Hey @ButterSuspension, first off, nice video, I like the straightforwardness of just taking it apart and showing the inside pieces. I just recently bought a 2021 Orbea MX50 that comes with a stock SR Suntour XCE 28 Coil suspension fork. That’s working pretty well right now but an upgrade might be in order sometime in the next few years. Do you have any relatively cheap (like under $200) forks that you would recommend? I mean forks that you’ve taken apart and used to be sure they’re good quality. Thanks.
I disassembled my Bolany 32 this winter after a full season of riding. Obviously not doing drops or large jumps on that bike but rough XC and mild downhill stuff. The version i have does not have a negative chamber adjustment and no rebound on the lower. Since i have this weird thing about buying on the cheap and seeing what can be done (😄) I ordered basically every internal component from Suntour for 32mm stanchions, including their $70ish damper cartridge with rebound. Also replacement bushings for the lowers. It all fit and it all works hahah!! This is literally just for fun but want to see how long I can go on this fork. If I can get 3 or 4 seasons on it, I will call it a win for upgrading inexpensive big box bikes. That is really what these things are aimed at anyway. Great vid and now subbed 👍
I have a similar understanding. I have a Chinese shock absorber "fork 32 pro" 140mm thry axle ... During the overhaul, the lower screw that holds the oil (right) cartridge slipped. It will have to be cut and thrown away .... Which Suntour oil cartridge fits !? I would like to put FUN 062-10. The diameter of the old Chinese threaded cartridge above is 29.5mm, will this Suntour fit?!. Which Suntour cartridge did you put in and what is its diameter on the thread?
This brand is popular in Philippines because it's cheap and this thing got a lot of hate because it's the only fork that got so many reviews online for breaking they call this thing XC just "cross concrete" not cross country
That brand is the most commonly used suspension fork here in the Philippines because of budget issues. Also, a lot have attested that its just enough for casual rides because a lot have encountered accidents while using it on trails.
I went to a bikepark with my 100mm suntour xcr last year, wasn’t the most comfortable but definitely doable. You can’t imagine the grin I had when I tried my new bikes fox 36 for the first time, it’s such a huge difference.
I won't compromise if I'm on a budget build, first the Fork, the handle bar then the brakeset.. I'd rather have a rigid or xcr/xcm than these piece of crap. Then save up for rs recon later.
The fork looks so nice and I know how bad this will perform on a blue trail, SO I’m going to buy one and take it to my local double black free ride and tech trails I’ll update this comment on how it was They will arrive in March There will not be a video
I got a Bolany Chetah black with gold stantions and man its too good for its price. Been using it for light trails and long rides. Im from the Philippines and its quite cheaper here since Bolany is I think is a Chinese more of an Asian brand. Got it for $80. 👍
I saw this channel and I recently bought a 120mm Lutu fork. My main bike is a Giant Reign SX with a Fox36. How ever I wanted to try a 29er with putting to much money in. Now the Trek Marlin comes with a horrible heavy pogo stick. So the Lutu Fork is similar to this with Rebound. Its not a DH or Park bike so the Lutu from my experience so far, after spending years on longer travel Fox and Rockshox fork is , for the money it hard to beat. I was surprised at how well it worked in smaller rocky terrain. I won't be sending it of big jump but the Marlin is not suited to that anyway. My first ever suspension fork was a Judy back in the 90s. This is worlds better. Long winded I know but the point is, I respect your shop experience but instead of just tearing the fork apart and saying its not built as well as high end fork, get out and test them and give an objective POV. Maybe you can't if you business is servicing higher end forks. But I hope so 😎
I appreciate the comment Chris. In my experience, if I can't get parts for something, it makes me a little nervous. But at this price, you wouldn't need to rebuild it, just buy another! Also, specifically regarding this fork, if there's no rebound control or adjustment, it's just not going to perform well for most intermediate riders on normal trails.
never really done any research on these baloney forks but have fitted them to a few bikes as replacement forks for people glad u opened them up im sure il be trying to service them at somepoint
I've been beating the crap out of mine for almost 2 years. The only issue is the excessive lubrication mine had from the factory. It has sorted itself out with no servicing and I have to say its alot better than the 2007 fox f100 it replaced with the rigidity
So if you buy this fork, you have to take a part and chek every thing. Put oil and some locktite in the treads. And pray for the rest of the fork is well done, if the head tube etc is not well put together, it coul be dangerous. I have been checking this fork and I have ended buying a rock Shock Silver. Works quite nice despite it is spring.
at 5:40, the adjuster location does not dictate the adjuster function. Old Fox dampers had rebound on top and compression on bottom. Early open-bath (pre-RLC I think) dampers and the original FIT (Terralogic, with the bladder at the bottom) were arranged this way.
This was a super interesting one! Blown away that any company can manufacture an airspring fork for under $400. Sounds like the seals will slow rebound as they age...So for one glorious month the Bolany will ride llike a dream!
I bought two solo air version and ride mostly blue to black, mild jumps and drops. It's held up. Not the most comfortable, but it's held up. My advice when you get it is to do a lower end service and make sure everything is oiled and greased up properly, and make sure to clean the stanchions after every ride. It will be okay for most trails. But if your going to be doing difficult trails, get yourself a higher end fork, not the bottom of the barrel forks either from the name brands.
Really great video! I bought a fork made by the same brand about a year ago right when I got into mountain biking... I didn't know anything about forks at the time (Let alone bikes) and I thought that since it was an air fork it must be great, plus the price appealed to me. I really wish I had this video at the time to guide my thought process. I didn't ride the bike over the winter, as there is too much snow where I live to ride without a fat bike, but when I picked the bike up the next spring I came to find out that it had zero air in it. I brought it to the bike shop to get them to pump it up and pink sealent started bursting out... I'm not quite sure why there was sealent in there in the first place, but it was a complete waste of 200 bucks Canadian... What I wish I knew back then.
Really nice and informative video. for those of us who already boutght a Bolany fork, would be nice if you can make a video on how to maintain it, improve it and take the most out of that fork. thanks!
Wish I'd seen this video like a year ago! I did end up buying a Bolany back then, and honestly this video probably wouldn't have changed that decision, but I'd have been a lot more confident in knowing what exactly it is that I bought. (Mine was "gold" stanchions, which are really more of an orange; perfect fit for my 15-year-old mountain-turned-commuter bike where basically every part I've replaced so far has been a different shade of "gold". Goes a long way towards letting people know where my budget is on that one, hah.) And gotta say, I don't take it on anything besides light trails myself, and I've been... I don't want to say impressed, but surprised to find it's performed as good as the stock Suntour fork it replaced. A bit less durable (it's got a slight looseness after a year-ish that the Suntour took 10+ years to develop) but the Suntour was this beefy, super heavy coil fork, and the Bolany is a far lighter and more comfortable air fork with a remote lockout. I wouldn't trust it off more than like a 1-2 foot drop, but I wouldn't trust the rest of my bike off a bigger drop than that either (old entry-level bike shop bike that would probably survive, but I don't know if the components would). And having just dismantled and re-built a far newer Suntour fork earlier today, I'm pleasantly(?) surprised to see the Bolany is nearly identical on the inside, so at the very least there's some potential for simpler repairs. Maybe if the Bolany gets more noticeably loose I'd pay the $15 or whatever for new stanchion bushings and seals rather than a whole new fork.
