How easy is it to change the forks on my MTB?

[SoulOnIce]

I'm thinking of replacing the cronky Suntour forks on my MTB.

I have my eye on some Marzocchi 44 RLO Forks forks - I'm a bit of a tubster so some heavy duty ones like these would be good.

Basically I want to know how how easy it is to replace the forks. Is it really as simple as:

1. Remove wheel.

2. Remove disc brakes

3. Remove handle bars

4. Remove fork

And then the same in reverse to put it back together again? Are there any tricky stages I should watch out for?

 

[Cubist]

No, it's not that simple I'm afraid, although once you are confident and have the right tools it isn't exactly a nightmare.

First you need to make sure the steerer on the new fork is the right diameter for your headtube. You then need to cut it to the correct length. LBS job or pipecutter time.

You also need to make sure the new fork either has the same brake mountings as the old one, or make sure you have the right adaptors and rotors.

You then need to remove the old fork: Loosen the cap bolt, then the stem bolts and take the bars off. Remove the spacers and then remove the compression ring from the top bearing race using a pick or a screwdriver. The fork should then drop out of the tube, but is likely to need a bit of gentle persuasion with a soft face mallet of a piece of wood and a hammer. Note the order of any seals, bearing races or cartridge bearings. I'd strongly recommend you take this chance to swap out the headset at this stage anyway, as it's very unlikely you'll be able to get the crown race off the fork without damaging it. LBS option again as they have bearing presses and bearing race pullers.



Take the brake mounts and calipers off the old fork, remembering the order the bolts washers and spacers go in

Knock out the old bearing races if you're fitting a new headset.



Fit the new headset to your headtube, again making sure the bearing races are exactly square and driven home either by a bearing press or careful application of mallet, wood and hammer, then fit the crown race to your new fork.

Slot it all together and refit the spacers, stem and bars and top cap. Torque it all up properly.

Mount the brake calipers on the new fork and clip the hose onto the guide. Centre the brakes and off you go. Piece of.