Fox Factory suspension fork install
After a few overnight bikepacking rides on the Karate Monkey it became apparent that the rigid surly fork was not doing my body any favours! No matter how soft you make your tyres the hands, wrists and shoulders cop an absolute flogging. The types of trails I was on consisted of eroded wheel ruts, large rocks, roots, drop offs and hard grass clumps. I was in desperate need for some suspension.
Fork Selection
I looked up a few forums and consulted the info pages on the Surly website. The consensus was that the Karate Monkey could handle up to 140mm of travel and would be better suited to a fork with 51mm offset. https://www.pushys.com.au/fox-34-float-29inch-factory-140mm-grip-2-qr15x110mm-51mm-rake-fork-black-2022.html
After giving up on FB marketplace for a second hand option (most forks were cut too short) I took the plunge on a new Fox Factory FIT4 set from Pushy’s who had a sale on at the time.
Headset
Next issue was the headset. I had just recently replaced the old original one with a Cane Creek 44 set. I’m sure I could have found a new lower for that to fit the Fox Steerer taper, however stock was low and there were a heap of numbers that made no sense to me. I consulted the Chris King website. They have an awesome Fit Finder tool that spits out the exact model you need for your particular bike and fork combination. https://chrisking.com/pages/fit-finder) For the Karate Monkey it was the InSet 7.
Tools
The annoying thing about working on bicycles is that there are hundreds of tools you need and they all do just one job! The thing is though, they do that job really well! I decided to get the right tools for the job instead of making a mess of things. A few clicks on Amazon and the tools were at my front door the same day as the fork and headset. I purchased a headset removal tool, headset press tool and the star nut insert tool. They were all about $20 each.
- https://amzn.to/4aUs7sY – Bicycle Bike Headset & Bottom Bracket Installation, Bike Removal Tool Bearing Press-in Tool for Headset BB
- https://amzn.to/41Wv1cA – BIKEHAND Bike Bicycle Headset Cup Remover Removal Tool
- https://amzn.to/3vyhUm4 -Bike Bicycle Fork Star Nut Setting Installer Install Tool with 2 Free Star Nuts – Size 1-1/8”
Removal of the headset was straight forward and the install of the new one was easy with the right tool. I just had to take care to make sure the tool was straight and the cups were even as the y went in. I did one cup at a time so i could keep an eye on this.
The fork went in and I made a cut on the steerer so that it was the same height as the rigid fork, using the same set of spacers. I did this cut with a pipe cutter, however the pipe cutter flared out the pipe at the end which made it difficult to get the start nut install tool over. I ended up cutting another 10mm off anyway and this time used a hacksaw which worked better.
Testing it out
I’m really happy with the fork. I did a three day ride on the Canberra Centenary Trail and it really made the whole experience so much more comfortable and enjoyable. Having the suspension fork also makes the Karate Monkey a more fun and playful ride. Overall I’m very happy with the install and would recommend it for the DIY weekend warrior bike mechanic!
Video
Checkout my video on YouTube showing a bit more detail of the install.