# Upgrading Fork - Straight tube hard to find



## mrg02d (Nov 11, 2018)

My wife has a 2014 Giant Talon 5. It’s got a Suntour XCT Fork which is garbage. She is bottoming out and getting really irritable. Rather than try to spend $$$ on a new bike, I’d rather just upgrade the fork. The rest of the bike works great for her. I’m upgrading the brakes to Shimano hydraulic since I upgraded my Giant Anthem to XT brakes. 

Her bike needs a straight tube and all that I can seem to find are tapered. eBay has a lot of the Subtour Epixon forks, straight tube, for a great price. Only problem is, I keep seeing reports that these are counterfeit or rejects. They are half the price of what Suntour sells them for. Does anyone have any experience with these eBay forks or could someone recommend a decent air fork with a straight tube in the 27.5in size? We do cross country riding, full of roots and couple 1 foot drops. Nothing hard. 

Thanks!


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## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

You could get a Suntour fork from a legit dealer. Most all LBSs can get Suntour.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

Couple things.

Yes, straight steerer forks are hard to find. Ebay is full of sketchy sellers, so I don't buy stuff from there. It looks like the Giant has a Suntour fork on it already. Look at Suntour's customer loyalty program to get a fork straight from the mfr for a very good price.

Also, looking at the frame, I'd say you CAN put a tapered steerer fork on that bike. Giant isn't very good about providing specs on the frame. Under "steerer tube diameter" they just say "straight" which is lazy. Looking at some pictures, I see that the bike uses what appear to be zero stack headset cups (where the bearings are between the steerer tube and frame diameter). If you change the headset, particularly by using an external lower headset cup, you can install a tapered fork.

Now, on this bike, such a change will raise the front of the bike a little bit. Which might mean lowering the handlebars a bit to make the fit similar to it is now. Quite a few bikes are designed to be set up this way, so the Talon won't have a problem with it if you decide to do this. You'll need to measure the frame, though, because Giant is known to have used headtubes with a unique/semi-proprietary size at times and that will determine which headset bits you need to buy to make a tapered fork work if you decide to go that route.

One of my bikes, which is designed to use a tapered fork with the use of an external lower headset cup.


1214182256 by Nate, on Flickr


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## mrg02d (Nov 11, 2018)

Harold said:


> Couple things.
> 
> Yes, straight steerer forks are hard to find. Ebay is full of sketchy sellers, so I don't buy stuff from there. It looks like the Giant has a Suntour fork on it already. Look at Suntour's customer loyalty program to get a fork straight from the mfr for a very good price.
> 
> ...


Suntour states that I have to be the original owner of the bike, proof of purchase to verify, I order to use their upgrade program. I bought this used :-(

I've got a Giant dealer nearby. I may bring it by and ask them to see if they could fit a tapered fork on here. A lot of great deals on used tapered forks on eBay.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

mrg02d said:


> Suntour states that I have to be the original owner of the bike, proof of purchase to verify, I order to use their upgrade program. I bought this used :-(
> 
> I've got a Giant dealer nearby. I may bring it by and ask them to see if they could fit a tapered fork on here. A lot of great deals on used tapered forks on eBay.


Bummer.

Specifically ask the Giant shop about which headset parts you would need to make a tapered fork fit. Don't just ask if they could fit one. You might get someone who answers your question a little too literally (because you cannot fit a tapered fork on it right now, you need additional parts).

A respectable used air fork would be a nice option.


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## sgltrak (Feb 19, 2005)

Four of my bikes take straight steer tube forks and I usually find some good deals on the local craigslist. I've picked up a couple of Rebas this way and have my eye on a Fox F29.
Perhaps if you cannot find a good deal on a 27.5 straight steerer fork, you might be able to find a good deal on a 29'er straight steerer fork and use it. The difference in A-C is probably minimal enough that is won't change handling greatly.


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## eb1888 (Jan 27, 2012)

And your wheel hub is likely quick release with the fork lowers having open dropouts instead of a 15 x 100 thru-axle. or 15 x 110 Boost which is current. Your wheel likely uses a 9mm axle clamped with a 5mm skewer. Some hubs allow end cap changes to change fork compatibility.
Or you could get a new lighter weight wheel with a wider rim. Say 30-35mm inner between the beads. Good for the terrain around Tallahassee.
A new fork could weigh 4-4.1/2lbs instead of the over 6 lbs. of the current one. 
Combine the weight loss from wheel and fork and her bike will be noticeably improved.


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## mrg02d (Nov 11, 2018)

Nice, you know the Tallahassee area? 

The wheel is a drop out QR type, not sure of the measurements. Going up to a 29in fork could be an option, I’ll look for some straight tube 29in before going the other route. If I don’t see a good deal, I’ll probably see about getting a tapered one to fit. She doesn’t need a heck of a lot, but the trails do get hairy at times. I used to ride a bike without any suspension at all and would be very sore afterwards.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

mrg02d said:


> Nice, you know the Tallahassee area?
> 
> The wheel is a drop out QR type, not sure of the measurements. Going up to a 29in fork could be an option, I'll look for some straight tube 29in before going the other route. If I don't see a good deal, I'll probably see about getting a tapered one to fit. She doesn't need a heck of a lot, but the trails do get hairy at times. I used to ride a bike without any suspension at all and would be very sore afterwards.


no, he doesn't know your area. He spouts the same rim width BS to everybody. Just buy something non-boost (100mm hub width) with open dropouts that'll fit the bike. Don't worry about dicking around with the wheel on top of it. At that point, you're better off buying a new bike entirely.


