F3 vs Ouzo Pro

[saab2000]

Hello fork experts!

Due to my love of the Serotta Colorado III, I am in the process of purchasing another one to add to my fleet. This one comes with the Serotta-labeled version of the Ouzo Pro fork, which is no longer in production.

My current CIII has a Serotta O2, which I believe is identical to the Ouzo Pro. Correct me if I am wrong.

For the 'new' CIII on the way, what would I notice in ride qualities if I were to pony up the cash for a new F3 fork? I know there are various stiffness options and rakes. The rake would, of course, stay the same as is specified by Serotta. I find the handling of my current CIII to be essentially perfect and wouldn't change a thing. But it seems as though a stiffer fork might not be a bad thing. Not looking to change ride characteristics so much as wondering if perfect handling could be even more perfect due to less torsional flex in the F3 vs an Ouzo Pro.

The F3 looks gorgeous. No doubt about that. But the Ouzo Pro is a solid product and well respected.

Would this just be $700 or so out of pocket with little appreciable difference in the way the bike rides and handles? Or would it be money appreciated over the course of a long ride? Or a few hundred long rides?

Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4148/5020009935_dff0780576_z.jpg

[gone]

"Worth it" is always a difficult concept since my idea of worth might be your definition of frivolous extravagance. With that said, here's my $0.02.

I have a Legend ST, custom built for me and I'm the only owner. My favorite bike (I have several top o' the line bikes including among others a Parlee Z1x and a Calfee Tetra Pro, etc) and it gets the most miles of all of my bikes. Love it.

After about 30k miles, I decided it was time to "freshen" it up a little bit. I built new wheels for it, changed the bars and decided "what the hell" and ponied up for an F3 fork to replace the F2 that was on it when I bought it. Same rake but stiffer.

Did it "transform" the bike? No. Is it an OMFG awesome change? No. Is it better? Yes. I find that it feels more planted during hard cornering, especially on roughish roads. Night and day better? No.

So the bottom line for me is if you're 95% of the way to perfection in terms of saddle, wheels, handlebars, group, etc, and are looking for that last little 5% I'd do the upgrade. Whether it's "worth it" is how much value you place on that last 5%.

Hope this helps.

[Ken Robb]

and Greg, we'll never know how much of your improvement was due to new wheels.

[c-record]

I've loved every Serotta fork I've ever had, clear back to an F1. I've heard that the Reynolds fork, though nice, was kind of lacking in stiffness compared to the Serotta F3. All the bikes/forks kind of become a blur but I've consistently found the Serotta forks to be very very nice.

[c-record]

I have owned several Reynolds forks as well and been happy with them. The Serotta forks were just a little bit nicer.

[gone]

and Greg, we'll never know how much of your improvement was due to new wheels.

True enough though I've run wheels that are of equal or better quality on the Legend both before and after the F3 upgrade. Obviously, to be "apples to apples" the only thing you'd change is the forks and compare the results but as far as I'm concerned, I've got enough miles on both in very comparable circumstances to feel satisfied that what I said was an accurate sense of the value I placed on the change. YMMV, IMHO, caveat emptor, etc....

[pdmtong]

I have an F3 (8.5) on my ottrott and OP's on a carbon and on a steel bike. all are nice. at 175 They all perform nicely. If you have the dough, get the F3 if you don't, then get the OP and don't sweat it. MY F3 has two color paint on it and that puts the price around $900 I think. Ouch. I wont be crashing that fork anytime soon

I think the bettewr price comparsion ios the edge/enve fork vs the F3...any OP you buy will be used at this point.

[AndrewS]

I haven't ridden either fork, but I'd just like to point out that if you aren't very heavy, some of the comparisons just don't matter very much. If you are heavier, that's when a stiffer fork can make a difference.

[happycampyer]

saab,

Regarding the F2, this is what Mike Lopez said a while back: "The F2 was a special version of the Ouzo Pro with a lay-up tweaked to Ben's liking, 15% stiffer laterally, and titanium hardware. The F3 was a next generation all together in it's shape, lay-up, construction method etc. It's also offered in multiple stiffness/performance levels."

The Ouzo Pro is a great fork, and I have one on one of my bikes, but given that Reynolds no longer makes them, I would be more inclined to get at least an S3 for your bike. The S3 is a downright bargain considering that it is made in the the Poway facility alongside the F3. The F3 is the spare-no-expense version, with ti droupouts.

[beungood]

Where does the F1 thats on my Hors fit in this discussion? Is it a brick compared to the above forks?

[Brian Smith]

Where does the F1 thats on my Hors fit in this discussion? Is it a brick compared to the above forks?

Yes.
I loved the F1, and wouldn't replace it for anything but a steel fork, but the F3 is leaps and bounds better, and certainly heaps lighter.

[Larry]

The F1 was bomb proof and an amazingly stable ride. Yes...... it was heavy, but so am I. I think that my inch and an eight OP is fine (definitely lighter), but
I don't quite have 100 per cent confidence in the carbon steerer.
Lighter is not necessarily better, unless The Rider is much lighter!

[93legendti]

Saab, I have a F3 on my Ottrott ST and it is a great fork. I prefer it to an OP, but not by much. Depending upon your weight and stiffness needs/desires, the advantage of the F3 might lie in the ability to pick your desired stiffness level. Oh, and, iirc, the F3 might have more rake options than the OP.

[SPOKE]

S3 8.5 is the way to go. Only difference between it and the F3 are aluminum vs Ti dropouts. The crown race surface used to be Ti on the F3 too. Not sure if that is now the case.

[Ahneida Ride]

The crown race surface used to be Ti on the F3 too. Not sure if that is now the case.

It's Al on both S3 and F3. It's Ti on F1.

I have my F1 in my closet and I ain't selling it.