threaded forks

avalanche

im thinking about switching forks on an old road bike. can anyone tell me if this is straight forward enough. i currently have threaded forks and a quill stem and am thinking of getting carbon forks ( are these any good? ) and i know that i will have to get a new stem. does anyone know what else is required? finally are all fork lengths the same?

-Blanco-

If your changing the whole fork you'll need a fork of correct size for your frame,stem(that fits the fork and your bars),spacers,a headset and you may have to cut the steerer on the fork. If your not too sure you're better off bringing it to a shop, not the kinda thing you want to fail but I've done it afew times so it can't be too hard! Seach the net there's plenty of helpful stuff;)

Saying that, why do you want carbon forks? And what kind, full or half carbon? (cutting a carbon steerer is apparantly not the easiest thing in the world).Seems kinda silly putting a €300 euro carbon fork into what I assume is an oldish bike? Do you plan to race? Why not try aluminum? I got a cheap dolan alu fork in cycleways for €40, the absorb bumps better then carbon aswel and unless your really planning on racing I wouldn't worry about the weight difference. Besides some people are also kinda worried about carbon forks breaking....

I'd say if you really did want the "carbon look" to get half carbon forks(serving from memory I think they're about €150),with an alu steerer....

As for length I think you should be ok as long as you get one to fit ur wheel(i.e. 700cc) but I do know forks do vary in rake(angles blah blah) sorry I'm not really sure about this, make sure its a road fork you get not a track one anyway!

Hope that helps somewhat..!:)

Mucco

The steerer on an old bike is probably 1 inch diameter, whereas on new bikes it's generally 1 1/8 inch.
So you 'll need a 1 inch fork, headset and stem, plus someone to fit them for you.
Carbon forks aren't that expensive. I picked up a decent pair on ebay for ~£35

M

avalanche

thanks very much for the advice, basicllay i picked up an oldish bike with new gear on it. the frame etc is perfect, not a scratch, the only problem is the forks which need to be replaced. seeing as i need to replace them i was thinking of going for carbon forks as these are meant to be good for absorbtion etc. i was looking at a pair of these TIME CLUB 1'' CARBON FORK STEEL STEERER TUBE which work out around 100 euro. i was hoping i could just put them on the bike without needing any extra expenses>? but maybe the alu forks are a better idea?

another thing do carbon forks break easily?im not heavy but im no feather weight either.

avalanche

is it very unlikely that the forks will just fit the existing system or is that hoping for too much?

any have any feedback on this. the forks i was looking at are ending soon on ebay but i dont want to spend money on something im not 100%. any help much appreciated!