Through all of this, the fork still performs well for XC in the stanchion width and can easily be scaled up. Brilliant design in simplicity and function. Every engineers goal is exactly that. Another aspect not mentioned is the fork is TUNEABLE. Suntours design for MTB applications is timeless.
It's a hybrid design based on stuff that was new back in the early 2000's, Bolany hasn't done anything new. My biggest problem with these cheap forks is they use low quality materials to get the price so low, and they don't test anything to meet safety standards. Literally any old Rockshox from 10-15 years ago is not only more refined (since these are just cheap copies) but they're also safer since they've been built with better materials AND they've been tested.
@@ButterSuspension Its actually suntours design, and has been copied by both Rockshox and Fox to a large degree. The ONLY unique design is Ohlins, and they suck. The newest Chinese forks are equivalent to Fox 34s and 36s in terms of TRUE enduro based air forks. They are all in the 200 dollar range, and offer performance on the level of 1000+ forks. You will see them soon on everything in budget biking for AM or enduro. That story of biking had to be expensive was just a marketing ploy by the industry that relies exclusively on Chinese manufacturing.
I think what people miss is the fact that these cheap forks usually don't specify the alloy of aluminum, or heat treatment the aluminum received for that matter. Forks by reputable companies, even Suntour, usually publish these specs on a website you can find. For example, a good forks stantion tubes will be 6061 alloy, with a t6 heat treatment (Marzocchi Z2 by Fox), a really expensive fork will use a 7000 series alloy at a t6 heat treatment for a stronger and lighter package (Fox 34). These budget forks, who knows what the spec is, or isn't. They are scary light, but how strong? Most OEM cheap forks, found on bikes sold in the US use heavy steel tubes to control cost, while ensuring they are strong enough to be safe. Ultimately, as the rider, it's your risk if you choose to ride one of these cheap Chinese aluminum forks. They might last years for one guy and a month for another. When a fork fails catastrophically it will bite you hard!
@@ButterSuspension I don't necessarily disagree with you, but I want to see some facts backing up your assertions. Have you performed a metallurgical analysis confirming the cheaper metal used in these forks versus the superior name branded forks that are also built with Chinese sourced parts? Where are your statistics or evidence backing up the assertion that name-branded forks of the same class are safer? How many generic Chinese forks have you stripped down and compared against name brand forks of similar specifications? How many of these Chinese forks have you ridden against similarly spec'd name brand forks to compare actual performance characteristics. Lastly, how many long-term comparisons have you done with these forks against name-brand forks? I sensed a general dismissiveness in your presentation that commenced even before you actually stripped down the fork. That's usually indicative of confirmation bias and a lack of critical objectivity. This does not mean that you were wrong in your analysis, but your conclusions seem to be overbroad and based on this limited one fork review. Like most Chinese knockoffs, there are some that are clearly cheap imitations of name-brand products, with cosmetic appeal aimed at fooling the inexperienced buyer. Then there are others that are clearly of the same (if not better quality) than the name-branded product. These often run dangerously close to the line (and sometimes run clear over it) of patent infringement. These, however, are just as good as the name-branded product, but just lack the name-brand appeal. The trick is knowing which one you're getting. The safe bet is to go for the name brand, of course, but a name brand doesn't always mean a quality product either. Food for thought my friend. Thanks for the video. This Bologne is clearly not one of the good ones. Lol!
Ordering a Bolany suspension fork for an old road bike I'm overhauling. I know I can get better performance from a fixed fork or more capability from a better suspension fork, but I wanted some basic suspension for comfort. Gonna be fairly light duty, and I just want something I can adjust and make a little spongy for less than ideal roads. Might tinker with it for a bit first to make it a little more "seaworthy", but honestly not regretting my decision. Looks decent for what it is, but yeah maybe good idea to know its limitation.
I just ordered a similar set of Bolany forks for my fat bike. The red tubes were kinda what did it for me, my wheels are red and it should look pretty cool once they are installed. I don't do much trail riding with it, just ride around the neighbourhood with the kids so I think they should be fine for what I need. Great video, thanks for the info.
I love this video and it is very informative! There is a huge budget bike community and youtube channels like Kevcentral and Wolftick seem to use forks like these on some of their bike builds. It's probably still better than the steel lower pogos that come on a lot of big box bikes. I'd still rather have a SR Suntour XCT/XCM coil fork because I know it's durable, I can get all the parts to overhaul it, and it's simple enough even I can open it up and work on it. It's not worth saving a few bucks when there are name brand forks for $200 or less. I bought a Suntour Epixon for $158 just recently. Rock Shox Judy/Recon, XFusion RC32, and Suntour Raidon/Epixon are all great budget options.
Quite glad I watched this. I've been toying with the idea of buying one of these. My old Suntour has definitely seen better days, the stanchions have a lot of play and inside the lowers the stanchions are quite rusty. Cannae find a straight steerer 26" with 100 mm travel that's good I won't be getting a balonie though!
The bollany would be as good than your suntour when it was new and you can still find suntour/manitou fork 26" straight 1 1/8 if brand name is what you are looking for
@@Zeben84 yeah, a local bicycle mechanic school was getting rid of old teaching stock; a friend works there and knew I was the right guy, lol. They're all unridden, uncut steerers and in overall good shape, but they've all been "rebuilt" by students many times over so who knows what's inside. Lucky for me I know a guy...
@@ButterSuspension hey, I'm in Vancouver BC and I'm desperate for a 26 inch 1 1/8 with about 150mm of travel to replace a Bomber 55. Riding an old Jamis Parker, love the bike but can't find anything to put on the front end.
Just a little better is UDING UD-32 I bought it for $150 3 years ago. Its rebuildable as far as the o rings and wiper seals. 2 kilo weight is better than steel ship anchor forks at 3.9 kilo. KevCentral used this on his mongoose xr-pro build. As you said, you get what you pay for. Good video.
Great review by a knowledgeable mechanic. Removed this fork from a used bike I bought. Too sketchy for me to ride after feeling them shift around during neighborhood riding. Buy name brand for your safety ppl. Thanks again for the quality review
i bought the same model last month ago and just have a few time easy ride. Yesterday I noticed that 1 side of lower leg bolt missing. I opened up and check, the original tap hole at the cartridge damper is bigger than bolt at least 1mm....
Good video, Thanks! I just rescued a 1998 Rock Shox Judy SL, before it reached the landfill. It has air cartridges in both forks. I took it apart and cleaned it up. Everything seems fine. I have not put it back together yet. Is this a good shock? BTW, it’s on a 1997 Cannondale M900, also not going to landfill. 🙂 Thanks!
