I wasn't sure whether to post this here or in the mechanics forum, but since it is mostly a frame materials question, here goes:

I need to replace a fork on a 1993 Trek 700. The 700 had a cro-mo main triangle with hi-ten fork and stays. I have found an original 700 fork (hi-ten) or Dimension makes a cro-mo replacement that is about 140g lighter. The weight savings is nice, but a drop in the bucket on an old steel hybrid. What I'm mainly wondering is if the cro-mo fork will make a noticable difference in ride quality or strength. This bike is my general purpose/gravel grinder/winter bike, so it takes some abuse.

Ideally, I'd like to get a high quality, butted, modern cro-mo frameset, but it's not in the budget and honestly I really like this old bike. If I could find a 21" 730 frameset from the same era, I'd be really happy but none have popped up in the area (a few 700s but no 720 or 730s).

So, I'm looking for opinions, should I go with an original hi-ten fork for the cost of shipping, or get a new cro-mo fork for about $50?

In theory the cro mo fork, being lighter, uses less steel. If the diameters are the same then this means thinner walls. Which also means more flexibility. Whether this is a good or bad thing remains for you to find out after riding the bike with both forks.

If the dimensions are the same then the handling should be about the same. But if the axle to crown seat or the rake are different then some change in the steering/stability will be present. Again the better or worse will be yours to say.

+1, chromoly being stronger allows thinner wall to be to be used while maintaining the same strength . same Idea as andrew phrased slightly differently ..

Trail is the result of combination of head tube angle and fork rake as plotted on the ground.

HTA line crosses the plumb line thru the axle to be ahead of the contact patch. raising the headtube or having a different rake changes the Trail length.