Surly Fork Look Odd?

[tonygameboy]

You notice the huge gap between the tire and fork? When I bought it on Amazon it was listed for 26" tires. The tires in the pic are 26x2.4. Well I didn't even use the fork for months after I bought it. I know it's a minor thing but drives me nuts! I've gone as far as tossing it into a parts bin.

About this item
The Surly 1x1 Mountain fork features CroMoly tubing, butted blades and fits wide 2.7" tires with clearance.
Suspension corrected for 100mm
Chromoly tubing, butted blades
Suspension-corrected, fits wide 2.7" tires with clearance
FK0003 has ISO disc tabs and removable canti pivots
Item Specifications
Color Black
Weight 1315g
Material Chromoly
Brake Usage F/R Front
Fork Rake 40mm
Axle to Crown Length 453mm
Crown Race 30.0
Steerer Tube Length 260mm
Brake Type Disc,Linear Pull
Wheel Size 26"
Front Hub Spacing 100mm
Front Axle Type 9x1
Wheel Mount Center Offset 0mm
Defined Color Black
S.H.I.S. Clamp Diameter 28.6
Steerer Type Straight


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[CCR]

Surly was one of the earlier brands to push the fat tire stuff, 26x almost 4" stuff, doesnt surprise me they have extra room

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Looking at the brake posts being in the right place for the 26" wheel, I would surmise that is a suspension corrected fork, for swapping into bikes that used to have front suspension, it keeps the front height correct.

Edit: Just noticed it said it was suspension corrected in the details...

Luke.

 

[Bicycle808]

Yeah, pretty much all new aftermarket rigid mtn forks will be suspension-corrected. It's the only way to go if you want to keep the geometry right on a bike designed around a suspension fork. I recently got a 26" fork from s&m, which is a BMX company, and it's suspension corrected, too. Surly makes a few different versions of the 1x1 fork; you got the one with the longest blades, at 453mm axle-to-crown. The axle-to-crown is the crucial measurement; the other 1x1 forks are only 413mm ATC, which would reduce that gap by 1.5". Keep in mind that a 26" fork built for balloon sized (2.125") tires will be about 375-380mm ATC...

The good news is, your Raleigh looks sorta modern, so in all likelihood, you'd have steepened your headtube and dramatically reduced trail if you'd gone with a non-corrected fork--- this would change the handling considerably and probably not in a good way.

(A shame; I'd have gladly bought that fork from you, but literally just ordered a Surly Instigator fork (26", 447mm ATC) from the shop today--- got a pretty rad deal on it; I traded the LBS owner a Worksman frame and a 6pack of Landshark for it.

 

[tonygameboy]

I'm gonna try to get a 29" wheel in there I found this guys bike on MTBR.com and it looks good.

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[tonygameboy]

I may see if the LBS will trade for something normal.


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[Bicycle808]

It'll fit a 29" wheel, but you'll need to run a disc brake--- or Paul Motolite BMX v-brakes... or no brake. And, you my find that the 29" wheel will bump the 26" frame's downtube, depending on the geometry.

Before you do anything drastic, though, figure out what kind of fork the Raleigh had originally. That'll help you pick the right fork to keep the geo proper...

 

[tonygameboy]

Oh that Raleigh in the pic is done for and retired. I'm working on another Raleigh frame for a bare metal build. Both bikes were bought complete from my LBS years ago. They became Guinea pigs for my single speed phase.


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[Bob Gray]

Or you could bend it a little and call it a "chopper fork".