Hey Brent, thanks! The Judy SL was pretty high end back in the day, and if they're Englund air cartridges, those were a pretty nice upgrade over the stock internals. Keep an eye out for a Judy video soon!
This thing costs like $35 a pop here in my area lol, I have a similar one but from another brand basicallygas the same internals that I got like back in like 2019, it's been going strong for light to medium trails that I've been doing in the years.
please make a review about it it'll grow viral here in the philippines because there's no proper reviews to watch at the moment and you're our kost trusted guy interms of reviewing suspension forks
@@ickbar11 not really. There are other varities of accident involving this fork even on long rides they break. Such a disgrace on rockshox for u to compare it to a unknown china brand. People kept saying they used the fork on a downhill track i guess u people haven't seen an xc steep section.
@@ickbar11 I disagree. I've never seen a Fox or Rockshox fail like that from riding. Only from a roof rack incident. Keep your eyes peeled for my next video, i'm gonna put some forks to the test!
Good video I learn how to desensamble a fork I have the same problem with one that I buy for Amazon what brand you recommend to buy before fox or rock shocks thank you
No dumb questions! Technically, yes, assuming the damper cartridge holds... My biggest concern about forks at this price has to do with structural integrity.
great video thanks for the detailed comments-glad I watched-after watching the video I don't want to ride (s/w desert trails) always looking down at the fork constantly worried about it failing ...so any recommendations for a safe(r?), "affordable" air susp QR, straight steerer fork for an entry level 26" (Mongoose) fatbike? Having fun upgrading other stuff, but not many or any air susp fork options, so any help/comments is appreciated!
Straight steerer stuff is hard to find new, but there's tons of used options out there...the fat bike aspect is tricky since older straight steerer stuff is never designed for fat bike tires.
you get what you paid for right? I've been using bolany for more than a year, no extreme tracks/trails or DH (as indicated in the manual sticker), so far so good.. Great video by the way
Crush washers don't keep oil in the lowers. Most oil bath lubricated forks have very tight fit shafts that get drawn into bores in the lowers; the crush washers just provide extra hold on the foot nuts/bolts. You can remove the foot nuts or bolts on Fox and Rockshox and no oil will leak out.
With enough time and money, anything is possible...but, why? Putting a Ferrari engine in a Honda civic doesn't make the Civic not a Civic. I think rebuilding an older Fox or Rockshox is always a better option, especially in regards to safety and material quality...
really enjoyed this video on top all of the others you made good man. Really cool to understand the differences, thank you for this. Really appreciated.
Not at all. Even the lowest priced fork found on any stock bike will have passed safety testing, and if anything went wrong, you could contact Giant for warranty assistance.
I have seen the results of what I can say are guys not understanding the limits of these forks. One Bolany fork had its 2 stanchions snap resulting in a horrible crash, another snapped its arch. Again with forks, definitely ride according to its quality.
I bought these manitou r7 pro forks which say no jumping or drops only for trail riding.. But I have been using them on my jump bike for about six months and descent sized jumps too. With lots of casses and flat landing and they are still holding up great. All for $240 AUD
I just bought a bolany explorer 36, it has a 160mm travel and 36mm stanchions I'm fascinated about the thickness I just thought it can hit small to medium jumps and drops. surprisingly it has 16 clicks on compression and 14 on the rebound I would want to see what's inside the lower legs, I hope you can make this kind of video again with bolany 36 and some tips to service if ever that it is serviceable because most of our mechanic in my area doesn't want to open this kind of fork, I think they're afraid that they might destroy the fork, I love your content and by the way, I just subscribed! :)
Thank You for your review. I recently bought a Himiway ebike. When it arrived at my house the box was soaked in oil inside and out. I removed the bike out of the box and found the forks were leaking oil, so I asked the people who I bought it from about my findings. Well, no one has been able to give me an answer as to where the oil was coming from. Now after watching your video I see that there is an oil-filled damper inside the forks? So my question is "can the damper be refilled with oil and what kind of oil should I use?" Thank you again for your excellent review....perhaps I should just buy a new fork from Amazon? I guess I should say that I am 76 years old and will not be doing much offroad mountain bike type riding.
Hey Bill- it is a sealed cartridge, not rebuildable or refillable since the ends are crimped steel. Nothing about this fork is designed to be serviced; at this price point and the fact that there's no phone number or website to get support, these are just designed to sell, use and toss.
Here in our country a great number of people are using bolany forks and there are actually numerous cases where they failed and caused accidents because the stanchions broke, I don't really recommend others to buy such cheap products.
@@ButterSuspension welcome to the philipines, where cyclist choose ugly brands, rather then choosing reputable and proven brands. yes im looking at you, pandemic "bikers"
Ive been seeing lots of vids on these and other Amazon forks and im surprised there’s no legal action going on, the red ABS switch at the top, is that not manitou? Some have a Solo Air sticker on the bottom which looks like it was pulled directly from Rockshox. One read a warning sticker I could swear was from suntour and some variations (himalo?) look like clone fox fork lowers. I wonder how they get away with it lol.
I don’t know much , so is it very dangerous my side with the lockout came out now there is only the right side you can adjust the air , is this super dangerous? thanks
If you have to get a fork and cant spend a lot of money you should rather get a used older model from a known brand like Rockshox or Fox. You can get them for a similar amount of money and know that they wont fail mid ride.
Depends where you live. A second hand bottom of the rung rockshox or anything with a name on it will go for about twice the price of these here in Spain. Horses for courses. In the UK and USA the market is flooded with second hand bikes and components, that just isn't the case in many countries.
any idea what's the max PSI this fork can be pumped up to? the sticker on the side only shows up to 100psi Had a trial run just on road was nice and soft, but I found the bike was extremely twitchy on flat road compare to the original suntour spring fork. Its better when I lock the shock, but when its bouncy, it just twitch like it has a mind of it's own..... SAG at 100psi for me is way too low
I have a set of 2010 worldcup boxxers. The seals are leaking and it wont lock out anymore. I mentioned it to our local bike shop and they said they cant fix em. why? They said they cant get the parts for a shock that old. they can replace the seals but not promising anything if they will work after.
@@ButterSuspension Good to know. I guess the guy at the bike shop wasn't so knowledgable then lol. How much are your seals. Also should I rebuild the inner parts as well?
@@kaywoodparsons7967 Most shops don't have the time to research rebuilding new suspension, let alone "vintage", but it's all I do now. Seal kits vary, but for that fork, about $50. Labor to rebuild is $130. The service interval for that fork is once a year; if it's never been fully rebuilt, it's about 11 years overdue, lol.
Hi i had the same type of fork name Retrospec that got damaged so i replaced it with a manitou markhor fork i was hoping you could do a tutorial vide how to change the stock 100 mm travel upto 120mm
@@ButterSuspension totally get that, was more an "out of curiosity" thing to see if you can take a trash fork and make it good. Maybe not with that for but with something else.
I enjoyed this video very much. Would you recommend it over some basic spring coil Santour forks, like XCM or XCR? Base of what I have seen here Bolany is made of basic parts, but should still has better comfort and regulation than Suntour.
