Originally Posted by
Hirohsima
I much prefer the Wound Up forks. But you have to be careful on some of the older ones. They had some delaminating problems a while back. I got mine warrantied and my dad had problems with his too. But that was 4-5 years back and I have not heard of problems since.
I would trust them now, and they ride super nice.
But if you want a full carbon (crown included) Alpha Q also makes straight blade 1" forks:
http://www.alphaqfork.com/performance_tubing/cs20.asp
http://www.alphaqfork.com/performance_tubing/gs10.asp
As for the Forte forks. They are a good value and perform pretty well, but weigh about 1/2 pound more than a quality full carbon fork. Most reasonably priced forks that have a metal steer tube weigh between 550-600 grams whereas a good quality full carbon fork will weigh ~400 grams. If you are a weight weenie (I could be put in that category in some respects) get a decent fork. In the long run, you will be happier and will not feel the need to upgrade so soon.
Hmm.... I'm starting to lean away from a Wound Up and towards a full carbon straight blade Alpha Q for my upcoming road build since a full carbon 1" Alpha Q costs almost $50 less than a steel steerer Wound Up and is lighter by over 200 grams (with uncut steerer).
Do you have any personal experience with Alpha Q? My build is semi-weenie but I value strength and long term durability over light weight. Wound Up forks are damn sexy but with the $$$ I could save I could afford the difference between Nitto and Syntace drops, which would further lighten my ride.