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## eb1888 (Jan 27, 2012)

mrg02d said:


> Nice, you know the Tallahassee area?
> 
> The wheel is a drop out QR type, not sure of the measurements. Going up to a 29in fork could be an option, I'll look for some straight tube 29in before going the other route. If I don't see a good deal, I'll probably see about getting a tapered one to fit. She doesn't need a heck of a lot, but the trails do get hairy at times. I used to ride a bike without any suspension at all and would be very sore afterwards.


I looked up your terrain on the singletrack site and checked out the trails I thought you and your wife might pick out of the locations they show with pictures and rider descriptions before I made a recommendation.
https://www.singletracks.com/Mounta...=|loc:30.438056~-84.280833~25~Tallahassee,+FL
I figured Munson Hills with 11 miles of intermediate trails would be a fun area since it had been reworked with more clay to reduce the sand and with new berms.
https://www.singletracks.com/bike-trails/munson-hills.html
That's where I'd ride in your area.
I've also done a fork and wheel change a long time ago on a low end bike I still keep for friends. The difference in climbing with the weight reduction was dramatic for me at that stage. It might make a big impact for your wife. I shopped for used parts and the cost was reasonable. You don't have to buy everything new. You can get a front wheel by itself instead of a wheelset.


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## tfinator (Apr 30, 2009)

I went with a x fusion velvet which I got new for about $200 a few years back to go 27.5 with straight steer tube. The fork is actually a 26 fork, but by installing a 10mm internal spacer and limiting it to 90mm if travel it allowed a 27.5x2.3 or so to fit.

If you can find one they're great no-nonsense forks

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk


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## richj8990 (Apr 4, 2017)

SR Suntour Epixon XC MTB Fork 27.5" Travel 120mm w/Remote Lockout Air Spring QR 9mm Matte Black Retail Package

$245, directly from the manufacturer, retailer is the infamous Amazon.com.


Why do you guys hate Amazon so much? Great deals and a lot better return policy than 
E-Bay, not to mention no PayPal and their never-ending password changes to deal with.


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## Nkopp83KY (Jan 3, 2018)

I believe Cane Creek has an external cupped headset bearing you can use to run a tapered steerer. Good luck!


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## willowbeast (Jul 10, 2017)

For ease you can go the route of the suntour upgrade program with either a raidon or epixon fork. Nick will help you out. For some extra reading head to the https://forums.mtbr.com/giant/talon-owners-767476.html
for lots of different options on upgrading.


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## mrg02d (Nov 11, 2018)

So looks like using a Hope ec44 is what is recommended for using tapered forks with straight tubes. They are pricey though. Would a Hope ec44 plus decent, used, RockShox fork be worth fussing over instead of a lesser, new, straight tube fork? I found a New recon, solo air, RL straight tube on eBay for $210 shipped. I don’t know what this is, but guessing it’s lesser than the silver recon? I’ve got the Recon gold solo air on my Giant Anthem and it seems like a very good one. There is a used RockShox revelation, tapered, for around $200 also.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

mrg02d said:


> So looks like using a Hope ec44 is what is recommended for using tapered forks with straight tubes. They are pricey though. Would a Hope ec44 plus decent, used, RockShox fork be worth fussing over instead of a lesser, new, straight tube fork? I found a New recon, solo air, RL straight tube on eBay for $210 shipped. I don't know what this is, but guessing it's lesser than the silver recon? I've got the Recon gold solo air on my Giant Anthem and it seems like a very good one. There is a used RockShox revelation, tapered, for around $200 also.


Lots of companies make ec44 lower headset cups that will cost substantially less than a Hope.

The real question is if your bike has a 44mm head tube. Giant is not exactly forthcoming with that dimension, so you should measure it and make sure it isn't one of the weird headtube sizes that's out there.

I personally like cane creek headsets, but I also buy the more expensive 110 model. The 40 is a good midpriced one, and the 10 is their budget headset, but I am not a fan of the plastic split crown race they use on those.

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk


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## eplanajr (Nov 7, 2008)

There are options Rockshox XC30, Manitou Markour, Suntour Radion, to name a few... You can get all of those for $150-250 and will directly install onto your bike. No monkeying with headsets or wheels.

If you go to a tapered tube, you may also be limited by your QR 110 hub.

I initially when with a XC30 and recently went all out. This is what I just did on my bike. I installed the lower bottom cup as someone posted above. I also opted not to use the crappy plastic split race. I also put a Fox Rhythm 32, boost spacing with a 15mm thru axle.

Bottom Cup removed...









Cane Creek bottom cup installed...









Fox 32 with tapered steerer tube installed...









Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


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## mrg02d (Nov 11, 2018)

I decided to go with a RockShox recon RL, straight tube, on eBay. Got it for $210 shipped and new. Looks to be an updated recon silver. This should be more than enough for where we ride and also hold up decent, no?


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

mrg02d said:


> I decided to go with a RockShox recon RL, straight tube, on eBay. Got it for $210 shipped and new. Looks to be an updated recon silver. This should be more than enough for where we ride and also hold up decent, no?


it'll be a notable upgrade to an low end Suntour.


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