Thanks! I'd go for a Suntour over these, if only because you can call Suntour for help, warranty and parts. Also, all the Suntour forks have rebound adjustment; even the most basic suspension should have that.
The parts the you heat up , is that threaded? Or is just someting glue anything that they use to stick it up If you answer mo it is a bighelp..thanks More power on your channel
It's more than just better seals and Sram Butter; since every part of this fork is made to be as inexpensive as possible, new seals will only solve one issue but that doesn't address the overall low quality.
My sons fork is leaking air. I’m wondering if taking it apart and wiping it down might get rid of some dust? Can these cheaper air forks be maintenances?
First thing to check is the air valve; inflate the fork and spray it with soapy water. If the valve core is loose, bubbles will show. Any other leaks will either be damaged air seals or scratched air sealing surfaces.
@@ButterSuspension That’s a good start! I’ll check that. Does anyone know if this fork follows a reverse engineered product we have seen from a larger fork manufacturer?
If anyone wants to know I had a pair of forks like this they were ok when they worked but then the stanchions snapped inside the crown on some threads that the damper goes in and then it came out when I was pushing to the top and pretty much if that had happened when I was riding I would have been screwed. Took them apart after they broke and they were very similar to this
Are the Lutu forks the same? They have a rebound adjustment, but as far as its intended use, not for jumping. What about rock gardens and roots? and smaller jumps like 2-3 foot jumps?
Ok. I found some on Amazon for $135. Regardless of price, the real issue is accountability. If something fails, who do you call or email for warranty? Has the product been tested independently? All the major brands are tested and certified safe for their given application and they all have websites with contact info. If you could buy a brand new car off the lot for $500, do you think it would be safe to drive?
I just got these installed lol any tips to maintain? I had some guy tell me to put oil in them but I’m not really sure what he ment or where I would put it
After every few rides, I put fork lube on the stanchions and wipe clean after a few full up/down pumps. Frees up fork from sticking and cleans crud out of bushing seals.
Suprisingly great video I literally thought this is from from a 1 mil yt channel KEEP DOING WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
Thanks Jac!
Thank you so much Jac
I glanced at the sub count and read 1.4k as 1.4 mil lol didnt even second guess it till i saw ur comment
@@ButterSuspension hi, can you do a review about bucklos lutu 150$ dollar suspension. 👊👊
Hey @ButterSuspension, first off, nice video, I like the straightforwardness of just taking it apart and showing the inside pieces. I just recently bought a 2021 Orbea MX50 that comes with a stock SR Suntour XCE 28 Coil suspension fork. That’s working pretty well right now but an upgrade might be in order sometime in the next few years. Do you have any relatively cheap (like under $200) forks that you would recommend? I mean forks that you’ve taken apart and used to be sure they’re good quality. Thanks.
I disassembled my Bolany 32 this winter after a full season of riding. Obviously not doing drops or large jumps on that bike but rough XC and mild downhill stuff. The version i have does not have a negative chamber adjustment and no rebound on the lower.
Since i have this weird thing about buying on the cheap and seeing what can be done (😄) I ordered basically every internal component from Suntour for 32mm stanchions, including their $70ish damper cartridge with rebound. Also replacement bushings for the lowers. It all fit and it all works hahah!! This is literally just for fun but want to see how long I can go on this fork. If I can get 3 or 4 seasons on it, I will call it a win for upgrading inexpensive big box bikes. That is really what these things are aimed at anyway.
Great vid and now subbed 👍
I have a similar understanding. I have a Chinese shock absorber "fork 32 pro" 140mm thry axle ... During the overhaul, the lower screw that holds the oil (right) cartridge slipped. It will have to be cut and thrown away .... Which Suntour oil cartridge fits !? I would like to put FUN 062-10. The diameter of the old Chinese threaded cartridge above is 29.5mm, will this Suntour fit?!. Which Suntour cartridge did you put in and what is its diameter on the thread?
So we got the OEM source for this fork!? :D)))
But for that money you could also buy XCR/XCT fork from the same manufakturer (Suntour).
Can you post the part numbers for the parts you bought?
how is it now?
How did they hold up?
Not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.
This brand is popular in Philippines because it's cheap and this thing got a lot of hate because it's the only fork that got so many reviews online for breaking they call this thing XC just "cross concrete" not cross country
That brand is the most commonly used suspension fork here in the Philippines because of budget issues. Also, a lot have attested that its just enough for casual rides because a lot have encountered accidents while using it on trails.
I went to a bikepark with my 100mm suntour xcr last year, wasn’t the most comfortable but definitely doable. You can’t imagine the grin I had when I tried my new bikes fox 36 for the first time, it’s such a huge difference.
Same, 100mm xc hardtail. Gonna get my first full sus soon and im so pumped
@@kapurants yeah if you come from one of those forks you’re gonna be asking yourself „did I even have a fork before?“ haha
@@wik667 I went passed that stage, and now I actually think I can't go back..Expensive forks are expensive for a reason, they work well. Very well.
To be honest that fork is popular here in the Philippines.. Popular for the stanchions being separated from the crown lol
B0lant0y fork
I won't compromise if I'm on a budget build, first the Fork, the handle bar then the brakeset.. I'd rather have a rigid or xcr/xcm than these piece of crap. Then save up for rs recon later.
bolanyo jempoy fork
@@karlcorrz wala kalang pam bili e.
@@louieanthonyalibania1979 Gusto mo salpak ko sa mukha mo tong Rockshox fork ko?
The fork looks so nice and I know how bad this will perform on a blue trail, SO I’m going to buy one and take it to my local double black free ride and tech trails I’ll update this comment on how it was
They will arrive in March
There will not be a video
Do it!
Do it
Do it
Do it!
Still alive?
I got a Bolany Chetah black with gold stantions and man its too good for its price. Been using it for light trails and long rides. Im from the Philippines and its quite cheaper here since Bolany is I think is a Chinese more of an Asian brand. Got it for $80. 👍
Its malaysian brand
I saw this channel and I recently bought a 120mm Lutu fork. My main bike is a Giant Reign SX with a Fox36. How ever I wanted to try a 29er with putting to much money in. Now the Trek Marlin comes with a horrible heavy pogo stick. So the Lutu Fork is similar to this with Rebound. Its not a DH or Park bike so the Lutu from my experience so far, after spending years on longer travel Fox and Rockshox fork is , for the money it hard to beat. I was surprised at how well it worked in smaller rocky terrain. I won't be sending it of big jump but the Marlin is not suited to that anyway. My first ever suspension fork was a Judy back in the 90s. This is worlds better. Long winded I know but the point is, I respect your shop experience but instead of just tearing the fork apart and saying its not built as well as high end fork, get out and test them and give an objective POV. Maybe you can't if you business is servicing higher end forks. But I hope so 😎
I appreciate the comment Chris. In my experience, if I can't get parts for something, it makes me a little nervous. But at this price, you wouldn't need to rebuild it, just buy another!
