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I had a chance to ride the
Pace RC41 XCAM Fork when I tested the
Stumpjumper FSR. Since these forks are new to the
country I can provide everyone out there with some
initial impressions.
The fork is a real eye catcher. Everyone who saw it
wanted to have a closer look. The carbon fibre lowers
will really appeal to the bling worshippers. The fork is
beyond buttery smooth. In goes into a new kind of
smooth! Think Tom Cruise in “Mission Impossible” it
is smooth. And it stays so fluid throughout the entire
130mm of travel. I pushed it down and it just keeps
going, all the while making some very strange air
noises.
The Stumpy I tested had just been to Fritz Pienaar
Cycles for a service and they were asked to look at the
fork as the lock out function was not operating. It is
supposed to have a blow-off function that can be set.
But the lock out was blowing off even at the slightest
hint of a bump. The shop was unable to sort out the
problem as the fork is unknown in the country. So this
is something to keep in mind if you are thinking of
getting one. Wait a few months until the mechanics in
the country are up to speed with the PACE technology.
Also the fork leaked out of the left leg lower, where
the carbon meets the magnesium dropout. It is obviously
glued at this junction and some oil was leaking out
here.
130mm of travel is a lot! It is awesome for riding
drops at Logwood but it is a son of a gun trying to
climb steep inclines. I could never get enough weight
over the front of the bike to climb. The fork really
needs a travel reduction feature if it is to be used on
a trail bike. It is fine for a pure free ride bike where
you wouldn’t care much about climbing. And this is
probably where it is supposed to be used.
I would really love to try one of the more XC forks
on my bike, because I think the suspension action is
awesome. The damping is super easy to use, with a very
easy to adjust blue lever on the top of the right leg.
The only slight problem there is that it is a bit vague,
with no clicks to count to get the damping right. Only
problem for me is that the real race snake versions have
weight limits, and I am not currently at the weight they
recommend!
For more information on this fork check out
http://www.pacecycles.com
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