Found a fork :) 1997 Marzocchi Super T
- Thread starter eshew
- Start date
With most new and interesting vintage bike parts I tend to jump down the rabbit hole and research as much as possible. Upon seeing the forks I knew they were something special. Did I mention I really dig Marzocchi forks... If I didn't, just letting you know I do.
So first came the ID, it was rather easy. A good friend of mine apparently has a set of these and the later 4 bolt versions. After a postive ID it was time to dig deep. Heavy use of the waybackmachine led me to some interesting articles I will share with you now.
First: From the man, the myth, the legend Corrado Herin 1966-2019 (RIP)
by Dirt HQ
5th June 2014
"
CORRADO HERIN – 1997 WORLD CUP CHAMPION
Corrado…thoughts/memories on the Z1 when you got them for first time in 96?
With its 100mm travel the forks were able to give me a lot of comfort and more precision in riding. I’ve always been the kind of rider that spends a lot of time in bike and components settings, the suspension took a lot of this time, but it was easy to find a perfect setting in any condition and terrain. During the racing season Marzocchi developed a prototype especially for our team and they started to use a thru axle that consequently improved the rigidity of the fork with big improvement in the riding precision.
And then how different was the triple clamp version in ‘97?
The other athletes were equipped with double crown forks since ’96, so we decided to make a collaboration with the Marzocchi tech dept and develop a triple crown fork. The result was amazing and the first product was the Mr T with 100mm travel and the Super T with 145mm travel. I used the Super T for the first time in Nevegal for round 1 of the 97 World Cup. I had my first of three victories there, they ended up helping me get the World Cup Champion title. It’s clear that the tech improvement Marzocchi made to the shocks had a crucial role in that victory.
And bigger again, Monster T in ‘98!
The Monster T idea was coming from a motorbike trials project and was probably too big in sections and crown width. For me it was too heavy and rigid and the arm stress was too much. After the Monster T they released the Shiver, an awesome fork that was lighter than the Monster T, with an improved travel length, but like every upside down fork it had the problem of not being rigid enough with less precision in riding and less reactivity.
So first came the ID, it was rather easy. A good friend of mine apparently has a set of these and the later 4 bolt versions. After a postive ID it was time to dig deep. Heavy use of the waybackmachine led me to some interesting articles I will share with you now.
First: From the man, the myth, the legend Corrado Herin 1966-2019 (RIP)
by Dirt HQ
5th June 2014
"
CORRADO HERIN – 1997 WORLD CUP CHAMPION
Corrado…thoughts/memories on the Z1 when you got them for first time in 96?
With its 100mm travel the forks were able to give me a lot of comfort and more precision in riding. I’ve always been the kind of rider that spends a lot of time in bike and components settings, the suspension took a lot of this time, but it was easy to find a perfect setting in any condition and terrain. During the racing season Marzocchi developed a prototype especially for our team and they started to use a thru axle that consequently improved the rigidity of the fork with big improvement in the riding precision.
And then how different was the triple clamp version in ‘97?
The other athletes were equipped with double crown forks since ’96, so we decided to make a collaboration with the Marzocchi tech dept and develop a triple crown fork. The result was amazing and the first product was the Mr T with 100mm travel and the Super T with 145mm travel. I used the Super T for the first time in Nevegal for round 1 of the 97 World Cup. I had my first of three victories there, they ended up helping me get the World Cup Champion title. It’s clear that the tech improvement Marzocchi made to the shocks had a crucial role in that victory.
And bigger again, Monster T in ‘98!
The Monster T idea was coming from a motorbike trials project and was probably too big in sections and crown width. For me it was too heavy and rigid and the arm stress was too much. After the Monster T they released the Shiver, an awesome fork that was lighter than the Monster T, with an improved travel length, but like every upside down fork it had the problem of not being rigid enough with less precision in riding and less reactivity.
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From 97 to 98 the "Handmade" Pre-Production Super T forks differed frequently in terms of various features.
The 1st gen wrap around arches were available with extensions for canti studs, or as shown on Herin's race photos, those could be deleted.
To further reduce weight the 20mm axle could either have 2 plates with 4 bolts each or a 2 bolt clamp on one single leg.
Dampers could be standard adjustable rebound x 2 or one rebound, one compression.
Crowns could be polished or painted, axles could be hollowed round or with a hex key.
Later in 98, the wrap around brace was removed in favor of an 8 bolt flat brace. This reduced cost significantly, as the one piece wrap around brace much have been incredibly difficult to machine. It's also a HUGE pain in the arse to get the fork straight after a rebuild. 19 bolts... 19. The flat 8 bolt brace is also stronger and less likely to crack.
The 1st gen wrap around arches were available with extensions for canti studs, or as shown on Herin's race photos, those could be deleted.
To further reduce weight the 20mm axle could either have 2 plates with 4 bolts each or a 2 bolt clamp on one single leg.
Dampers could be standard adjustable rebound x 2 or one rebound, one compression.
Crowns could be polished or painted, axles could be hollowed round or with a hex key.
Later in 98, the wrap around brace was removed in favor of an 8 bolt flat brace. This reduced cost significantly, as the one piece wrap around brace much have been incredibly difficult to machine. It's also a HUGE pain in the arse to get the fork straight after a rebuild. 19 bolts... 19. The flat 8 bolt brace is also stronger and less likely to crack.
Fun fact: The later production versions of the Super T were called Super T Pro. The Pro was for production. The early 97 and 98's with everything CNC'd outside of the main crown were considered "handmade". The serial on mine starts with a ZT.
After getting the bike home and sourcing parts it was time to get dirty. Polish, seals, oil and some reproduction bits from Dr Marzocchi https://dr-zocchi.projectweb.de/
As you can see the internals are very similar to a Z1 or Z2. Similar cartridges, bushings, seals and top caps. 2 springs per cartridge and a longer spacer. The preload knobs are an early version of what came standard on all 98 forks, blue and rectangular, just with extra machined vertical grooves on the ends. Standard 97 Z1 and Z2 knobs were round and red.
After getting the bike home and sourcing parts it was time to get dirty. Polish, seals, oil and some reproduction bits from Dr Marzocchi https://dr-zocchi.projectweb.de/
As you can see the internals are very similar to a Z1 or Z2. Similar cartridges, bushings, seals and top caps. 2 springs per cartridge and a longer spacer. The preload knobs are an early version of what came standard on all 98 forks, blue and rectangular, just with extra machined vertical grooves on the ends. Standard 97 Z1 and Z2 knobs were round and red.
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Happy to see the new Knobs mounted!
I was not sure to do them but such feedback makes me feel happy about such productions. Thanks!
The worked perfectly and look gorgeous. As does the disc mount adapter. I can't thank you enough. Talk about fortuitous timing! I just had to make sure to bottom out the adjusters, or at least close to bottom out before installing them to get full range. Guessing the 97's (or at least my 97) only had the standard rebound cartridges. Adjustments appear to effect rebound on both sides, rather than a rebound and compression as mentioned in the Mt Bike Action May 98 review above.Happy to see the new Knobs mounted!
I was not sure to do them but such feedback makes me feel happy about such productions. Thanks!
Yes, Marzocchi did 2 rebound cartridges with the orange Z1 and others and started doing compression cartridges ~2000 - afaik. They can be identicated by the black anodized needle screw in the center of the cartridge and are backwards update compatible. I have some here 100mm travel.
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