Also, specifically regarding this fork, if there's no rebound control or adjustment, it's just not going to perform well for most intermediate riders on normal trails.
The trek marlin was built to take a 300lbs man. IT can take jumps and drops. but the fork cant
never really done any research on these baloney forks but have fitted them to a few bikes as replacement forks for people glad u opened them up im sure il be trying to service them at somepoint
I've been beating the crap out of mine for almost 2 years. The only issue is the excessive lubrication mine had from the factory. It has sorted itself out with no servicing and I have to say its alot better than the 2007 fox f100 it replaced with the rigidity
So if you buy this fork, you have to take a part and chek every thing. Put oil and some locktite in the treads. And pray for the rest of the fork is well done, if the head tube etc is not well put together, it coul be dangerous.
I have been checking this fork and I have ended buying a rock Shock Silver. Works quite nice despite it is spring.
interesting. since the uppers are "inspired" by other brands, could you possiby upgrade these with better inners/lowers?
Yes, it's all Suntour as it seems.
at 5:40, the adjuster location does not dictate the adjuster function. Old Fox dampers had rebound on top and compression on bottom. Early open-bath (pre-RLC I think) dampers and the original FIT (Terralogic, with the bladder at the bottom) were arranged this way.
Correct. I realized that after we filmed it (and after I said it).
used bolany fork for a year now. works fine with just for lite trails. bought it here in the philippines for 70usd only. im happy with it
hows your fork now? hehe
yes i was surrprised its still working 2yrs now.
@@dukeofcebu and now?
not anymore 70usd for two years is great thats 35usd a year
My Bolany is still alive after 2+ years on the Acadia carriage trail lol. It gets the job done for casual riders like me.
This was a super interesting one! Blown away that any company can manufacture an airspring fork for under $400. Sounds like the seals will slow rebound as they age...So for one glorious month the Bolany will ride llike a dream!
Well when you have slave labour, courtesy of Uyghers and North Koreans, manufacturing is cheap. One day you'll be that slave labour.
@@redtobertshateshandles most brands have massive margins
Not true. it will last just as long as name brand forks.
@@Ben.N totally agree with this. it's all about marking and selling you a name.
I bought two solo air version and ride mostly blue to black, mild jumps and drops. It's held up. Not the most comfortable, but it's held up. My advice when you get it is to do a lower end service and make sure everything is oiled and greased up properly, and make sure to clean the stanchions after every ride. It will be okay for most trails. But if your going to be doing difficult trails, get yourself a higher end fork, not the bottom of the barrel forks either from the name brands.
Really great video! I bought a fork made by the same brand about a year ago right when I got into mountain biking... I didn't know anything about forks at the time (Let alone bikes) and I thought that since it was an air fork it must be great, plus the price appealed to me. I really wish I had this video at the time to guide my thought process. I didn't ride the bike over the winter, as there is too much snow where I live to ride without a fat bike, but when I picked the bike up the next spring I came to find out that it had zero air in it. I brought it to the bike shop to get them to pump it up and pink sealent started bursting out... I'm not quite sure why there was sealent in there in the first place, but it was a complete waste of 200 bucks Canadian... What I wish I knew back then.
Really nice and informative video. for those of us who already boutght a Bolany fork, would be nice if you can make a video on how to maintain it, improve it and take the most out of that fork. thanks!
Wish I'd seen this video like a year ago! I did end up buying a Bolany back then, and honestly this video probably wouldn't have changed that decision, but I'd have been a lot more confident in knowing what exactly it is that I bought. (Mine was "gold" stanchions, which are really more of an orange; perfect fit for my 15-year-old mountain-turned-commuter bike where basically every part I've replaced so far has been a different shade of "gold". Goes a long way towards letting people know where my budget is on that one, hah.)
And gotta say, I don't take it on anything besides light trails myself, and I've been... I don't want to say impressed, but surprised to find it's performed as good as the stock Suntour fork it replaced. A bit less durable (it's got a slight looseness after a year-ish that the Suntour took 10+ years to develop) but the Suntour was this beefy, super heavy coil fork, and the Bolany is a far lighter and more comfortable air fork with a remote lockout.
I wouldn't trust it off more than like a 1-2 foot drop, but I wouldn't trust the rest of my bike off a bigger drop than that either (old entry-level bike shop bike that would probably survive, but I don't know if the components would). And having just dismantled and re-built a far newer Suntour fork earlier today, I'm pleasantly(?) surprised to see the Bolany is nearly identical on the inside, so at the very least there's some potential for simpler repairs. Maybe if the Bolany gets more noticeably loose I'd pay the $15 or whatever for new stanchion bushings and seals rather than a whole new fork.
Glad I found this channel about the shock.
Thank you for this video. You may have just save me a trip to the hospital, at least.
Through all of this, the fork still performs well for XC in the stanchion width and can easily be scaled up. Brilliant design in simplicity and function. Every engineers goal is exactly that. Another aspect not mentioned is the fork is TUNEABLE. Suntours design for MTB applications is timeless.
It's a hybrid design based on stuff that was new back in the early 2000's, Bolany hasn't done anything new. My biggest problem with these cheap forks is they use low quality materials to get the price so low, and they don't test anything to meet safety standards. Literally any old Rockshox from 10-15 years ago is not only more refined (since these are just cheap copies) but they're also safer since they've been built with better materials AND they've been tested.
@@ButterSuspension Its actually suntours design, and has been copied by both Rockshox and Fox to a large degree. The ONLY unique design is Ohlins, and they suck. The newest Chinese forks are equivalent to Fox 34s and 36s in terms of TRUE enduro based air forks. They are all in the 200 dollar range, and offer performance on the level of 1000+ forks. You will see them soon on everything in budget biking for AM or enduro. That story of biking had to be expensive was just a marketing ploy by the industry that relies exclusively on Chinese manufacturing.
I think what people miss is the fact that these cheap forks usually don't specify the alloy of aluminum, or heat treatment the aluminum received for that matter. Forks by reputable companies, even Suntour, usually publish these specs on a website you can find. For example, a good forks stantion tubes will be 6061 alloy, with a t6 heat treatment (Marzocchi Z2 by Fox), a really expensive fork will use a 7000 series alloy at a t6 heat treatment for a stronger and lighter package (Fox 34). These budget forks, who knows what the spec is, or isn't. They are scary light, but how strong? Most OEM cheap forks, found on bikes sold in the US use heavy steel tubes to control cost, while ensuring they are strong enough to be safe. Ultimately, as the rider, it's your risk if you choose to ride one of these cheap Chinese aluminum forks. They might last years for one guy and a month for another. When a fork fails catastrophically it will bite you hard!
@@ButterSuspension I don't necessarily disagree with you, but I want to see some facts backing up your assertions. Have you performed a metallurgical analysis confirming the cheaper metal used in these forks versus the superior name branded forks that are also built with Chinese sourced parts? Where are your statistics or evidence backing up the assertion that name-branded forks of the same class are safer? How many generic Chinese forks have you stripped down and compared against name brand forks of similar specifications? How many of these Chinese forks have you ridden against similarly spec'd name brand forks to compare actual performance characteristics. Lastly, how many long-term comparisons have you done with these forks against name-brand forks?
