Originally Posted by
LarDasse74
It is very likely that there is a way to disassemble your fork. If this is the case, to make it completely rigid you need only replace the springs with similarly sized wooden dowel from the hardware store.
+1
Might be elastomer(= rubber cushions) instead of springs though. Otherwise far better than clamping.
Originally Posted by
LarDasse74
You may be able to use a clamp but this is likely to damage the fork and result in making your fork just work more crappily, not completely limiting its movement.
+1
and worst case, you might crimp the legs, causing a failure.
If you really want to overdo it, you should try to set the fork somewhere closer to mid-travel than fully extended, which would require something more than only replacing suspension elements with wooden dowels.
One way of "rigidifying" a sus fork I'm a bit curious to try would be to open it up, clean it out, remove some internal components (if needed), and then simply pour something like polyester resin into it. It should, theoretically, let you set ride height as well as blocking out rebound in one go. It'd add some weight, but it sounds simple enough.
Originally Posted by
LarDasse74
ALso, you can probably get a good quality rigid fork for ~$40 from the LBS, or find a $20 donor bike at a garage sale or something.
Or if you're really lucky, find a fork from someone who've gone from rigid to suspension.
Bear in mind though, that different sizes and build standards can make straight swaps more difficult than you'd first thought. Crude as it is, turning a sus fork rigid may be a preferable option due to this, on a low-end bike.
Originally Posted by
LarDasse74
Stiffening a suspension fork is a good way to make a bike better for riding roads or smoother trails.
Indeed.