need this bike, I want to stay reasonably cheap (less than $200). I also want to maintain the option of fenders, so I'm confining my options to forks with eyelets.

I was thinking of ordering the Pedalforce CHK02...
http://pedalforce.com/online/product_info.php?products_id=13567
which is meant to be paired with their CX1 cyclocross frame. It seems like the best deal out there ($158 + shipping) for a full carbon fork and it does have fender eyelets. The specs look like it would work with a RR frame.

Anybody care to comment on this fork, or offer a better suggestion? I'm a big guy (205lbs) and would probably use this bike for a mix of light offroading, winter snow riding, and some commuting/road riding.

Edit: it just occured to me that this fork is made for frames with integrated headsets, which the RR is not. I think that rules it out, though I'm not sure. Anyway, any other suggestions are appreciated.

Sometimes manufacturers make crowns that have a smooth transition to oversized headtubes, but that is not the case with the PF fork. In other words the fork will work fine as long as your Rob Roy is 1 1/8"

I hope you are checking fork length and offset when determining if this fork will work for your bike

Hi,

Saw this Origin8 fork for just over $200 on the Bikeman website...they claim 470grams.

http://www.bikeman.com/JB-27932.html

Maybe that would work for ya.

Really - why bother? It's the total system weight that affects performance - which is is bike plus rider. A 205lb guy plus a bike that will still be over 20lbs will make any weight saving trivial - you'll spend $200 to get weight down by 0.25%!

Plus I'd really question putting a carbon fork on a bike to be used off road by a +200lb guy - who doesn't need the marginal weight boost for racing.

If you want to spend money making the bike ride better and just giving it a boost, then I'd suggest Salsa Bell Laps, funky gel bar tape, and better tyres - perhaps Marathon Extremes or Duremes, as these seem to be the ultimate on/off road combo tyres.

Really - why bother?...etc.

Because I can.

Hi,

Saw this Origin8 fork for just over $200 on the Bikeman website...they claim 470grams.

http://www.bikeman.com/JB-27932.html

Maybe that would work for ya.

Wow, thats scary light...almost as light as my road fork!

charming