head shock v.s. suspension fork

MPT said:

This is rather a newbie question. What are the differences between the two? Thanks

A head shock fork has its springy bits in the, er, head. In the head tube, that is, and Cannondale
is the obvious example. This is a type of suspension fork. Most suspension forks have the works in
the legs, between two sliding tubes.

--
Ted Bennett Portland OR

Ted Bennett may have said:

MPT said:

This is rather a newbie question. What are the differences between the two? Thanks

A head shock fork has its springy bits in the, er, head. In the head tube, that is, and Cannondale
is the obvious example. This is a type of suspension fork. Most suspension forks have the works in
the legs, between two sliding tubes.

And then there are the things that Cannondale calls a headshock which are neither in the steer tube
nor split between the two fork downtubes...because there's only one downtube, and it's really not a
fork anymore. (Yeah, the Lefty. Maybe they're wonderful, but even if I had the money to spend on
one, I think I'd wait for that technology to get a little more mature before I'd want to try it.)

---
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.

Yes, I have a killfile. If I don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

Werehatrack said:

And then there are the things that Cannondale calls a headshock which are neither in the steer
tube nor split between the two fork downtubes...because there's only one downtube, and it's really
not a fork anymore. (Yeah, the Lefty. Maybe they're wonderful, but even if I had the money to
spend on one, I think I'd wait for that technology to get a little more mature before I'd want to
try it.)

I would be interested in some discussion of the one-leg "fork" at either end of a bike. (I'm pretty
sure if fork isn't the correct term for it.)

There are some advantages (faster puncture repair comes to mind) and it is possible, as many
motorcycles now sport one-sided mounting. It's been suggested to me that to maintain enough
rigidity, a bike built this way would be heavier, but that isn't immediately obvious to me.

--
Ted Bennett Portland OR

Werehatrack said:

Maybe they're wonderful, but even if I had the money to spend on one, I think I'd wait for that
technology to get a little more mature before I'd want to try it.)

The lefty technology is pretty mature right now. Three of my MTB's have leftys .one of the original
leftys, a carbon lefty on the race bike, and the new max tpc+ 5" travel lefty. They all perform
flawlessly. They are ultra stiff and silky smooth.

charlie

Charles Beristain said:

Werehatrack said:

Maybe they're wonderful, but even if I had the money to spend on one, I think I'd wait for that
technology to get a little more mature before I'd want to try it.)

The lefty technology is pretty mature right now. Three of my MTB's have leftys .one of the
original leftys, a carbon lefty on the race bike, and the new max tpc+ 5" travel lefty. They all
perform flawlessly. They are ultra stiff and silky smooth.

charlie

I ride a lefty. LOVE it. It's stiffer, more resistence to flex (twist or otherwise), silky smooth,
and reliable as all getout. I slam, pound, and dunk mine on a regular basis.

I've also ridden a headshok. Not quite as nice as a lefty, but a very good fork.

To answer the original question, I'd say the difference is that the headshok puts the motion part
above the fork, whereas a normal suspension fork shares the suspension between the 2 legs. Also, the
Cannondale headshok only fits Cannondales.

It's silky smooth because it uses 4 sets of linear bearings in a square (22 needle bearings per set)
instead of letting the fork seals or metal-on-metal sliding be the bearings.

And, IMNSHO it's not easier to change a tire on the lefty -- not that it's hard -- I just find
that it's easier to put back together with the rim on the ground -- the tube doesn't try to come
out as much out while you're trying to get the tire back on -- and yes, I put air in the tube to
help keep it in.

David