Steerer question

M

mpope68

Well-Known Member
I'm currently running a rigid steel fork on my 29 SS and am thinking about switching to a suspension fork this year. The frame is built with a 44mm headtube to accept a tapered fork, but the bike came stock with a 1-1/8" fork and associated headset.

I'm not looking to spend a ton of money on the upgrade. Is there a significant performance benefit to going with a tapered steerer and would it be worth chaging the headset? Or should I just try and find a decent used fork that has a 1-1/8" steerer?

Thoughts?
 
But whatever headset part you need to run the fork you want, imo. You can't practically find straight 1 1/8 suspension forks of good quality anymore, so that would answer your question. Rigid steel may still be available, though.

You can buy a lower cup assembly individually from Cane Creek, btw. No rule says that the top and bottom have to match.
 
This. ^

Straight steerer forks are getting harder to find unless you go super entry level. If you don't need an air fork, it'll be cheaper and easier to find some factory take off or hit Craigslist. If you want a decent fork that's a bit lighter and more tunable with air, it'll more than likely be tapered for which you'll simply need a 1.5" external lower cup and race like the Cane Creek EC44.

As for performance, with the trend towards short head stube stack heights, tapered provides more strength and less flex as well as smoother steer action under loads from what I can feel between my FS and my old hardtail.
 
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