Road Cycling - carbon forks

I am thinking of upgrading my steel frame road bike to a carbon fork. I tried a Kestrel a few years ago, and found it to be unsteady on fast downhills. Any suggestions for a fork (I weigh 185lbs) or should I stay with steel? Is the improved ride really worth the money to upgrade?

Personally I like the feel of a steel fork.
That said the AME Alpha Q is good as is
the Reynolds Ouzo line (pro, etc.)
I don't know enough about em to make a
recommendation but I hear good things about
these two.
If I had a really harsh ride I'd probably go for
carbon fork, or if I really just had to have a new
threadless stem.

Marty

Depends on what you want?

Weight savings: Unless you are into racing the weight savings are no big deal.

Vibration damping: If you are running high pressure tires (over 100psi) a carbon fork will soak up a little vibration, but not as much as a wider tire would. I have a Kestrel EMS on my Specialized road bike and really like it. Tire clearance is an issure with carbon forks so don't get one unless you are sure you will never run anything wider than a 700x25.

I also have a carbon Kestrel EMS on my road bike. I would recommend it. I've noticed a smoother ride on my rig. And that's a good thing.

when I was looking for forks for my road bike, I noticed that you can get a carbon fiber fork for about as much as a aluminum fork? nashbar (http://www.nashbar.com) has some kestrals for $99 (or they were on sale a little while ago)

Some of the cheaper/low-end carbon forks weigh as much as lightweight 531 steel forks and have a similar feel. What kind of steel fork are you riding, is it a crude heavy one?
The instability of the Kestrel fork may be due to a change in trail. Make sure the new fork has the same trail as your current one (if that is sound).

Have to agree with Michael on this one- changing fork rake can make for a twitchy bike.

Some carbon forks have 3.5 cm of rake which works well only on layed-back head tubes (like 72degrees) and even then I'm not so sure.
Using 3cm rake on a bike with a 74 or 75 degree head tube angle would create a bike that requires constant steering corrections (and it would probably ride like a jackhammer, too)

The Kestrel EMS has (I believe) 4 cm of rake and seems to work pretty well with my bike.

alot of the earlier 1" steerer carbon forks were really sketchy. Maybe you tried one of those.
The reasons to go carbon are 1. Lightweight (full carbon fork can be up to 3/4 pound lighter!) 2. Vibration dampening 3. Added control 4. Style 5. Switching from threaded to threadless and want to go carbon.
Whether it's worth the money is up to you but I would gladly FORK over $$ for a full-carbon fork. The advantages are really great. There is nothing wrong with a good steel fork either if you lean that way.

Time forks or the Look hsc forks are okay. The Look carbon hsc might fit your steel frame because the blades taper down and aren't as fat looking as most carbon forks. Its more elegant and fitting of the steel frames. Aluminum steerers are cheaper if $ is a big concern.
The Alpha Q is the best. Those are super stiff but responsive. Comfortable -relatively speaking- and super light.

Personally, I like the straight bladed forks- they look really cool. No difference in stiffness/comfort/performance between the straight or regular curved blades- but straight looks cool!

At 185 lbs, I would say stay with a carbon fork with aluminum steerer IF YOU HAVE A 1" HEADTUBE. The weight and performance advantages will still be noticeable. The exception would be the Alpha Q- the full carbon 1" fork is ultra stiff and light. Worthy of any ride.
If you are at 1 1/8", any of the above full carbons are good.

Weight:
Steel fork: around 800 grams
Carbon/alum.steerer: around 500 grams
Full Carbon: around 400 grams
The Alpha Q is about 340 grams!
As you can see it takes about 3 full carbon forks to equal 1 steel fork! Big difference!