I sensed a general dismissiveness in your presentation that commenced even before you actually stripped down the fork. That's usually indicative of confirmation bias and a lack of critical objectivity. This does not mean that you were wrong in your analysis, but your conclusions seem to be overbroad and based on this limited one fork review. Like most Chinese knockoffs, there are some that are clearly cheap imitations of name-brand products, with cosmetic appeal aimed at fooling the inexperienced buyer. Then there are others that are clearly of the same (if not better quality) than the name-branded product. These often run dangerously close to the line (and sometimes run clear over it) of patent infringement. These, however, are just as good as the name-branded product, but just lack the name-brand appeal. The trick is knowing which one you're getting. The safe bet is to go for the name brand, of course, but a name brand doesn't always mean a quality product either. Food for thought my friend. Thanks for the video. This Bologne is clearly not one of the good ones. Lol!
Ordering a Bolany suspension fork for an old road bike I'm overhauling. I know I can get better performance from a fixed fork or more capability from a better suspension fork, but I wanted some basic suspension for comfort. Gonna be fairly light duty, and I just want something I can adjust and make a little spongy for less than ideal roads. Might tinker with it for a bit first to make it a little more "seaworthy", but honestly not regretting my decision. Looks decent for what it is, but yeah maybe good idea to know its limitation.
If you flip the O with the A in bolany its now balony wich is also the cheapest type of meat on the market. Great video i loved it.very entertaining
Bologna...
I just ordered a similar set of Bolany forks for my fat bike. The red tubes were kinda what did it for me, my wheels are red and it should look pretty cool once they are installed. I don't do much trail riding with it, just ride around the neighbourhood with the kids so I think they should be fine for what I need.
Great video, thanks for the info.
I love this video and it is very informative!
There is a huge budget bike community and youtube channels like Kevcentral and Wolftick seem to use forks like these on some of their bike builds. It's probably still better than the steel lower pogos that come on a lot of big box bikes. I'd still rather have a SR Suntour XCT/XCM coil fork because I know it's durable, I can get all the parts to overhaul it, and it's simple enough even I can open it up and work on it.
It's not worth saving a few bucks when there are name brand forks for $200 or less. I bought a Suntour Epixon for $158 just recently. Rock Shox Judy/Recon, XFusion RC32, and Suntour Raidon/Epixon are all great budget options.
Quite glad I watched this. I've been toying with the idea of buying one of these.
My old Suntour has definitely seen better days, the stanchions have a lot of play and inside the lowers the stanchions are quite rusty.
Cannae find a straight steerer 26" with 100 mm travel that's good
I won't be getting a balonie though!
The bollany would be as good than your suntour when it was new and you can still find suntour/manitou fork 26" straight 1 1/8 if brand name is what you are looking for
Johnny Keel, I just picked up about 85 forks last week, many are 26" straight steerer...where are you located?
@@ButterSuspension 85 ? 🤪
@@Zeben84 yeah, a local bicycle mechanic school was getting rid of old teaching stock; a friend works there and knew I was the right guy, lol. They're all unridden, uncut steerers and in overall good shape, but they've all been "rebuilt" by students many times over so who knows what's inside. Lucky for me I know a guy...
@@ButterSuspension hey, I'm in Vancouver BC and I'm desperate for a 26 inch 1 1/8 with about 150mm of travel to replace a Bomber 55. Riding an old Jamis Parker, love the bike but can't find anything to put on the front end.
Just a little better is UDING UD-32 I bought it for $150 3 years ago. Its rebuildable as far as the o rings and wiper seals. 2 kilo weight is better than steel ship anchor forks at 3.9 kilo. KevCentral used this on his mongoose xr-pro build. As you said, you get what you pay for. Good video.
Great review by a knowledgeable mechanic. Removed this fork from a used bike I bought. Too sketchy for me to ride after feeling them shift around during neighborhood riding. Buy name brand for your safety ppl. Thanks again for the quality review
i bought the same model last month ago and just have a few time easy ride. Yesterday I noticed that 1 side of lower leg bolt missing. I opened up and check, the original tap hole at the cartridge damper is bigger than bolt at least 1mm....
Good video, Thanks! I just rescued a 1998 Rock Shox Judy SL, before it reached the landfill. It has air cartridges in both forks. I took it apart and cleaned it up. Everything seems fine. I have not put it back together yet. Is this a good shock? BTW, it’s on a 1997 Cannondale M900, also not going to landfill. 🙂 Thanks!
Hey Brent, thanks!
The Judy SL was pretty high end back in the day, and if they're Englund air cartridges, those were a pretty nice upgrade over the stock internals.
Keep an eye out for a Judy video soon!
This thing costs like $35 a pop here in my area lol, I have a similar one but from another brand basicallygas the same internals that I got like back in like 2019, it's been going strong for light to medium trails that I've been doing in the years.
There are 2 videos here in the Philippines circulating that forks stanchions splitting in half while using in an xc trail
I've seen one of them. Not good! I'm planning on making another video with a failure test of this fork.
please make a review about it it'll grow viral here in the philippines because there's no proper reviews to watch at the moment and you're our kost trusted guy interms of reviewing suspension forks
I saw the video, same accident would have split a roxshox fork in half as well.
@@ickbar11 not really. There are other varities of accident involving this fork even on long rides they break. Such a disgrace on rockshox for u to compare it to a unknown china brand. People kept saying they used the fork on a downhill track i guess u people haven't seen an xc steep section.
@@ickbar11 I disagree. I've never seen a Fox or Rockshox fail like that from riding. Only from a roof rack incident. Keep your eyes peeled for my next video, i'm gonna put some forks to the test!
Works great on my ebike, sucks up the ruts at 50+ moh, on the steep hills in SF. 9mm QR Sun/Ringles with the Stan's tubeless.
😳
Lol, I can only prove 50mph there's latency with Strava App.
203mm Shimano front disc. Bald Scwalbe front n' rear.
Suntour uses that damper and technology.
I think it's more accurate to say Bolany uses some Suntour parts...
@@ButterSuspension Right....
ABS lockout control is Manitou/Hayes. Got to me old SunTour plus Hayes Performance parts.
Good video I learn how to desensamble a fork I have the same problem with one that I buy for Amazon what brand you recommend to buy before fox or rock shocks thank you
Your first fork is probably at the bottom of the pacific with the drone I ordered and never got, after waiting half a year.. lol
Clicked for the red legs, stuck around because this guy is a great youtube video host.
Thanks Brian!
If these fail can you just lock them out and use it as a standard fork? Sorry for the dumb question. I’m new to this.
No dumb questions! Technically, yes, assuming the damper cartridge holds...
My biggest concern about forks at this price has to do with structural integrity.
