Brian

You had a nice 5" dual crown fork lying around, and next spring, you wanted to take advantage of the lifts at Sundance with something more than a Cannondale XC bike.

I've got the fork and most of the little bits I need to build up another bike. But I need a frame. Since this will be a budget beater build, I'll probably go with a used frame. I know I can get a cheap hardtail frame new, but what FS frames are out there with around 5" of rear travel? Suggestions?

What have you guys been riding?

Thanks,

Brian

Dannihilator

Get a hardrock.

Just kidding.

What's the price limit for the frame?

wethepeople

Take the tandem.

And get a BMX again...

Oleanshoebox

Okay, I'm sure everybody knows I work at Jenson-so there ya go. But honestly, we have jamis XLTs for a ridiculous price that have 5" of rear travel. We only have one size left so I hope you are tall. Check em out.

dminor 

Specialized Enduros from the early-to-mid '00s make very worthy 5" bikes and take a 5" fork well. Slackens them out the right amount for fairly confident decending.

Oleanshoebox

poop

Maelstrom 

Actual Viable option

https://transitionbikes.com/2007/Covert.cfm

Will match up nicely travel wise and be strong enough for dh

Maelstrom 

You do..I didn't know that

mtnbiker66

True that. I never even thought of it but unless you were really going big that would be a great frame.

ed 

You knew I'd be replying to this one...

Jamis Dakar XLT is a good tough 5" frame and can be found for $250-$400 on the net. It's tough enough for a day at the park as long as you're not hardcore like wheelhot.

Just another viable option that won't cost 1k.

cryptid01

If I were builidng a bike for lift serviced riding, I certainly wouldn't start with a 5" dual crown fork.

dminor 

I'm just trying to recall what would constitute a "nice 5" dual-crown." X-Vert DC comes to mind or an RST Delta XL (though some would differ with me on that); but that's about the only ones in that travel range that might qualify.

Brian

Ok, it's actually a 6" fork. Set up for the tandem, it's a 5" fork. I have to take a set of springs out of it to convert it back to 6 inches, and there is another inch available, if I need it.

I'll need a medium frame (17" max) and while price is not so much of an issue, I'm not planning on spending a ton of money on a build that may only get used a few times a year.

Here's the fork and specs:

colombo357

Reminds me of the old ZZYZX and "Bombshell Betty" forks.

Brian

Dean bought the rights from Hanebrink. Besides the forks, he does a lot of work for NASA, and has built stuff that's been to Mars. I trusted him to set us up with a decent fork for our tandem. But since it's coupled, we decided a single crown (Marz DJ) would be easier to pack. So now the fork just sits, along with a stack of other parts.

We could take the tandem to Sundance, but I'm guessing my wife will quit before me, and I'm not taking that beast down the mountain myself. Besides, she's stoked at the idea of taking her bike up there.

dminor 

It IS the old ZZYZX. I loved those fork (albeit I never owned one)

Brian, as I understand it the ZZYZX suffered certain stiction problems because the seal area was so laurge on the huge-diameter stanchions. Was Dean able to alleviate that?

Anyway, that would make a fun fork for ashuttler/lift build. My son has a Diamondback XTS Moto frame that's gathering dust that would be a good match; but, alas, it is a large. It's another idea, though of one you might be able to find at lower cost than some.

Brian

No stiction problems that I'm aware of. We had him build it when we were in the US on holiday, then took it back to Australia with us. It's the perfect tandem fork, since we don't need any lockout, and it's completely user-serviceable, which was a huge selling point for us when we lived in Australia. All parts are available to rebuild one, plus we have the option of 20mm or 9mm QR axles.

I'll have to search for that Diamond Back, and see what they're all about, thanks for the tip. Wheelworld had some Giant frames cheap, and I waited too long.