Non-retro ti forks?

[M_Chavez]

Hi All,

Not a retro question, but there seems to be an inflow of rigid China-made ti forks for sale, with custom design options.

E.g. here:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...WLXKVENBFXYV76MCRZRF42R7LSKIMICGZ2K44O777KRA&
Has anyone tried these or can think of any reason not to get one?
Not a huge amount of weight saving compared to steel, but should still be more reliable than a cf fork? And probably cost less than a custom steel job, no need for painting, no rust, etc.

Just interested in your thoughts as at first sight this seems to be a good option for, say, a straight-steerer canti fork to fit a retro frame.

 

[M_Chavez]

PS What worries me & stops me from ordering:

- I don't see Ti forks on mainstream bikes. Why is this design not widely used?
- I hear ti is liable to cracking under repeated load in practice; lots of cracked (repaired & not) ti frames on ebay; I've personally seen 3 ti frames with hairline cracks when looking at used bikes (owners were not ware or pretended [poorly in one case] they were not aware). Not sure if ti is more prone to cracking than other materials, or whether people are more prone to try and recover some cash from a cracked frame vs tipping alloy/old steel/cf. But fork will see a lot of load every time you brake.
- I believe some retro ti fork attempts were extremely flexy (albeit, so were some retro steel forks)...

 

[greencat]

The benefits of ti forks are that they offer something like a half way house between suspension and rigid. It's actually a really nice ride - I have some Wittson ones. IIRC, it's quite difficult to make a good one and there have definitely been failures with specific designs/use cases. Again, IIRC, specifically with people using larger wheels in forks designed for smaller wheels.

 

[Woz]

One of the lightest forks I ever owned was 26" Ti made in Russia. Skinny and bit too scary flexy. With a Ti frame and Ti handlebars the tracking was more like steering a drunk pig with a fog horn and a stick. They were that bad.

There are stories about these type of Chinese made forks having serious problems, I've almost considered buying them too. I would only trust to buy a Ti fork only if they are backed up from a reputable bike brand in Europe (Skyde, Kocmo, Van Nicholas) - even if manufacture is/could be in China. Would not trust a direct purchase from China at all. Too much pot luck IMHO.

Like greencat says, making a decent Ti is very costly for the benefits; so steel and CF makes more sense in practice.

Wittson on the other is a very reputable Ti builder whom I would trust entirely. I bet they do ride great

 

[M_Chavez]

Drunk pig, huh. Doesn't inspire confidence, does it?
What was the Russian company that made it? I'm now tempted to try one just to see what it's like!

If the forks are built by Waltly, I'd be happy to trust their workmanship. Their website says they do custom forks, even offer their "Squid" model for MTB, but when I've tested the waters discussing a custom frame build, they said they don't do forks.

Ali shops seem to claim they are happy to customise, but "custom" seems to come down to choosing between Options A, B or C, so they are not the ones manufacturing this stuff - just middlemen doing the sales.

 

[M_Chavez]

specifically with people using larger wheels in forks designed for smaller wheels.

As in 650B in 26ers, or 135 hubs in 130 dropouts?

 

[greencat]

As in 650B in 26ers, or 135 hubs in 130 dropouts?

More like 650B or even 29ers in 26ers IIRC.

 

[CTK]

No need for Ti when carbon are so good.

 

[M_Chavez]

Are they really though?
Some of the earlier bonded ones had a reputation for delaminating. The full carbon ones seem to be better in that department, but afaik require 1 1/2 - 1 1/8 tapered steerers to beef them up. Not sure I've seen any modern ones with straight 1" steerers.
Would you trust a cf fork after 5-10 years of hard use?
Would you trust one after a bump & a tumble?
Would you trust a s/h one bought on evilbay?
Would you trust it if you hear a light crack when you're tightening the stem?

I'm using a cf fork on my summer bike without any issues, and I've used 20-year old bonded cf forks before with no issues, but I would constantly check them for any signs of damage.
I've clamped cf bars & steerer offcuts in a vice and crushed them to get a feel for how tough they are (they are tough).

Yet, I have this dumb idea that I don't want to use cf bars for anything apart from a pub bike. No way. "They snap". Carbo-bar-phobia. And then I was OK using carbon forks & steerers and ramming bikes into things. Go figure.

In any case, I don't think you can get a custom one made to measure with a 1" straight steerer and canti studs plugged into it to complement a retro frame.
Also, I think that a lightly built steel fork might have more compliance than cf.

 

[Jamesbike]

I wouldn't the stresses that the welding would endure means there is a high chance of cracking.

You see so many stories to ti frames cracking and from a small cohort of frames compared to CF alu or steel.

Cheers James