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Questions and answers about sports

Suspension Fork Axles

5 min read

Asked by: Draek Craven

What are the parts of a suspension fork?

The suspension fork is comprised of two key components – A spring (air or coil), which gives the fork its…well… spring, and a damper, which controls the compression characteristics and rebound. You can think of these two components as the “brains of the operation.”

What is thru axle fork?

A thru-axle (TA) is a wheel attachment system that secures a wheel on a hub between a pair of dropouts on a bicycle frame or fork. The thru-axle threads directly through the fork/frame holes and into the wheel hub, which makes the wheel secure from detaching.

How are fork axles measured?

Fork Length (Axle-to-Crown)



The more common method of specifying fork length on modern bikes, measured in a direct line from the fork crown to the axle. Length-on-Axis is the less common method of specifying fork length on modern bikes, measured from the fork crown to the axle along the steering/head tube axis.

Are thru axles better?

Compared with open dropouts and quick-release skewers, thru-axles are generally stiffer, safer and more precise. This translates to noticeably more predictable handling – even with rigid forks and hardtails – fewer accidents related to misuse, and more consistent wheel placement in the frame and fork.

What are fork stanchions?

What are stanchions? For those who don’t know stanchions are the smooth tubes connected to your fork crown. They are mainly stationary while the lower legs of the fork move up and down over them. They come in different coatings for example FOX uses Kashima with a golden colour on their factory series.

What is a front suspension fork?

A suspension fork is a front fork that offers some travel and absorbs some of the bumps and imperfections of the road. Riding two different bikes on the same rough terrain, the one with a suspension fork feels less shaky and offers a smoother ride.

Are thru axles better than quick release?

1. Thru axles are safer– This is probably the biggest benefit for the average cyclist. Thru axles improve safety by making it nearly impossible for the front wheel to come out of the dropouts while you’re moving. The dropouts can’t lift off of the axles vertically because they have holes instead of a u-shaped slots.

How do I know if I have a thru axle?

Your bike has a thru axle if the “drop out” is a hole, rather than a U-shaped dropout. This provides added security because even if the lever on the end of the thru axle flips open, it is still threaded into the frame, holding your wheel on.

How important is thru axle?

Thru-axles increase the rigidity of the wheel-frame interface and allow more accurate wheel placement. This is particularly important for brake discs, where small pad clearances mean that a slight misalignment will cause rubbing. They also eliminate the risk of the wheel coming loose from the quick-release dropouts.

How do I know what size axle I need?

The Distance In-Between Your Frame or Fork



For a front thru-axle, this is measured from the inside to inside of your fork. For a rear thru-axle, this is measured from the inside to inside of your frame at the drop-outs. The O.L.D.

How do I know what size thru axle I need?

For this reason, thru-axles should be measured by overall length. Depending on the thickness of the dropouts, total length is usually 20-30mm longer than OLD. The most common front thru axle OLD dimensions are 100 mm, 110 mm, and 150 mm for front axles and 130mm, 135mm, 142mm, 148mm, and 197mm for rear axles.

What axle do I have?

Stamped Number on the Axle



To figure out exactly what axle you have, you can look for the Dana stamped bill of materials number. This stamped number can usually be found on the righthand side or on the longer axletube on the same side of the tube as the differential cover, facing the rear of the truck.

How do you repair a fork stanchion?


Quote from video: And what you're looking to do with your file is to just take the edge off the burr. But don't go too far you don't add any sort of more scratching to the stanchion. Area it's a very fine.

What are stanchions used for?

Stanchions are used for many different purposes, including crowd control and waiting lines. Many different places use stanchions, including banks, stores, hotels, museums, restaurants, concert venues, trade shows, and other events. Portable posts used to manage lines and queues.

What do you put on a fork stanchion?

WET SEAL: A clean, dry Micro-Fiber rag works best. If you’re having trouble getting heavy grease off the seal or stanchions, we recommend using a little bit of water on the micro-fiber rag. DO NOT USE SOAP. Soap will break down the good oils and grease inside your fork which can result in needing an entire rebuild.

What are parts that is in the front suspension of a car?

Suspension system: this connects the wheels to the chassis and uses springs, shock absorbers, link bars and control arms to cushion impact and allow relative motion.

What does front suspension consist of?

The suspension system consists of tires, the air in the tires, springs, shock absorbers, struts, arms, bars, linkages, bushings, and joints.

What is the top part of the bike fork called?

At the top of the fork is the steerer tube.

What is the top of the fork called?

Tines (/ˈtaɪnz/; also spelled tynes), prongs or teeth are parallel or branching spikes forming parts of a tool or natural object.

What are the parts of a fork called?

There is the root, which connects to the back. There is the back, which connects to the neck. There is the neck, which connects to the handle. And there is the handle, which you hold to make use of the points, slots, tines, root, back and neck.

What is a fork with 3 prongs called?

Oyster Fork



A narrow fork with three tines, this fork (also called a seafood or cocktail fork) is useful for handling shellfish, or for picking up shrimp from a shrimp cocktail.