Rebuild old fork or buy new?

[emily_in_nc]

I have a vintage 1999 or 2000 (they were pretty much identical so I don't know for sure) Roxshox SID 80mm front fork on the Titus Racer X I bought on Ebay in 2006. No lockout, just a basic dual-air fork that holds air just fine. It started leaking oil from one stanchion last summer, so I just made sure I always stored/transported it upright so that I could delay taking it to a shop and thus wouldn't have to be without my bike during the riding season (I ride trails with a friend from spring through fall but take winters off). It continued to perform fine throughout the season.

I finally got around to consulting an LBS about a repair, and it's going to be $200 for them to send it off to be rebuilt/seals replaced, etc.

My question is, is it worth it to have the repair done on an older fork that doesn't even have lockout? (I think I'd like lockout for climbs, as much of our riding is on fire roads). I don't want to spend $600-800 on a brand-new fork, as I don't ride enough (usually just once a week, occasionally twice, during the season) or seriously enough to justify the expense, and we have a lot of boat expenses right now also. However, I've seen newer (2005-2006) used 80mm Fox forks in good shape with lockout going for around $300 on ebay.

My gut tells me it's worth $100 more to get a newer used fork rather than having mine rebuilt, especially if I could install the new one myself. What do you think? How hard is installing a new suspension fork to do? Would I need to take it to the LBS? If so, any idea how much they'd charge to install it?

Thanks!
Emily

[bike4ever]

We charge $35 to install a fork - this includes cutting the steer tube. I think it would be a wiser investment to get a new fork. Suspension has changed immensely in the 8 years of your older fork - more features, lighter.

[emily_in_nc]

We charge $35 to install a fork - this includes cutting the steer tube. I think it would be a wiser investment to get a new fork. Suspension has changed immensely in the 8 years of your older fork - more features, lighter.

Thanks! That's helpful information, and very inexpensive. I'm watching a couple of ebay auctions now, as a used (but much newer technology and in better shape) fork is about 1/2 the price of a new one. If I can snare one, I'll go that route before paying $200 to have my old one rebuilt. Crossing fingers!

Emily

[SadieKate]

Emily, I think you can find on sale any number of new forks from the last couple of years that have better internals and are easier to maintain. I highly doubt that you can find any of the parts to rebuild the fork also (for instance, Manitou emptied their parts box for me two years ago on a 1997 fork and told me good luck, I now had the world supply of spare parts for that fork). There are companies that rebuild forks and rear shocks and I bet they would advise you to find a new fork at 9 years down the line. There are usually good deals to be had on new forks from the last couple of model years.

If you haven't rebuilt or replaced your rear shock you might consider doing this at the same time you replace your fork to keep everything balanced. Call Titus about what you can use since you don't have the X-link on your frame.

Rebuilding services just for info:
http://www.hippiesuspension.com/hippietechsuspension/
http://www.pushindustries.com/

Both of these companies will custom tune forks and shocks to your frame, size and riding style.

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks for the info, SK. My rear shock seems to be operating fine; I'm really light at 105 lbs so don't put a lot of impact on it, and the LBS that inspected it last year said it was fine, so I'll probably hold off on any more expense right now, because I just won an auction for a 2005 Fox F80X fork on ebay tonight that I'm excited about. I can't wait to have lockout, and it looks to be in great condition and certainly much newer technology than my old Rockshox, for not much more $ than rebuilding my fork. I needed an 80 mm fork for my frame geometry, and those are kinda hard to find these days, so hopefully I got a decent deal -- based on the comps I found from completed auctions and others for sale online brand new, I think I did ok (see auction link).

Thanks again,
Emily