REVIEW: Boxxer World Cup 2007

[stuart@nsmb.com]

Dr. Mark rode the fork and he liked it. How much did he like it? Find out (http://www.nsmb.com/gear/boxxer_wc07_03_07.php) for yourself.

[Hack On Wheels]

I thought the article was great. However, in my opinion, the DH Maxle is perfectly fine to work with. It is quick, near impossible to strip threads with, and doesnt leave a qr flap sticking out. So while it does need a tool, for people like me who carry tools around and smash their bike on things it is a great system!

[Unregistered1981_69]

I don't see how Mark could have overlooked the fork's extremely high maintenance requirements. This is a race fork and should be ridden primarily by those with a crew of mechanics waiting at the bottom of every lap.

[sleeper]

Isn't that kye's bike?

[baloom]

Isn't that kye's bike?

nope...this is my bike. If you look closely at the photos, you will note that there is no derailleur on this bike (she is Rohloff equipped....and them's that know's me know I like's my Rohloff's).

[tmxownrsgrp]

great fork, but please post a full report on the rollof hub set up!

[drummer_dil]

isnt that a 2006?

[trail worker]

are you still running the folding bead nevegal tubeless in the back? How it it holding up?

[seand]

isnt that a 2006?

The 06 and 07 are both white legged. There are some 07 boxxer worldcups floating about that are black bottomed/red decal with nickel colored stanchions but those are not something you will find on very many bikes.

[big-ted]

There was also a distinct widening of the fork in order to improve turning radius issues.

Not true. Crown offset on the boxxer has remained unchanged since it's inception.

[NSTP]

I too disagree on the DH maxle comment. As long as you don't over tighten it, which you might do if some hottie accross the street is taking all your attention away from the fork, but otherwise it's pretty straightforward. You thread is the threads until it stops, and then tighten the otherside until the bolt is flush with the outer edge of the axel. It takes one allen key and is dead easy.
Also, if this is the lighten dual-crown available, one of the only air srung dual-crowns out there, and a super high-end fork, how is the price rate 2.5? I would compare it to the Fox 40 that is higher priced, not as light and not air sprung, and the Marzocchi 888 SL with is not as light, but air sprung. Rate the price against the price of those and see where the boxxer stands on value. Just my opinion.

[Splan]

I'm wondering if some of the quality/reliability issues with the 2006 version were addressed. I believe there were a fair amount of people blowing seals or having bushing issues. Does anyone know exactly what these problems were, (if there were any known problems at all with the '06), and if there was any tweaking done for the 2007 model?

Can't wait to get my paws on one...:dizzy:

[Jammac]

I'll have mine on Monday, thanks for highlighting the 360 maxel thing. Wasnt too sure how that worked.

[Mic]

wow. taht is a lot of dough...i would prefer the fox dh fork. but still, thanx for the write up. :)

btw, i hate forks that need a lot of maintenance...

[M@M]

nope...this is my bike. If you look closely at the photos, you will note that there is no derailleur on this bike (she is Rohloff equipped....and them's that know's me know I like's my Rohloff's).

just curious, how does the bike feel weight wise with a super light front end and rather heavy rear end?

[*GiMpY_jR*]

i'm in love with mine!

[Jammac]

Mine came today in the shop, and well they are super Super nice, and I can say the Adjustments make a Huge difference.

Althought getting the maxel stuck I cant see how you managed that, as there is a system that is much like an odi bar end you get with the grips. You thread the 20mm BT in and tighen, and then you do up the ODI style expanding bolt on the other side to hold it in place.

[fitchy]

i want one. i better win the lottery soon

[baloom]

I don't see how Mark could have overlooked the fork's extremely high maintenance requirements. This is a race fork and should be ridden primarily by those with a crew of mechanics waiting at the bottom of every lap.


I did not "overlook" the maintenance issue. There was no mention of it in my review because it was not an issue. The vast majority of my riding has been in severely muddy conditions and I am pretty abusive of my forks in general, and the 07 WC Boxxer required nothing more than simple cleaning. While the 06 had some issues with some of the damper cartridges, I had no problems what so ever. There were no seal leaks. When I checked the air cartridge pressures from time to time, there was no changes ever noted. So I can only say:


this could be typical of the fork

I got a particularly good one and thus "got lucky"


the statement about race forks requiring constant mechanicing is bunk



I can't tell you which of these could be true but I would suggest that the last statement is patently false or a bit of an urban legend regarding race forks, in particular the WC Boxxer. Every fork requires periodic maintenance to be kept running optimally. This one is not going to be any different. Jeremiah Boobar, the director of RockShox's Blackbox program was recently noted to say (regarding this issue), "...you go to Whistler and guys are thrashing the hell out of their bikes. There spending every moment thinking about being on the hill. They're not going to worry about overhauling their forks....air forks need a little love once or twice a season depending on the level of use and the type of riding...." (Bike vol.14/no.1)

Every fork I have ever ridden has required reasonable maintenance to keep running optimally. I have had forks that required major work once per month to keep working reasonably. One of these was my 2003 Boxxer. The 07 Boxxer has come a long, long way since then.

[baloom]

isnt that a 2006?


Nope....it is 2007. No change in graphics though what Seand stated is correct.

[baloom]

are you still running the folding bead nevegal tubeless in the back? How it it holding up?

absolutely no problems as of yet.....i'll try to keep you posted.

