# Fox 34 or 36 for Stumpjumper Alloy?



## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

Looking to upgrade the Rockshox 35 silver fork on my 2021 Stumpy Alloy base. 

I'm 165lbs (170-175lbs with gear) and mostly ride technical rocky XC style trails and some more enduro focused downhill trails with some medium sized drops (5-7'). 

Currently looking at either a fox 34 or 36 in 140-150mm travel. 

I'm more leaning towards the 34 for cost, but I'm worried the 34 may not be sturdy enough for what I'm doing. 

Is that valid? Would I be better with the 36? Climbing ability is important to me...

Any help would be awesome. Thanks.


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## OldMike (Apr 30, 2020)

Go 36 if you can. I weight a little more and and I'm fine with my 34, however It's 140mm and I wouldn't want anything less then a 36 If I were to go 150mm.
Also, the 5' - 7' drops more than qualify a 36 IMO.


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## Fairbanks007 (Sep 5, 2009)

I'm close to 220-225 fully kitted up. I was going to say the 34 would work fine at your weight right up until I got to the part with the 5-7' drops. Yeah, I gotta say the 36 is the way to go with 150 mm of travel. I've never regretted having a stiffer fork riding technical terrain.


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## commplex (Apr 17, 2009)

I have a stumpy and in the past have used 36’s but see absolutely zero need to go bigger than my 34. I ride some fairly aggressive trails and I am a bit larger than you as well.

Side note : I just bought my son a stumpy alloy yesterday and the first thing I am doing is an upgrade to a fox 34. Actually going to do it this evening.


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## The_Bob (Jan 16, 2018)

Split the difference maybe and go for a Pike?


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## Picard (Apr 5, 2005)

Fox 34 really suck. Lyrik, pike, or Dvo diamond are better choice 

Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk


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## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

Thanks for all the advice. I considered going Pike but it seems there are quite a few 34 takeoffs currently for sale around me. Maybe I'll hold off for a 36 unless a great deal pops up on a 34. 

I definitely don't want to loose track that this is still a trail bike, don't want to limit myself on climbs etc.


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## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

commplex said:


> I have a stumpy and in the past have used 36's but see absolutely zero need to go bigger than my 34. I ride some fairly aggressive trails and I am a bit larger than you as well.
> 
> Side note : I just bought my son a stumpy alloy yesterday and the first thing I am doing is an upgrade to a fox 34. Actually going to do it this evening.


Let me know how it rides after. The stock 35 silver has been better than I thought to this point and actually feels more plush and smoother than my friends 35 Gold, but the silver is insanely heavy!


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## dundundata (May 15, 2009)

Can't say I've had any issues with the 36, not sure of the weight difference between a 34. I have it at 150 and it is quite plush and tracks through everything, and saved me from going OTB a few times on some bad choices.


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## commplex (Apr 17, 2009)

Senderdeep said:


> Let me know how it rides after. The stock 35 silver has been better than I thought to this point and actually feels more plush and smoother than my friends 35 Gold, but the silver is insanely heavy!


The two big issues I had with the 35 are the weight and lack of good rebound adjustment. So far my son is stoked on the 34 and he says it's a very noticeable improvement.


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## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

commplex said:


> The two big issues I had with the 35 are the weight and lack of good rebound adjustment. So far my son is stoked on the 34 and he says it's a very noticeable improvement.


Awesome, glad to hear he saw a big improvement. I ended up finding a great deal on a brand new 140mm 2021 Pike. Should be here in a couple days hopefully!

I wanted to go fox, but I couldn't find the Non-Torque end caps for the OEM wheel on my stumpy.

Looking forward to shedding some weight on the front end.


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## commplex (Apr 17, 2009)

Senderdeep said:


> Awesome, glad to hear he saw a big improvement. I ended up finding a great deal on a brand new 140mm 2021 Pike. Should be here in a couple days hopefully!
> 
> I wanted to go fox, but I couldn't find the Non-Torque end caps for the OEM wheel on my stumpy.
> 
> Looking forward to shedding some weight on the front end.


Oh yeah good call. I just so "happened" to have an extra front wheel so I snagged the end caps from it to work with a fox fork. That said I 100% believe you will be very happy with your decision to run a Pike. Cannot go wrong there. Good luck!


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## dernst (Aug 7, 2015)

Senderdeep said:


> Thanks for all the advice. I considered going Pike but it seems there are quite a few 34 takeoffs currently for sale around me. Maybe I'll hold off for a 36 unless a great deal pops up on a 34.
> 
> I definitely don't want to loose track that this is still a trail bike, don't want to limit myself on climbs etc.


There's a reason there are a lot of '21 Fox factory 34 take-offs... just do some reading.

I went with a 140/42 Pike Ultimate on my alloy. Im very happy.


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## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

dernst said:


> There's a reason there are a lot of '21 Fox factory 34 take-offs... just do some reading.
> 
> I went with a 140/42 Pike Ultimate on my alloy. Im very happy.


The one I grabbed is a 140/42 Pike Select. Been reading about the Charger RC damper which is a IFP damper. Hopefully I'll be happy with it. I'm sure it'll be miles ahead of my 35 Silver.


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## dernst (Aug 7, 2015)

I’m sure you will, the Pike is a hell of a fork no matter what damper and the weight savings is substantial... not to mention, the select will match the matte finish and you can always upgrade the seals and damper later on if you feel the need. (Not likely)


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## Nick_M (Jan 16, 2015)

What problem you are trying to solve with upgrade:

Performance of the dumper? Choose fork within your budget with top of the line dumper
Stiffness? 36 will be marginally stiffer then 35
weight savings? I would not bother with that on base Stumpy
serviceability? look for local dealers etc... RS or DVO good at DYI service, Fox typically require shop


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## Senderdeep (Aug 26, 2021)

Nick_M said:


> What problem you are trying to solve with upgrade:
> 
> Performance of the dumper? Choose fork within your budget with top of the line dumper
> Stiffness? 36 will be marginally stiffer then 35
> ...


Thanks for the input, already picked up and installed a Rockshox Pike.

Wasn't happy with the 35. Between the lack of adjustable compression dampening and the excessive weight (steel stanchions), I decided to upgrade. The 35 series forks are known to be a budget fork with some serious bushing issues being had by some (tiny bushings in comparison, and some are becoming dislodged). Figured I'd get out while the going is good!

Decided to go Rockshox over Fox given my front hub has torque end caps that I'm unable to find replacement normal caps for. Plus the serviceability of the Pike is likely easier for a diy guy over a fox.


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