4:38 that J. Jonah Jameson laugh gets me every time.
i see alot of those here in SEA but i still prefer santours if i am going for cheap forks
great video thanks for the detailed comments-glad I watched-after watching the video I don't want to ride (s/w desert trails) always looking down at the fork constantly worried about it failing ...so any recommendations for a safe(r?), "affordable" air susp QR, straight steerer fork for an entry level 26" (Mongoose) fatbike? Having fun upgrading other stuff, but not many or any air susp fork options, so any help/comments is appreciated!
Straight steerer stuff is hard to find new, but there's tons of used options out there...the fat bike aspect is tricky since older straight steerer stuff is never designed for fat bike tires.
you get what you paid for right? I've been using bolany for more than a year, no extreme tracks/trails or DH (as indicated in the manual sticker), so far so good.. Great video by the way
mine cost about 88 dollars , but im in the philippines . parts are cheaper here .
but somebody broke it by pedaling in the streets, PBS posted it.
Great video thanks I have often wondered about these cheap forks that seem to have appeared everywhere.
Can you put oil inside lowers and close them with crush washers?
Crush washers don't keep oil in the lowers. Most oil bath lubricated forks have very tight fit shafts that get drawn into bores in the lowers; the crush washers just provide extra hold on the foot nuts/bolts. You can remove the foot nuts or bolts on Fox and Rockshox and no oil will leak out.
I got a Bolany Oil Slick for a beginner and it's a beauty
Think it’s possible to attempt DIY-ing a better brand 32mm cartridge into those stanchions and lowers?
With enough time and money, anything is possible...but, why? Putting a Ferrari engine in a Honda civic doesn't make the Civic not a Civic.
I think rebuilding an older Fox or Rockshox is always a better option, especially in regards to safety and material quality...
@@ButterSuspension but it makes the civic faster for less than a Ferrari
Yeah material quality is an important concern, fair enough.
really enjoyed this video on top all of the others you made good man. Really cool to understand the differences, thank you for this. Really appreciated.
I was thinking about buying the Giant talent 2 would that fork be the same thing
Not at all. Even the lowest priced fork found on any stock bike will have passed safety testing, and if anything went wrong, you could contact Giant for warranty assistance.
i actually bought this fork for my second bike and it's pretty decent especially for qr hubs
Got one for $70. Works for me
I have seen the results of what I can say are guys not understanding the limits of these forks. One Bolany fork had its 2 stanchions snap resulting in a horrible crash, another snapped its arch. Again with forks, definitely ride according to its quality.
Yup. Gonna do a failure test video with these soon.
Every great story starts with... "I was on the internet..." :D
Ok...Fair enough. So what DO you recommend for a budget friendly air fork?
Anything from Rockshox, Manitou, or Suntour.
A got some judy gold rl 2019 in boost for 120£ on ebay there really good have them nearly 2 years now
Is this worth trying for a pumptrack / dirt jump bike? What about if it is used always locked?
In our country that is already one of the high end forks, im saving money for that fork
What country is that?
@@ollieswift1091 Gotta be somewhere in Eastern Europe.
Im from philippines
@@ollieswift1091 philippines
Here it cost around 4000 ph about 80-90$
Thanks for a great watch Greg! How about a video on 90's linkage forks like AMP Research, Girvin, etc. ?
Prob do a video just on linkage forks, I have a bunch!
Hey would this fork fit on my icon biggie bmx?
I bought these manitou r7 pro forks which say no jumping or drops only for trail riding.. But I have been using them on my jump bike for about six months and descent sized jumps too. With lots of casses and flat landing and they are still holding up great. All for $240 AUD
Manitou makes a great product!
I just bought a bolany explorer 36, it has a 160mm travel and 36mm stanchions I'm fascinated about the thickness I just thought it can hit small to medium jumps and drops. surprisingly it has 16 clicks on compression and 14 on the rebound I would want to see what's inside the lower legs, I hope you can make this kind of video again with bolany 36 and some tips to service if ever that it is serviceable because most of our mechanic in my area doesn't want to open this kind of fork, I think they're afraid that they might destroy the fork, I love your content and by the way, I just subscribed! :)
Can't wait to hear your impressions once you get this installed. I'm looking at a similar brand also.
Thank You for your review. I recently bought a Himiway ebike. When it arrived at my house the box was soaked in oil inside and out. I removed the bike out of the box and found the forks were leaking oil, so I asked the people who I bought it from about my findings. Well, no one has been able to give me an answer as to where the oil was coming from. Now after watching your video I see that there is an oil-filled damper inside the forks? So my question is "can the damper be refilled with oil and what kind of oil should I use?" Thank you again for your excellent review....perhaps I should just buy a new fork from Amazon? I guess I should say that I am 76 years old and will not be doing much offroad mountain bike type riding.
Hey Bill- it is a sealed cartridge, not rebuildable or refillable since the ends are crimped steel. Nothing about this fork is designed to be serviced; at this price point and the fact that there's no phone number or website to get support, these are just designed to sell, use and toss.
@@ButterSuspension Are you saying my forks or the ones sold on Amazon should be tossed?
Sorry, I thought you were commenting because the bike you purchased had Bolany forks...what make/model are your forks?
Thanks for the tear down! I was considering purchasing these... until now... lol
good thing i watched your video before buying it, you saved my ass.
Just wait until the next video on this thing!
At this price point you're probably better off getting some quality rigid forks. At least you won't be worried about them snapping.
Truth. Or at least an xcr or xcm. Then saved up for rshox recon later
Aye someone who know what other forks look like unlike Evan
Lol, sorry Evan.
“I did a little research, I think I just messaged the guy”
you think you messaged him, not sure?
what air fork should u recommend that is 2nd hand??? also how to check if the 2nd hand fork is worth to buy without error
Rockshox, Fox, Manitou, Marzocchi are all good brands. The only way to really know is to have a fork inspected.
@@ButterSuspension i order 55$ bolany air fork like this today, i dont jump on bike i think its worth for the price right???
I still don't think the Bolany stuff is tested for fatigue or strength, so I can't recommend them.
Seth recently released a video where he upgrades a hardtail for a kid, and uses this fork. made me think of this video.
Question. 20" x 4" ebike stock fork may possibly be filled with queso. A reasonable replacement fork would beeee????
20" x 4"? Wtf, ha ha. I'm out of the loop on anything that would fit that sized wheel/tire.
I'd just replace the queso.
oh man.. i THOROUGHLY enjoyed this!.... i'm going to peruse the channel... but I'd love to see a walmart series XD hahaha
Here in our country a great number of people are using bolany forks and there are actually numerous cases where they failed and caused accidents because the stanchions broke, I don't really recommend others to buy such cheap products.
Thanks for your comment. The next video about this fork will be a failure test along with forks from the big 3. Should be interesting!
@@ButterSuspension welcome to the philipines, where cyclist choose ugly brands, rather then choosing reputable and proven brands.
yes im looking at you, pandemic "bikers"
great videoz. planning to buy one of this bolany 34 with 120mm of travel ang this video helped me to decide if i should give it a go
Loved your video, this is the kind of thing I look for on a video. It's all about information. Know what you are buying!
