isitafox Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I bought some urban forks off here for my stock and they are what I assume is the older type as they have an echo sticker at the bottom of each fork as opposed to the E logo at the top like on my urbans on my mod. The thing is they feel like they flex a lot when I apply the front brake or hop about on the spot and I'm not sure whether this is normal, if its cause they are the older type and are made of bike cheese or simply that I've been riding my mod too much which has shorter therefore sturdier forks. Or could it be none of the above and simply be something to do with the wanky front mono mini?? I can get a vid up if required?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueSmokeyJoe Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I could be wrong but pretty sure the newer Urban forks have a slightly thicker steerer tube. This potentially make the crown section stiffer, thus, your 'problem' could be due to the flex associated with the older models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isitafox Posted August 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I could be wrong but pretty sure the newer Urban forks have a slightly thicker steerer tube. This potentially make the crown section stiffer, thus, your 'problem' could be due to the flex associated with the older models. That sounds like it could be the one then, kinell, another purchase to convince the wife I need! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6ft-midget Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I'm still rocking the old type urbans on my Zenith. They do flex but it's been a few years and the haven't snapped. They've even been used on my dj bike for bout 6months with no signs of weakness. I wouldn't worry about it, I personally like a bit of flex in my forks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isitafox Posted August 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 Just feels weird when I'm getting my balance and hopping the front about. Not gonna be a desperate purchase, the frame will hopefully go first but deffo on the list! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muel Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I have a set with the stickers, cracked them in two places in a couple of months of owning them, but they've not grown yet. The steerer tube is pressed and welded into the crown of the forks, but the crown flares out after a while, you can drill the crown and wack a bolt through, and lamp it up tight and it stops them flexing as much. (Or did when I did it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Vandart Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 could be spoke flex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greetings Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 Old urbans have a steel steerer and very narrow 4bolt mounts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigjames Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 My newer type Urbans were pretty flexy (before they cracked and i stopped riding them), more so then the controls I had before and the Rockman forks I have now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueSmokeyJoe Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 If you do end up replacing them, I definately recommend the Trialtech/V!Z forks. My friend and I have a pair of each and they are both mightily stiff. Just keep a look out in the for sale section . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skorp Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 I could easly recommend the older urbans! Bought a used pair in 2007, sold them in 2009 and they are still going strong! Think it was a 2004 model..the old owner hooked and tapped alot with them before i got my hands on them And i'm a heavy rider at 85kg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Burrows Posted August 22, 2010 Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 Old Echo urbans were good forks, way better then the current ones which are weak as. I wouldn't worry about the flex, its not necessarily a bad thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isitafox Posted August 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 Old Echo urbans were good forks, way better then the current ones which are weak as. I wouldn't worry about the flex, its not necessarily a bad thing. Just gotta get used to it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben John-Hynes Posted August 23, 2010 Report Share Posted August 23, 2010 Old Echo urbans were good forks, way better then the current ones which are weak as. I wouldn't worry about the flex, its not necessarily a bad thing. Are we talking about the ones before the ones that are out now? If so, I snapped 2 sets of those. And I now have the new set and they're awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Burrows Posted August 23, 2010 Report Share Posted August 23, 2010 Are we talking about the ones before the ones that are out now? If so, I snapped 2 sets of those. And I now have the new set and they're awesome. The ones that were apparantly made from U6, before Deng changed which factory they were manufactured in (around '05-07)? I snapped 5 or 6 sets of older Urbans and Hi-Fi forks, but they always lasted a consistent 6-7 months. I gave up on all Deng forks about 18 months ago after breaking 2 sets of Urbans and one set of Zoo forks within about 4 months. They went at the top of the disc mount (which I had never had issues with before), and all failed within 4-8 weeks. I have since switched to Trialtechs and never looked back! No doubt my front brake is partly to blame (185mm BB7). But on the older forks I had the same brake which worked just as well, and the forks would always snap at the steerer tube with no signs of disc mount cracking. I was also a much less refined rider, I rode more often and I was regularly practicing bunnyhop hooks at high speed. After speaking to numerous other people who had similar problems with them failing, I felt pretty confident at the time to say they had got weaker. I was told Deng had changed which Factory made his forks and they were no longer U6. Of course this is all just my opinion, but I feel the number of forks I snapped and how consistently they failed is a pretty strong sign of a change in design or material (for the worse). Feel free to post experiences suggesting the opposite. I guess it is possible that a change in my technique has led to putting more stress through the disc mountAlso I can't say whether they have improved them in the last year or so, maybe the disc mount design has changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Gray Posted August 23, 2010 Report Share Posted August 23, 2010 I had a set for two years then sold em to martin grainger and he has had them for a further two years, good forks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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