sortieavelo

Hi, I have this 1995 Trek 6500ZX. I’ve upgraded stem, bars, seatpost, saddle, pedals, cassette…It’s a great-riding 22 lb bike.

where I ride is rocks, roots—all manner of defilement. Is it possible to put a front suspension fork on this bike?

maybe a refurbed one from that era?

many thanks!!!

70sSanO

Yes.

Here is quick description of your situation… you have a 1-1/8” steerer, and 26” wheels, and rim brakes, (almost) no one makes decent new forks for your bike. Getting an old used fork is hit or miss and some can’t be rebuilt anymore.

I believe the original Trek 6500 never had an SHX (front shock) option but the 7000 did and the frame geometry looks the same as the 6500. The original Quadra fork had 63mm of travel but I’m running 80mm on my ‘95 Trek 970.

But the “almost”, is Chain Reaction Cycles is selling new, maybe NOS, maybe built from a mix of NOS and newer parts, Marzocchi rim brake 26er forks with 1-1/8” steerers. I bought a couple of Z4’s for $200 and they look solid.

Depending on the “Z” model, I’ve seen them from the low $200’s to $600. They have a Z3 80mm which is a lighter weight fork for around $300. I’ve been running an original Z3 and it has been good enough, but haven’t done any real drops with it. Z2 was one of their best. You’ll have to go to their website to see what they have.

John

cyccommute 

I agree mostly but with some caveats. Generally, if you stick with Fox Forks, they can be rebuilt. Risse Racing will service them and some Rock Shox. There are some on Fleabay but they can be expensive.

As to the brakes, it is possible to go with a mullet…disc front/rim rear. Mechanical disc and rim have exactly the same feel and work well together.


It works very well even with a bikepacking load

70sSanO

I would guess Fox forks will give a better ride over the old oil bath Bombers.

I’ve been fortunate to find some good Bombers at good prices. They work for me and they have held up quite well.

John

cyccommute 

My suggestion was in regards to used forks and the availability of service. Risse does a really good job on rebuilds but they only seem to work on a few brands.

LesterOfPuppets

I'd probably spring for a new Manitou Markhor if I was sure to put a lot of miles on the bike. You'll have to put a spacer in to make it 80mm. I say to make sure you'll ride the bike a lot because it would take a few parts and potentially get expensive realy quickly.

Fork; $240
Headset $30+
Stem $25+
Brakes: $35 for Tektro Aries, which are a half step up from the stock brakes, I'm surprised by how good they are for the price. Or splurge on BB5, BB7 or Spyke.

You may also need a brake lever, but some levers from that era switch to the proper pull. $25ish if needed.

Gonzo Bob

My advice is to look into used suspension stems (that's what I did with my old 1988 rigid fork MTB). If you can't find one you like, sell your bike and get a new one.

AeroGut

It looks like you're running relatively narrow street tires on there? A less expensive option to getting a new fork would be to put on the widest tires you can fit and run them at relatively low pressure. That'll greatly improve the cushioning and traction over roots and bumps. You may or may not want a knobbier tread depending on whether you're having problems with traction.

sortieavelo

Thank you--the ZX 7000 came with Rock Shox Quadra 21 fork, and the 6500 was upgradeable (presumably to that fork).

The Marzocchis looks great!

Thanks!

sortieavelo

John,

A million thanks for sharing that info. I ordered the Marzocchi Z3 (80mm travel) from CRC for $275.

May be on the forum again when I go to install it

Chris

70sSanO

Not to raise an after the fact alarm, but I just remembered that ‘95’s still ran cantilever brakes. The Marzocchi mounts should be fine, but I don’t know if the fork bridge will interfere with the cable. I just can’t tell.

It is still one of the few, maybe only, new rim brake options out there, but you might have to go to a linear/V brake.

I hope this doesn’t mess you up.

John

sortieavelo

I had that same question, but I decided to go for it. A used Rock Shox Quadra 21 of unknown provenance from eBay is half as much, so a new/NOS fork is preferable.

Thanks again!

Chris

70sSanO

Another thing I noticed is you have a quill stem. You'll need to use a threadless stem.

You should measure what length you have and the handlebar height. Now is a good time to make any changes as far as reach and height.

John

Lazyass

The cantilever cable hanger on the Bomber forks is a bolt on. Most people removed them to run v brakes and threw them away. I hope you made sure your fork came with it because they're virtually impossible to find.

sortieavelo

The pic I posted is just the stock bike--I've upgraded my stem to threadless, so that's ready to go.

Gonna be fun with the new fork.

Chris​​​​​​​

denaffen

Personally there’s no way I’d put a suspension fork on that bike. It’s yours, so do what you want, but I wouldn’t.

wrk101

I'd like to see a weight picture on this one. I've owned a lot of MTBs from that era, none were 22 pounds.

Ironfish653

I've seen a few, but they weren't mid-range aluminum TREKs.
Hang around some XC races in the early 1990s and you'd find them, there were weight weenies in MTB, too; some of the peak steel rigid bikes were closing in on 20# (Ritchey, Chance, Bridgestone)
My 96 Cannondale F-1000 sits at just under 24# (with suspension, and in 'as ridden' trim) and it's not exactly a weight-concious build; so, they're out there, but the OP might be a little "proud" of his ride.

70sSanO

A non-suspension non-stock aluminum Trek can probably get to 22 lbs depending on the build.

I imagine the frame is around 4 lbs or less.

But it will be over 24, maybe 25, with the Marzocchi fork.

John

wesmamyke

I have a bunch of the Marzocchi cable hangers. PM if someone needs one, although you might have to source the bolts.

sortieavelo

John,

you seem to know a lot about this fork, and I appreciate your helpful comments.
just dry fitting the new fork today. Crown fork race seems straightforward. I’ll install a crown race on Marzocchi, and that will marry bottom of head tube to crown of fork.

Any ideas how to deal with top of head tube/steerer? Seems like I need a little sleeve and a race that interference fits over the steerer…

any ideas/suggestions will be appreciated!

LesterOfPuppets

If you were using a Threadless stem adapter on an existing threaded fork and headset, you'll need to remove that cup and cone from the frame and install a Threadless headset, maybe some spacers.

70sSanO

I used a Cane Creek 40 EC34 on my Trek 970, but you can use a cheaper one from another mfg. You do need an external cup threadless headset.

Personally I like a sealed cartridge headset for a mountain bike for the the amount of impact it will need to absorb, even with a suspension fork.

The specs for the CC40 EC34 are:
Steerer Tube OD: 28.6mm (1-1/8”)
Upper head tube ID: 33.95mm
Lower head tube ID: 33.95mm
Fork crown seat OD: 30.015mm

For you stack height is not important and it is probably better with a stack height on the high side for replacements down the road. The CC40 stack height is 28mm

Once you get the headset installed, an important piece of setting up your bike will be the handlebar height. It will depend on the amount of spacers you use. I've heard a rule of thumb of a max of 40mm, which is what I'm running on my 970. But I imagine you'll find people running more spacers, especially with a 1-1/8" steel steerer tube.

You do have to get the bar height where you want it because once you cut the steerer, that is what you are stuck with; unless you go to a riser handlebar. Some people run 5mm-10mm spacer on top of the steerer until they are sure they have the height dialed incorrectly.

John

sortieavelo

John,

A million thanks! I appreciate the time and detail.

Chris

70sSanO

There are threadless cantilever hangers that clamp to the steerer tube.

That height would be part of your spacer stack.

With a threadless headset you need to pre-load the headset bearings before you clamp the stem “and” the hanger to the steerer. The only issue will be remembering to unclamp the hanger if any future adjustments are needed.

John