Hey folks!
So what options do we have in 2019
to upgrade a fork on a bike like this?
Mind you, this is a straight 1-1/8" steerer tube, it's non-Boost,
and it even uses the 9 mm QR or quick release instead of thru axle.
Fortunately for us, companies like RockShox care about this market so
today I'm going to take a closer look
at this recon RL 2019 model.
The only useful information on the box is here, at one of the ends,
where you can see the part number from SRAM.
If you plug this on Google you're going to come up with this exact model
which is the Recon RL 29er, QR quick-release,
100 millimeters travel
and this is the black color, and you can see the manufacturing date.
In the box, you're gonna get a star nut,
needed to install this fork.
You're gonna get a fancy RockShox sticker,
that's the warranty information
which is two years but for these products by the way.
Cardboard everywhere, which I like to see.
And here is the fork!
The 2019 version of this fork not only improves the visuals,
with black stanchions like you see here,
but it also saves weight.
In order to do that,
they used bits and pieces from other forks.
We have RockShox Revelation lowers, made of magnesium,
you have the 32 mm steel stanchions, not aluminum,
that are anodized in black this time.
And the aluminum steer is 1-1/8", non tapered for this version of the fork.
Looking at it from the back,
you can see the redesigned air cap and compression knobs,
looks fancy this time.
That's the serial number of the fork, you can look it up on their website
Continuing down on the left leg,
you're gonna see this is an RL model,
with 100 millimeters of travel, Solo Air spring,
51mm offset, for 9mm QR axles, and this is a 29er fork.
They have the 27.5/ 650b version of it as well.
Here on the left leg,
you're going to have what's called the air guides.
They give you an indication of how much pressure to put in the air spring
based on the rider's weight,
and you can see down here that this is made for e-bikes as well,
and you can go to Rockshox.com/app
to get more information about servicing these forks.
Also here, on the left leg,
you have the post mount for your brake disk caliper.
This takes 160mm discs by default,
any bigger discs can be installed with the proper adapters.
Even though it's not mentioned anywhere,
this uses the Motion Control damper,
and you have one, two, three, four, five clicks two fully locked.
Obviously, this is fully open.
The only other adjustment for the damper it's gonna be the rebound,
which is at the bottom of the same right leg.
The adjustment knob is not the fancy red aluminum one,
is this plastic thingy...
and it provides you 5 clicks of the adjustment.
This would be wide open, so the fastest you can have the rebound.
As you start turning it,
you're gonna make your rebound slower and slower,
again, you have 5 clicks of adjustment for this.
Front brake hose uses the good old clip,
and if you look at the stanchions,
there was no sag indicator whatsoever.
As for weight, this fork comes to 2020 grams,
which I think is about 300 grams lighter than the previous model,
this is a 29er, QR version.
When buying something like this,
make sure you fully read the specs.
They do have a thru axle version of this recon RL,
and this one is a straight steer, 1-1/8", they have a tapered version as well.
As for performance, I expect this to be more than decent.
I have experience with previous versions of the Rockshox forks
using Motion Control.
It will definitely be a big improvement
compared to this pogo stick from Suntour.
The maintenance for RockShox forks is fairly easy.
I will have the same 32mm seals and everything else,
just like I have on that Giant so,
good reasons to consider this fork,
and looking forward to using it for years to come.
What kind of forks do you guys use or buy in 2019?
I would love to hear your opinion in the comments below.
if you found this useful,
don't forget to like and subscribe.
And until next time,
I will see you folks on the trails.
Cheers guys,
Cheers!