KevinmH9

New biker so this will be a newbie thread to all probably, I've had my bike for about oh 5-6 months now and gotten a few good rides out of it (2002 Fuji Roubaix) and I was considering putting on a carbon fiber fork. I know the carbon fork is alot lighter than the stock steel fork I have on my bike now I was just curious what the advantages are to the carbon fiber fork and how it optimizes the performace of the bike...with the fork are there any other upgrades I would want to suggest for my bike?

rjtokyo

Hey KevinmH9. You'll get significant weight savings, especially if you go with a full carbon fork (with a carbon steerer); probably about 1 lb. or so. Carbon has excellent vibration damping characteristics, meaning it can smooth out the ride. However, if you're thinking about upgrades that will give you the most noticable improvements, I would go with a wheelset upgrade first. if you search the forums for "upgrades" you'll probably find that to be the most common recommendation. With that, you're cutting off weight where you'll feel it most- in rotational mass; and you're cutting down your rolling friction with smoother spinning hubs with precision sealed bearings. Some "good-bang-for-your-buck" wheelsets are Mavic Cosmos (1820gm-$260), Velomax Circuit (1650gm-$450), Speed Dreams (1500gm-$570). Of course lots of other excellent wheelsets from Rolf Prima, Bontrager, etc. Have fun!

- RJ