Headshok Hack- Convert to Rigid
 

Hi,
I have an ancient cannondale F500 with a super fatty from another bike. The damper is leaking and needs to be replaced.
But, the bike is just going to be used as a campus beater. I am wondering if anyone has converted a headshok to a rigid fork just by removing the damper, and putting in a wooden dowel or metal rod that would replace the internals? Basically, changing the fork so that there is no air chamber/damper inside the fork.
Otherwise, the bike goes in the dumpster.
No, I don't want to spend $30 on a reducer cups and $50 on a cheap replacement fork, but thanks for thinking about it.

Cheers,
Rob

give your idea a try yet?

You are going to need a really solid top cap to keep impacts from shoving the reenforcing rod up through the top of the steerer.

That $80 retrofit you mentioned doesn't sound like a bad investment

Yeah, but he ruled that out right off the top. I have a 20 year old F model Cannondale that I did exactly that with. Tossed the Headshok and put in a rigid fork with reducers.

Rob, that bike probably has a lot of otherwise high quality parts on it. At the very least, if your conversion project doesn't work out, please donate it to a co-op or post your location here and someone would gladly come pick that bike up from you. If you're in northwestern VA, I certainly would!

I would just mention that you will probably be destroying the fork if you ride it like that. Even just riding around all the time with the lockout engaged will destroy most forks in short order. The bushing, or needle bearings in the case of a headshock won't get lubricated from moving up and down. Eventually it just eats through the sliding surfaces and the whole fork is trash.

Yeah, he ruled it out perhaps thinking there was a much cheaper kludge that would work. I don't think it will and suggested the retrofit is the next best thing.

Actually, all the parts are pretty well junk, it was built from a frame and thrashed.
I guess I could go to the local bicycle junkyard and find a scrap 1 1/8" rigid fork somewhere.