carbon forks w/ carbon steerer tubes



free_rideman

free_rideman

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Mar 20, 2006
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You might have seen another thread in which I asked a question concerning frame material, and rider weight.

Well for the same friend that I am helping build a bike, I need to decide on a fork to get. He is ~230 pounds.

So I am kind of scared of getting him a fork with a carbon steerer. Should I?

My choices so far are-

Reynolds Ouzo Pro (carbon steerer)
Reynolds Ouzo Comp (non-carbon steerer) < aluminum or steel
Kestrel Evoke (non-carbon steerer)

This is really important because I want to make the ride comfortable, and I definitely know that a carbon steerer is more comfortable, but I don't want my friend to crash because of a steerer failure.

Maybe there are forks out there with non-carbon steerers, but still are very comfortable.

Thanks in advance!
 
free_rideman said:
You might have seen another thread in which I asked a question concerning frame material, and rider weight.

Well for the same friend that I am helping build a bike, I need to decide on a fork to get. He is ~230 pounds.

So I am kind of scared of getting him a fork with a carbon steerer. Should I?

My choices so far are-

Reynolds Ouzo Pro (carbon steerer)
Reynolds Ouzo Comp (non-carbon steerer) < aluminum or steel
Kestrel Evoke (non-carbon steerer)

This is really important because I want to make the ride comfortable, and I definitely know that a carbon steerer is more comfortable, but I don't want my friend to crash because of a steerer failure.

Maybe there are forks out there with non-carbon steerers, but still are very comfortable.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

A carbon steerer will not be more or less comfortable. Carbon steerers are lighter, that's all.

Aluminum is more likely to fail under some damage scenarios, and carbon is more likely to fail under other damage scenarios. It's not really an important consideration at all, except that he should understand the pros and cons of whichever one your friend gets.

My unbiased rec would go for the Ouzo comp.
 
Thanks for the help!

I guess you could be right with the comfort thing, but I have tried the two different types of forks, with and without the carbon steerer, and the carbon steerer feels better. But it could be just my mind or because the forks were made by different companies.

The only thing that logically supports carbon steerers having more comfort is that it might reduce the amount of vibrations transmitted to the rider. But there are many opinions about that: if carbon does anything to comfort.

By any chance do you know any other fork companies that make aluminum steerer carbon forks? Maybe something better than the Ouzo comp? Others are welcome to give their experiences and insights.

Once again, thanks for the help. My friend also appreciates it.
 
for him id say get the aluminum. a few bad potholes with his weight might pay a toll on a carbon steerer. alot ot local track guys wont touch carbon steerers...
 
Yeah, I would think so too. Especially since it is my friend. Don't want to put him in a situation that can hurt him.

Anybody else know any forks out there that may better?
 
An alu steerer is a bad choice for a heavy rider if ur going to use an A-Head type stem.

I've seen (first hand) a lot of alu steerer break in the same fashion as George Hincapie's bike in this year's Paris-Roubaix (see pic). Todate, I am yet to see this happen to a carbon steered bike.

Another durable option is a carbon fork with steel steerer (altho with a slight weight penalty - but who cares about a few grams with a 230lbs guy eh?!).
 
OOooooooooo! Great idea! But do you know any companies that do that?

That would be great.

And yes he will be using a standard type headset. 1 1/8inch
 
I checked the Wound-Up website and if I am not mistaken, the steel steerers only come in 1 inch steerer diameter. That would be so cool if they made a ! 1/8 inch version, since those forks look really nice!

The Time fork also looks very nice, but it is heavy!

Anymore sugestions? This has been great help so far. Really appreciate it.
 
Actually checked the Chris King website, and I might be able to make that work with the Devolution headset. Converts a 1 1/8 inch frame to work with 1 inch steerers.

But that headset would be a costly investment, which in the future won't work with other setups.
 
dident hincapie have a minor crash b4 the fork steerer broke? i swear i hurd this or read it someplace... if it's true the crash most likely caused the 2nd crash.
 
IEatRice4Dinner said:
dident hincapie have a minor crash b4 the fork steerer broke? i swear i hurd this or read it someplace... if it's true the crash most likely caused the 2nd crash.
Click to expand...
moot point ... just to exagerate, a steel steerer with many minor crashes will not snap in the same fashion.

FWIW, GH fork is a custom job from the Bontrager Satellite line that was sand blasted and anodized in black - prepared exclusively for the race. The fork blades (subjected to the same crash obviously) were made of carbon with alu drops.
 
Steel, aluminum, and carbon steerers are all strong enough to handle your friends needs. Steerer tubes don't fail due to loads imposed by normal riding conditions, no matter how heavy the rider. They fail due to crash damage or improper installation.
 
hd reynolds said:
moot point ... just to exagerate, a steel steerer with many minor crashes will not snap in the same fashion.

FWIW, GH fork is a custom job from the Bontrager Satellite line that was sand blasted and anodized in black - prepared exclusively for the race. The fork blades (subjected to the same crash obviously) were made of carbon with alu drops.
Click to expand...
It was shot peened, not sand blasted. And if you look back through the years, Paris-Roubaix has claimed the lives of many steel forks as well.
 
Well said. But we can't really compare the pro's forks, since they really try to make them light.

Finally to wrap this thread up, if he buys the Devolution headset from Chris King, to fit the Wound Up fork into his frame (frame: 1 1/8" fork: 1"), can he convert it in the future to a regular 1 1/8" size.

The reason for this question is because I have found conversion kits on the Chris King site.

Thanks again.
 
Yay! Got an email from Chris king, and yes, they sell conversion kits for their headsets.

My friend will have one cool fork! (Wound Up)

Thanks for the help to the few that actually replied.

Happy riding!
 
free_rideman said:
Yay! Got an email from Chris king, and yes, they sell conversion kits for their headsets.

My friend will have one cool fork! (Wound Up)

Thanks for the help to the few that actually replied.

Happy riding!
Click to expand...

YAY!
 
When I started riding I weighted 110kg (240ish) and got a bike withe an easton EC70 with carbon steerer. Now weight 98kg (215), and had a couple of small crashes (one involving a car who didn't give way at a round about).

Bike and fork are still as solid as ever. After 5000km+ I am looking to buy a new bike and relagate the old faithfull to wet/ride to work bike.

Basically any thing will break if you crash it hard enough. Built well any steerer tube can be ok for any rider. Just have to pick the right one!
 
artmichalek said:
And if you look back through the years, Paris-Roubaix has claimed the lives of many steel forks as well.
Click to expand...
True as well as carbon steerers etc. The point is, between a cromo and alu steerer with all else equal, my money is on the cromo to outlast the alu.
 
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