suspension forks?

[slacker]

hi all, been thinking of putting a rockshox tora 302 85-130mm suspension fork on my surly big dummy .any opinions pro or con would be welcome as i am not sure if this is the way to go.it currently has a e-bike kit rear dd hub motor and i have been happy with it.could not find much on the web about big dummys with suspension forks so all opinions are greatly appreciated.thanks.

 

[MadRhino]

I doubt that any of the small forks is wide enough for the Dummy's wide tire. IMO only a few, big DH forks are wide enough for such a big tire. The lower crown has to be high enough too. I know that the Marzzocchi Monster T and Super Monster T do have the clearance for a Larry mounted on a Large marge, maybe the Shiver would.

 

[slacker]

i am running big apple 2.15 wide tires so i thought this might work?thanks for your suggestion.

 

[e-beach]

hi all, been thinking of putting a rockshox tora 302 85-130mm suspension fork on my surly big dummy .......

Are you up on the process of removing about 2.5mm of alloy from the forks to center up a 14mm axle?

 

[MadRhino]

OK I see that you have skinny tires on your Big Dummy, BUT:
You might want to keep the fat bike's character. I mean you may be tempted to re-install fat tires on it, finding an old school big fork is not difficult and expansive right now, but might become rare a few years from now.

 

[slacker]

i would have a lbs do the work,i finally found someone on the web who is running this fork on their dummy and it looks promising.looking for a smoother ride than i have at the moment.appreciate all the feedback,thanks.

 

[e-beach]

Just note that front forks will stiffen up when the motor is powered. Something about the flexing of the forks under load or maybe because everything is being pulled. When I was running my rigid frame with my front hub motor my body was getting rattled apart. When I put my front hub motor on my hard tail mountain bike the ride was better but still stiff in the forks. To release some of the pressure on your front forks with a hub motor, back off the throttle over bumps, the forks will compress better. Also consider a suspended seat post and of course a good seat.

 

[dogman dan]

That is common with a front hubmotor, and a shock fork. The forks may bind, and don't work when you have power on.

But you got a rear motor, so no problem.
Do hang onto the original forks, in case you want to sell the dummy later.

 

[-dg]

OK I see that you have skinny tires on your Big Dummy, BUT:
You might want to keep the fat bike's character. I mean you may be tempted to re-install fat tires on it, finding an old school big fork is not difficult and expansive right now, but might become rare a few years from now.

I think you are confusing the Big Dummy which is a longtail cargo bike with the Pugsley which is a fat bike.

 

[MadRhino]

OK I see that you have skinny tires on your Big Dummy, BUT:
You might want to keep the fat bike's character. I mean you may be tempted to re-install fat tires on it, finding an old school big fork is not difficult and expansive right now, but might become rare a few years from now.

I think you are confusing the Big Dummy which is a longtail cargo bike with the Pugsley which is a fat bike.

Yep, my mistake. The few Surly bikes that I have seen here were all fat bikes, and I assumed this one was too.