Front suspension problem
 

Hi , i have an omega sweed bike and since I have it I noticed a weird think: the front suspension works only when I use my front brakes. When I dont press the front brake the suspension is hard af(I cannot move it) but with the brakes engaged I can somewhat move it .
This behavior is normal to a bike or is there a mechanical problem? I forgot to mention that I have disk brakes.

Do you really think you want it bouncing every pedal stroke?

no , but i want at least when I go offroad to absorb some shocks .

Do you know the brand and model of the suspension fork? At first thought it might have it's spring preload (if it has an adjustable design) set too firm. Or the internals are binding up and only move when a extreme force is applied. But since we don't know the fork's design, features or even if it's made to be serviceable we really can't be of much help. Andy

And why wouldn't it. You don't want it so "soft" that it bottoms out easily for "real" mountain biking.
Going down smoother roads, the "bouncing" just absorbs power. Kind of like walking in sand.

As Andy said, can you give the name and model of the fork. My first thought was you might have the lockout on. That will cut down nearly all the movement.

John

Some forks have a lot more movement than others. Some forks cost considerably more for that reason. Had an old Suntour fork that used rubber donuts for suspension. As they got older they compressed into solid pieces of rubber that lost all give. I rebuilt it once, putting in new rubber donuts, but when they wore out a second time I bought a better quality fork.

See if you tell us what brand of fork you have, or post a picture.

its a zoom 386 fork.

That is a really inexpensive fork. It does have a mechanical lock out so check to make sure that is off. Other than that if you want more suspension consider upgrading to a better quality fork.

this guy took his apart for the same reason and decided he would be better with a solid front fork.

Put a zip tie around the fork stations just above the slider. Then go for a ride. The zip tire will show you how much suspension travel you are actually using.

Thanks for the response! Where can I find the mechanical lock you are talking about?

I will try this when I will ride the bike next time.

Don't expect that fork to do anything except breaking down.