Converting front forks to suspension forks

[gmaz]

I've a very rare visitor to this pedal powered forum as I know f-all about bikes but...

I have an old Diamondback Sorrento that I would like to try with suspension front forks - what is involved in converting it?

It has a 26" wheel, V brakes and is pretty standard otherwise, apart from being converted to an ebike with a kit. The ebike bit may be the problem as the bike now weighs 26kg so crashes into rough roads etc.

I would like to do it as cheaply as possible but with something that won't break when it hits a pothole.

Any ideas? Is the head tube a standard size?

[InitialDave]

The steerer and head tube setups on bikes are to standards, but there are several of them.

If you can post a photo of that area of the bike, we can tell you what to measure.

[gmaz]

After spending some time researching on the web it sounds like any benefit will be offset by the extra weight and maintenance, so I guess I'll just have to build up my puny arms to take the shocks.

[defblade]

Carbon bars can take a bit of the road buzz out of riding, as can well-padded gloves and/or softer grips.
Or if you want to get a bit more spendy, suspension stems are a thing, eg https://www.amazon.co.uk/REDSHIFT-ShockStop-Suspen...

[lllnorrislll]

May also be worth considering some balloon style tyres - such as Schwalbe big Apple.

[troc]

Or try some revgrips:

https://revgrips.com/

[POIDH]

gmaz said:

After spending some time researching on the web it sounds like any benefit will be offset by the extra weight and maintenance, so I guess I'll just have to build up my puny arms to take the shocks.

Yet a eBike kit and 26kg of weight isnt? 🤷‍♂️

Good suspension forks are superb - but that isn't cheap.
Cheap forks are not maintainable in my experience and do not work well.
Weight I have never bothered about with forks - you may even find on such a cheap bike that the existing forks are steel and weigh a lot more than you may expect...

[sideways man]

I’m in a similar situation with my steel frame ‘pub bike’. I fitted very soft sponge grips and this has helped damp vibration through the bars. I’m wondering how much a carbon bar would help, although this may cost more than the bike is worth

[aka_kerrly]

InitialDave said:

The steerer and head tube setups on bikes are to standards, but there are several of them.

If you can post a photo of that area of the bike, we can tell you what to measure.

This is what we need.

That particular model of DiamondBack can be from the early 90s with a 1"1/8th threaded steering tube, the later 90s with a 1" 1/8 thread less steerer. Another issue is a lot of modern forks use a bolt through axle assembly and finding forks that take traditional Quick release wheels can be a problem.. You mention you have V-Brakes so you will also need to find forks that have the required mounts, a lot of forks from the last 5years or so only come with disc brake mounts which then means you end up buying new brakes, new wheel and new fork at which point there are many £300-500 bikes that are substantially more suitable for your needs.

Best option is go second hand to keep the spend sub £200 - some Rockshox/Marrazochi/Manitou are the better options. I'd go with a 3-3.5" max travel on a older cross country style frame to keep the geometry semi sensible.

As an example , these Rockshox are pretty much the only brand new fork that offers 1 1/8" thread less steerer and v brake mounts

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/rockshox-recon...