Coil Spring forks...an endangered species?
Hello all,
I am slowly putting together in my mind the ideal mountain bike (I know everybody here fantasizes about the perfect bike, so I am laying it out). It goes something like this: Santa Cruz Chameleon, XT/XTR, V-brakes, and - naturally - the perfect 3-4" travel fork. I know next to little about current suspension fork technology, and I wonder where all the coil spring forks went. I can't justify putting an air fork on a bike designed to be durable and trouble free over years of pounding. Coil springs were everybody's favorite only 3-4 years ago because they were durable, tuneable (through a selection of springs, even dual-rate springs!), responsive AND plush. So where'd they go? Also, I remember when the Z2 came out (I watched from a distance b/c I could not afford them), and everybody gushed about oil bathed coil spring internals but complained about the weight. So is oil-bath damping worth the extra weight? Are there alternatives that work almost as well?
Does anybody still run old Judy's with Speed Springs? I rode a borrowed bike for a day mt. biking in Ecuador (best $35 I ever spent) - it was a '96 c-dale F1000 with a modified Judy (back when they were yellow) and a fat Ground Control 2.1" knobby up front. That bike rode like an athletic bulldog, eating up the trail upwards and downwards. That fork was simply amazing.
Thoughts?
BK