scrod,
im trying to decide what fork to get for the 722 im gonna be getting soon.

i was thinking of the s805, because id try and make this bike much more of a weight weenie compared to my mammoth 24 pound scrambler i have now.

im curious as to how strong this/other carbon forks can be..
i ride in some hilly terrain that have some really craptastic bike paths with potholes and bumps galore, can i expect a good strength-weight ratio from a carbon fork if im hitting a lot of unavoidable bumps and holes?

the roads im stuck with dont have a lot of room to avoid potholes while simultaneously minding the little tweens in bmws whizzing by just a couple feet away

The S805 fork is plenty strong enough - but it weighs nearly as much as the S803 and is actually heavier than some steel forks on the market.

You're really not going to have to do much to make your Leader weigh less than your Scrambler. FWIW, my 58cm 722TS weighs 20ish.

Mine also weighs about that with pretty "meh" parts on it.

I couldnt seem to find its weight posted anywhere either so that definately helps in the decision making

Would i still be able to trust my life to a full carbon fork? Having my front end crap out on me on a descent with ******y drivers so close scares me about as much as eating the edge of a car door at 30 mph

The pros use full carbon forks in tours, they crash, and theyre fine. Im assuming us normal people will be ok

Carbon really isn't as fragile as a lot of people think it is, especially a fork. If you're that worried about it, just go with a steel fork. I haven't weighed my BK yet but it's a little lighter than my 722 and both have steel forks.

Is there an explanation for all the carbon horror stories, like "I stood up to mash up a hill and my frame cracked in half"?

Who knows? All I can say is that cheap carbon isn't good and good carbon isn't cheap.

I know a roadie who was in a pretty bad crash on a carbon frame - he was in a pace line and the dumbass in front of him slammed on his brakes because he dropped a water bottle and he smashed into him while three people directly behind him literally ran them both over. His seatstay cracked pretty badly but he had his frame repaired and is still riding it.

It just has a reputation that when it breaks, it shatters.

True. Not very forgiving, that crabon.

i keep thinking about all the roadies chuggin along with carbon everything and knowing theyre obviously fine,
i guess the images ive seen of broken carbon stuff just makes me paranoid
that and the fact that these roads here suck hard in some places, guess i just gotta trust my gear and htfu

worth a watch

I watched a guy on a Tarmac T bone a pickup truck doing about 20. He rode away. lucky man, but that's beside the point. Carbon is strong stuff.

Scrod,

From the other thread, can I call you Davy Jones?

what's the lever on the end of these bars?
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...39570995_n.jpg

Cheap carbon does not work well, carbon parts require a tork wrench. Those two leads to lots of fails.

The bar end shifter?

RBR has a ton of reviews on the ebay carbon frames/wheels, they seem to be doing fine.

Yea, For what though?

that's the puzzling part. i feel like I'm missing something obvious

S3X hub or some other IGH

You can see the cable running to the geared hub. Look at the axle nut. Also, notice the housing stop clamped around the down tube.

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/santa-c...-test-lab.html
also worth a watch. pretty amazing stuff

i love this show.

/proceeds to enjoy during breakfast



/buys carbon everything.

what are some good names in the world of carbon forks? i seem to see alpina forks on a lot of bikes, but im having trouble finding more about them
and im pretty sure the i806tr wouldnt work on the 722, as much as id love to keep it as much leader as possible
does it seem dumb to spend double what i spend on a frame on a fork?
would the weight loss and vibration reduction be worth said investment?

it all depends on the application, type of frame, etc. Some well known names are 3T, Enve, Wound Up, Easton. The alpinas are everywhere because it is a good cost x benefit fork. But it's not a light carbon fork, for that, the steerer would have to be carbon too and those types are expensive.

it's not dumb but it's not wise. spending on a good fork is cool but on a better frame, you shouldn't spend the same on a fork as the frame. at least that's how I see it. /notscrod

You can put the I806TR on a 722 but the oversize crown will look stupid and it will handle weird because of the low rake.

FWIW, you seem to be overthinking this. A cro-mo fork really isn't much heavier than a decent carbon fork with an aluminum steerer (like Alpina) and dampens just about as much road vibration. A lot of people seem to think they won't feel the road at all if they put a carbon fork on their bike.

I happen to think both my BK and my 722 feel smoother in the front end than my Kagero.

i tend to do that a lot with new stuff.. i always try to make everything "right" so that everything makes sense, not just for cool points

but i appreciate the wisdom peoples, ultimately my wallet is the one pushing the checkout button so ill see what it says when i get there lol

how about comparing to the 725 + 806 fork you had? That fork was full carbon wasn't it?

its not that I don't trust carbon...but every time I contemplate buying something I remember watching Hball break his carbon bars in a DH race back in the 90's

90's carbon bikes were nothing like today's bikes...usually they would use only one type of carbon on the frame and lugs to join the tubes.

Scrod, on my Leader 725 Mid, the seatpost makes a nasty squeek/creeking noise and it feels like the seat collar/clamp becomes loose after riding for 5 minutes. Should I grease the seatpost or contact Leader?