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#1
03-19-2024, 08:08 PM
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A mixed thru-axle / QR update? Fork rake Q.
So, I have a 2013 Seven Evergreen - disc brake, QRs. Enve QR fork, 47mm rake. Takes 38mm max. Updates to the read end to make it thru-axle are a no go. Can update fork...
Love most everything about the bike for meandering, mixed terrain, and less spirited road rides. Handles like a dream for its purpose. I can change fork out to Thru-axle. Worth it? I can change the fork rake from 47mm (71.5 Headtube Angle) to a 50mm if I want the newest Enve Gravel Fork instead of the Enve CX fork. Handling change for the better? By some accounts the 50mm would produce better handling, but I truly have no complaints about the 47mm. The Enve gravel fork accommodates wider tires, and flat mount brakes if that matters. What is the PL collective wisdom in the issue? 
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#2
03-19-2024, 08:21 PM
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Quote:
If those things matter to you, then you be the cost/benefit judge! The 50mm fork rake will lighten the steering feel a touch, which might be better on the road except for drafting situations where your existing fork will allow safely drafting a little closer to a lead wheel.
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#3
03-19-2024, 08:40 PM
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One thing I would say is to match up tire clearance from and rear: there is no point in upgrading to a fork with massive clearance if you’ll never use it because the rear only accommodates 40mm - just stick with a 40mm clearance fork.
I had my ti Desalvo built with QR right when TA was becoming a routine thing in gravel bikes. I wish that I had done TA right away, but that was only to meet the trend head on - it made no difference in performance. My CX commuter is QR and I had ridden all kids of road and off-road trails with it and was never left wanting TA wheels!
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#4
03-19-2024, 10:08 PM
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My gravel bike is QR because it was built in 2017. I can clear a 40 in the rear and larger in the front with the unicrown fork. I normally run a 44 in front because I ride in the desert and encounter loose stuff. I have run a 2.1" tire in the past. I have never felt the QR hampered me in any way. All my disc QR wheels will convert, and last year, I made my Boyd Altamont wheelset TA with new end caps.
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#5
03-20-2024, 01:25 PM
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Ok, so no one has noticed better tracking, stiffness, etc. with a thru-axle fork over a QR disc. Good to know. Also good point about visuals of fork with way more clearance than rear, could look unbalanced.
I'm using a set of I9 wheels, so endcaps are easy to change. Somehow Paceline is convincing me NOT to spend money on bike stuff... need to tell that to spouse!
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#6
03-20-2024, 01:38 PM
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Quote:
Quote:
By not buying the $600 enve fork that you were previously convinced that you needed you can now spend $600 or less on a different bike part and it doesnt impact your bike budget. Follow me for more #bikeracermath budget hacks!
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#7
03-20-2024, 02:40 PM
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I have bikes with both quick release and thru axles. To me two different systems and both work well. Is one better than the other for anything to me? No.
My Litespeed T3 disc is what I will call a bastards child. Thru axle on the front Litespeed fork and quick release on the rear. It does the job very well too.
__________________
A bad day on the bike is better than a good day at work!
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#8
03-20-2024, 04:40 PM
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If I were going to buy a fork, I would get TA nowadays. I don't think I would go TA just for the minimal advantages.
I generally make my forks, but I have been thinking about getting a carbon fork for my new gravel frame for reasons that may not actually make any sense.
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#9
03-20-2024, 06:41 PM
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I'm in the same boat - gravel bike from 2013, QR disc wheels. And 2 of my 3 mtb are also QR disc. As far as I can tell, on a non-suspension bike, the only advantage of TA is alignment. I've never honestly had an issue on any QR disc bike that I've owned - gravel or MTB. The hidden bonus of older QR disc bikes is getting screaming deals on wheelsets.
Keep riding the Evergreen as is, you're not missing anything.
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#10
03-21-2024, 10:08 AM
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The only oddity I noted on my QR gravel bike was a "singing" front disc. My gravel bike is a Coconino Dirt Road Racer with a fillet brazed unicrown fork and for whatever reason, having the front QR lever on the right seems to silence the front wheel.
My gravel wheels have WI XMR hubs and WTB I-23 rims. The Boyd Altamont wheels I used for "road wheels" on my gravel bike are now TA with an XDR freehub and seeing service on my Open all road bike.
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#12
03-21-2024, 11:51 AM
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The cost to have Seven modify an older frame is practically the cost of a new frame... i.e., price it in a way that makes no fiscal sense. So I am sticking with what I have.
I was mostly considering if a fork upgrade would be worthwhile, which based on common sense and PL collective wisdom, suggests it would add nothing.
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#13
03-21-2024, 11:55 AM
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Quote:
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#14
03-21-2024, 01:26 PM
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From back when I followed their blog, Seven would have to have months of meetings about this question and leave the issue undecided. It's not rocket surgery, lots of people know how to swap forks.
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#15
03-21-2024, 06:19 PM
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Yeah - have had conversations a plenty, as fork options changed significantly since 2013 (for the better) The market leader back then was the Enve cx - 47mm rake with a 395 AC. Luckily Enve has kept those dimensions and it become only a question of whether I would like the handling change with a 50mm rake - that is the current trend and recommended for trail figures using my geometry.
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