Shocks worth keeping? (now about Halson Inversions/PDS)

[RockiMtn]

Dad told me to grab some parts from the shed or he'd trash them. Found a set of forks I had forgotten about, along with some other bits and bites.

One is a believe is a RockShox fork, but for all I know it it could be a repaint and decal of something else. I have no experience with them, so I can't assess for myself. Seems to still work as it compresses with pressure. Paint on the lowers are scrapped and peeling in areas. Decal seems to be not one piece but seems to be built with red and black on top of the reflective white square back.

The other is some unknown inverted fork. Seems to be seized though. There are slots for the brake posts to slide upward. Kind of see in one pic but is hard to see being covered by the brake booster.

Should I bother with these? Or should I just toss them?

[edit] Thread topic is now more about Halson Inversions/PDS but if anyone has info about the other set of shocks and their worth, please let me know, thanks!

 

[RockiMtn]

unknown...

 

[Fenton]

The first are repainted and not rock shox at all...... and the second pair are Halson inversions I think..... hope this helps!!

 

[mazdaman1980]

I totally agree, the first ones look like cheapo nasty forks. The second ones are awesome and would look great cleaned up and if you dont want them i will definately take them as i am looking for a project to clean up and would look noce on my bike. They are a bit different too!

 

[RockiMtn]

so i took some time to take a better look at the inverted forks. it was very simple to tear down. no seized parts, just really tough elastomers it seems. cleaned the uppers and lowers a little and they slide smooth. does anyone how stiff/soft were these suppose to be? and if i could get replacement elastomers?

reminds me of those multi-colour/flavour popsicles!

 

[digitalkreation]

The first fork may be a Tange or something crappy, definitely not worth their weight, unless you come across someone restoring a bike to factory condition.

Nice Inversion fork. No idea about elastomers, there's that site, suspensionforkparts.com or something similar??

 

[RockiMtn]

Thanks Mark,

Sent them an email to see what they can do for me.

 

[Crell]

From MBA / Ventana Review

"Front suspension deviates from current converts to Judy-ism. Ventana has a relationship with Halson Designs and chose the Inversion fork. The Halson fork is inverted (the lowers slide into the larger, upper section of the fork) and uses a top-loading, shish-kebab elastomer stack for both spring and damping duties. Huge external rubber bellows seal long slots in the upper section through which cantilever brake studs protrude. The 2.375-inch-travel fork operates well, but you have to see its internals to believe 'em."

"The fly in the ointment of upside-down forks is the brakes. They must be close to the rim, and that means ten inches above the front axle. Since the upper part closest to the rim of upside-down forks doesn't move, it's hard to get the brakes to follow the rim. This problem has sidetracked most inverted fork concepts into the waste can. Halson Inversion forks solved this problem by slotting the upper alloy section of its fork. The cantilever bosses move up and down inside the vertical slots without having to depend on a disc brake. You get superb bearing overlap, increased rigidity and less unsprung weight (the part of the suspension that follows the ground on upside-down forks).

There are no contact seals (oil or dust) in the Inversion fork. One all-enveloping rubber boot seals the lower legs, brake bosses and moving brake bridge. No contact seals means less stiction and better low-end suspension performance. The forks come with a million elastomer elements in different durometers for fine-tuning purposes. To remove its elastomer shish-kebab, unscrew the caps on the top of the fork crown and the entire assembly pops out.

Did the Inversion forks live up to their lofty expectations? Actually, yes. Every rider in the evaluation was skeptical of the big black fork. Each returned with a similar comment: "These forks work pretty good." That's the long and short of Halson Inversion forks: they are good all-around performers, well-suited for full-suspension bikes--and, hey, they come stock with 2.375 inches of travel."

http://www.ventanausa.com/mba0495.html


They should look like this.

 

[RockiMtn]

Thanks Crell! Great info!

So I decided I'd try them out on the Blizzard. I thought they'd be too beefy for the frame but it was the only bike that has a threaded headset still. But now after mounting them, I have to say I quite like the look.

Also thought mounting them, I could actually have enough leverage to see if the shocks compress. That ended up being a resounding "no". I think it did compress ever so slightly, but I think I noticed more "flex" from the flexstem than I did the forks!

sent measurements to the the online shop posted by digitalkreation, no word back yet on cost and availability of replacement elastomers. also no direction on finding substitute shock boots.

 

[digitalkreation]

Boots could be tricky, since most rubber deteriorates over time, and the inversions weren't popular enough that I'd think companies were refabricating the boots..

I bet the elastomer issue is a simpler one, but perhaps you could make a homemade remedy for the boots? Lizard skins perhaps?? You may need to trim or elongate some holes, but it's worth a shot.