[baloom]

I too disagree on the DH maxle comment. As long as you don't over tighten it, which you might do if some hottie accross the street is taking all your attention away from the fork, but otherwise it's pretty straightforward. You thread is the threads until it stops, and then tighten the otherside until the bolt is flush with the outer edge of the axel. It takes one allen key and is dead easy.
Also, if this is the lighten dual-crown available, one of the only air srung dual-crowns out there, and a super high-end fork, how is the price rate 2.5? I would compare it to the Fox 40 that is higher priced, not as light and not air sprung, and the Marzocchi 888 SL with is not as light, but air sprung. Rate the price against the price of those and see where the boxxer stands on value. Just my opinion.

the price rating was not relative to my perception of value with respect to other forks but my perception of what any dude might think having to spend this many bones for what is essentially a "consumable". This does not diminish in any way how excellent this fork is.......

[baloom]

just curious, how does the bike feel weight wise with a super light front end and rather heavy rear end?

My bike's balance point is right in the middle of the shock. This is about as centralized as you can get.

[Unregistered 4]

how is the strength on the lowers ive seen broken ones should i be scared of buying some if ive seen broken models right on the lowers???

[Splan]

I don't see how Mark could have overlooked the fork's extremely high maintenance requirements. This is a race fork and should be ridden primarily by those with a crew of mechanics waiting at the bottom of every lap.

I'm not sure about that. The maintenance guide in the user manual for '07 has the same interval for service as the '05 WC, and I've been running an '05 without issues for over a year. I just service the thing every 6 months or so and it's been superb. That's with riding at least twice a week about 48 weeks of the year. I sure hope the '07 turns out to be similar.

[Mellin]

I'm wondering if some of the quality/reliability issues with the 2006 version were addressed. I believe there were a fair amount of people blowing seals or having bushing issues. Does anyone know exactly what these problems were, (if there were any known problems at all with the '06), and if there was any tweaking done for the 2007 model?

Can't wait to get my paws on one...:dizzy:

nice boxxer review there, congrats...

I've used the 06 WC solo air model on my proceed VRC rig together with a 222 mm PEARL 3.1 air rear shock for a full 06 freeride/dh training season in the Tyrol alps and was very happy. I first didn't think the PEARL would last, but with some re-lubing and cleaning the air can mid season, the shock held up full season, and continues to do so. surprise, as it is not officially intended for DH use. using PEARL and Boxxer WC I immediately shaved 1,15 kg off the bike and gives a very balanced ride. nice. the air fork and -shock make adjustments for different tracks a blast, and it's incredible how reliable that air stuff has finally got.

Some remarks on the Boxxer WC:

- closed floodgate and closed low speed compression -> fork is nearly "locked out" and can be used well for shorter climbs, together with a locked out PEARL shock you can completely lock out a 200mm DH rig, cool on paved climbs and the like
- closed low speed and dialed in floodgate -> one can dial in the fork for anti dive on steep trail parts (on the bottom of rock or root-steps the motion control will always open up oil flow then when needed, other than that fork is stable and does not dive much)

there is not much to do to keep the WC running well:
* each 50 hrs or so, let the air out on the solo air side first, then remove the top cap (24 mm wrench), and check for oil height above the solo air piston. if oil is nearly used up, refill with 3-5 ml 15wt - it's necessary that the oil level above the solo air piston is always maintained. all that needs 5 minutes work and it's worth the time.
if the piston has gone dry, immediately have a shop rebuild the solo air side with new o-rings and relube everything. the boxxer WC stanchions are honed on the inside (both damper/solo air side), and you don't want to get the honed inner tube of the solo air getting scratched by a dry o-ring. however, it's super easy to work on the boxxer - not many parts there. solo air assy, MC comp-damper, rebound, and you reading the tech manual before - that's it.
* other than that, take off the lowers each 1/2 a year and relube with 15 wt (or motor oil). this will decrease bushing wear and tear a lot. if you know how, taking off boxxer lowers/cleaning and relubing is done in 10 minutes.
by the way: compared to the old boxxers where oil would spill around all over the place when removing the lowers, this is easy now on the new motion control boxxers, as the uppers are a closed system.

take into consideration, that solo air is a quite linear system. increasing air pressure will not have such a strong effect as you would be used to from other forks, because Solo Air will always have the same great small bump sensitivity on the first 1,5 to 2 cm regardless how much air you put in (due to the equalized pos/neg chamber during each stroke). so if you want to get the solo air more progressive try out low speed full open/floodgate completely closed adjustment (will get a little bit more progressive at the end of the stroke). OR decrease solo air volume a bit (by epoxying one or two boxxer coil spring spacers under the solo air top cap - but attention - NO warranty, and if the spacers get loose you are in trouble, so rough them up before glueing them).

then: if you have more bushing play than normal, take it to the dealer. bushings are usually changed (or re-run with a sizing tool) quite fast at a good shop. but if boxxer bushing seats are out of tolerance too much, you usually get a new lower faster on a discount, than the shop will fiddle around trying to change the bushings.

there was rumour about some cracked lowers on the WC circuit due to flat landings gone wrong, but RS has solved the issue with new redesigned lowers, where the lower legs have been slightly beefed up on critical areas.

there have also been some leaking MC assys around, where over time some oil would come out under the blue knob, but those assys have always been changed on warranty, no questions asked.

blowing up dust seals? will usually only happen (rarely the dust seal set is too big), when there is a air transfer from positive to negative air chamber and from there into the lower. so, always keep that solo air piston lubed.

finally, Solo Air has made it's way from the Boxxer WC into the Totem (I also ride a Totem Solo Air since September 06), and on the Totem it's a blast too... No spring noises, no fiddling with different springs, no arm pumping - just riding...

Cheers from Austria
Christoph
www.vertriders.com (http://www.vertriders.com)

[bibszo]

Ive go tthis fork, it freakin rules. first boxxer for fat kids :)
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d163/corybibby/myjudge.jpg

[airboy]

This fork is so nice and it is worth twice the money that it can be purchased for.