Ive been seeing lots of vids on these and other Amazon forks and im surprised there’s no legal action going on, the red ABS switch at the top, is that not manitou? Some have a Solo Air sticker on the bottom which looks like it was pulled directly from Rockshox. One read a warning sticker I could swear was from suntour and some variations (himalo?) look like clone fox fork lowers. I wonder how they get away with it lol.
The Manitou switch is probably leftovers from some factory, but overall, yeah it's kinda nuts.
Pretty cool. Thanks for the video
You're welcome!
I don’t know much , so is it very dangerous my side with the lockout came out now there is only the right side you can adjust the air , is this super dangerous? thanks
Was it just the lever or did the whole cartridge come out?
What up Greg and Jose!! great video guys
Hey Andrew! Thanks for watching!
Hey Andy! Thanks for dropping by :)
Try the himalo drift 160
If you have to get a fork and cant spend a lot of money you should rather get a used older model from a known brand like Rockshox or Fox. You can get them for a similar amount of money and know that they wont fail mid ride.
Depends where you live. A second hand bottom of the rung rockshox or anything with a name on it will go for about twice the price of these here in Spain. Horses for courses. In the UK and USA the market is flooded with second hand bikes and components, that just isn't the case in many countries.
any idea what's the max PSI this fork can be pumped up to? the sticker on the side only shows up to 100psi
Had a trial run just on road was nice and soft, but I found the bike was extremely twitchy on flat road compare to the original suntour spring fork. Its better when I lock the shock, but when its bouncy, it just twitch like it has a mind of it's own..... SAG at 100psi for me is way too low
No idea, sorry. Mine didn't come with an owners manual...
@@ButterSuspension whats the highest you have run to? came across a Bucklo (similar cheap fork) comment on Amazon that stated 160psi max.
@@okitoki1973 to be honest these forks never come through my shop, not once in almost 7 years. The only one I've seen was bought for this video.
I have a set of 2010 worldcup boxxers. The seals are leaking and it wont lock out anymore. I mentioned it to our local bike shop and they said they cant fix em. why? They said they cant get the parts for a shock that old. they can replace the seals but not promising anything if they will work after.
Seals are still available, I have them in stock. But...Boxxers generally never had a lockout since it's a DH fork.
@@ButterSuspension Good to know. I guess the guy at the bike shop wasn't so knowledgable then lol. How much are your seals. Also should I rebuild the inner parts as well?
@@kaywoodparsons7967 Most shops don't have the time to research rebuilding new suspension, let alone "vintage", but it's all I do now. Seal kits vary, but for that fork, about $50. Labor to rebuild is $130. The service interval for that fork is once a year; if it's never been fully rebuilt, it's about 11 years overdue, lol.
Nice. Thank you.
Hi i had the same type of fork name Retrospec that got damaged so i replaced it with a manitou markhor fork i was hoping you could do a tutorial vide how to change the stock 100 mm travel upto 120mm
Doesn't/did Marzocchi offer custom anodized stanchions, like in green and red?
They had some at a trade show i believe, but I don't think they ever went into production.
OK here is a challenge.....can you take that basic for and modify it to perform better? Would be interesting to see if you can
I'm not worried about performance on a fork that hasn't been tested for safety. My biggest concern is upper leg failure.
@@ButterSuspension totally get that, was more an "out of curiosity" thing to see if you can take a trash fork and make it good. Maybe not with that for but with something else.
Is that a Bullet Bros ZZYZX hanging from your rafter!!!!!
Yes! Check my other vids, I did one on the Zyzzx!
I enjoyed this video very much. Would you recommend it over some basic spring coil Santour forks, like XCM or XCR? Base of what I have seen here Bolany is made of basic parts, but should still has better comfort and regulation than Suntour.
Thanks!
I'd go for a Suntour over these, if only because you can call Suntour for help, warranty and parts. Also, all the Suntour forks have rebound adjustment; even the most basic suspension should have that.
you can use the Suntour upgrade program and get a massive discount on one of their higher-end air forks like the Raidon
@@Andrea-qg5yk can you give a link or something for that?
@@Andrea-qg5yk interesting
The parts the you heat up , is that threaded? Or is just someting glue anything that they use to stick it up
If you answer mo it is a bighelp..thanks More power on your channel
Yes, threads with loctite usually. Heat softens the loctite.
@@ButterSuspension THANKS , BIGHELP😍😍😍
good video, need to see about my suntours c so they are a bit squeaky on compression
Could you replace the seals for better one and use some sram butter on the stanchions to make it better? Too resist water getting in and corroding it.
It's more than just better seals and Sram Butter; since every part of this fork is made to be as inexpensive as possible, new seals will only solve one issue but that doesn't address the overall low quality.
My sons fork is leaking air. I’m wondering if taking it apart and wiping it down might get rid of some dust? Can these cheaper air forks be maintenances?
First thing to check is the air valve; inflate the fork and spray it with soapy water. If the valve core is loose, bubbles will show.
Any other leaks will either be damaged air seals or scratched air sealing surfaces.
@@ButterSuspension That’s a good start! I’ll check that. Does anyone know if this fork follows a reverse engineered product we have seen from a larger fork manufacturer?
Loved the edit on this! Great humor man.
Edit props go to @theaveragejose !
If anyone wants to know I had a pair of forks like this they were ok when they worked but then the stanchions snapped inside the crown on some threads that the damper goes in and then it came out when I was pushing to the top and pretty much if that had happened when I was riding I would have been screwed. Took them apart after they broke and they were very similar to this
Are the Lutu forks the same? They have a rebound adjustment, but as far as its intended use, not for jumping. What about rock gardens and roots? and smaller jumps like 2-3 foot jumps?
Haven't taken one of those apart. Nice that they offer rebound adjustment, but ANY FORK priced at $135 is probably not safe.
@@ButterSuspension They cost $170
Ok. I found some on Amazon for $135. Regardless of price, the real issue is accountability. If something fails, who do you call or email for warranty? Has the product been tested independently? All the major brands are tested and certified safe for their given application and they all have websites with contact info. If you could buy a brand new car off the lot for $500, do you think it would be safe to drive?
Thanks from Italy for this great video, I loved it. Good job ;-)
Were you able to reassemble all the forks you've taken apart so far, or were any of them destroyed in the process?
Everything but the Noleen has gone back together. I try not to destroy anything if I can help it!
@@ButterSuspension Why not the Noleen?
@@AlexSalikan just haven't had time to measure for new seals. Gotta take care of the paying customers first! It'll happen...
I just got these installed lol any tips to maintain? I had some guy tell me to put oil in them but I’m not really sure what he ment or where I would put it
These aren't really designed to have bath oil in them, I'd just keep them greased.
After every few rides, I put fork lube on the stanchions and wipe clean after a few full up/down pumps. Frees up fork from sticking and cleans crud out of bushing seals.
@@prblakesleeuse light grease like slickoleum for the lowers