Fox 36 Moab Multi

FOX introduced the impressive FLOAT 36 at a press camp in Moab earlier this month. Photos by Colin Meagher

When suspension-maker FOX released new versions of its 34 trail fork in 2013, we were perhaps a bit underwhelmed. Though we pined for more damping in the FLOAT 34 CTD and TALAS models, we felt they were good forks for the trail bike segment if you got the tuning right. Good but not great.

The same model year's 40 downhill fork, on the other hand, was by many accounts the best FOX fork ever. But because the downhill market is relatively small, its attributes were more talked about than actually experienced by most riders.

Notably absent from the upgrade parade was the one time standard-setting 36 fork-a platform that helped define the aggressive trail ride/all-mountain/enduro segment that's now arguably the sport's hottest category.

"What happened to FOX?" was a common refrain in the Mtbr forums and trailside conversations alike. "Are they just gonna let RockShox run away with this thing?"

For more than a year we posed similar questions to our contacts at FOX and got "I wish I could tell you but I can't" responses-categorical denials that, while giving away nothing, implied they weren't going to take things lying down.

Late last year we got to ride FOX's athlete-developed Racing Applications Development (RAD) version of the 34, which hinted at smoother, more responsive things to come, but remained elusive. It was a sponsored racer-only fork, unavailable to the average rider. Its 34mm chassis also remained a little flexy for aggressive all-mountain riding. Nice but sigh.

Fox 36 Captain Ahab Moab

Is it a coincidence that FOX has a new fork and Moab has new trails? Probably. But the fact that neither are resting on their laurels is good for mountain biking. Photo by Colin Meagher

Then over the winter, we began to see prototypes of a new 36 on FOX test rider bikes out on the home trails we share. They came with "don't ask, don't tell" disclaimers, but gave us more hope. Later, an official, but light-on-the-details announcement came at the Sea Otter Classic, and not a moment too soon. RockShox's Pike was running up the score with "best of" awards, while new all-mountain models from Marzocchi, MRP, X-Fusion, Manitou and DVO were popping up like dandelions on the lawn.

Finally, the company spilled all the beans at a media event in Moab, Utah earlier this month with FOX Bike Marketing Manager Mark Jordan explaining that the pause until the 36's release, while painful, was purposeful and worth the wait.

"Much of the feedback from the RAD 34 fork we took and incorporated into the new 36," he said during our morning press briefing. "The (new 36) really takes the 'best of'from the RAD 34 and 40 and adds a lot of new features you'll see in future forks."

A couple hours later we were at the Lower Porcupine Singletrack (LPS) trailhead unloading our bikes and putting his claims to the test. For the trip, we specifically brought our RockShox Pike-equipped Intense Carbine 29, keen on a head-to-head comparison between it-the reigning long-travel fork champion-and the new challenger from FOX.

We'll get to the performance specifics later on, but suffice it to say that the Pike is no longer alone atop the all-mountain mountain.

Fox 36 Chart Line Travel

So what exactly is new?

The 36 line comes in three spring options-the FLOAT fixed-travel air spring, the TALAS adjustable-travel air spring, and the VAN coil spring. Only the FLOAT and TALAS air-spring models have been revamped, as most of the changes are largely irrelevant for the coil model. Jordan outlined seven objectives for the new air spring models:
  • Significant weight reduction while retaining strength and stiffness
  • Significant reduction in stanchion/leg friction
  • Improvement of tunes on the RC2 damper
  • Improvement of air spring system
  • Creation of a convertible 15/20mm thru-axle design
  • Accommodation of 26-, 27.5- and 29-inch wheel sizes
  • Internally-adjustable travel

Fox 36 Mark Jordan Explains

FOX's Mark Jordan uses a clear acrylic model of the FLOAT 36 to explain some of the improvements made to the new fork. Photo by Colin Meagher

Chassis Part 1: 36 goes on a diet

While there are many fans of 2014 and prior FOX 36 forks, its decade-old chassis design made it portly, no matter what trickery went on inside. For 2015, FOX put the 36 on an aggressive diet, trimming grams from the steerer tube, crown, upper tubes, lower legs, and thru-axle assembly. These reductions come at no loss in strength or rigidity, according to the company, but through a highly refined optimization of the materials and structures involved.

The 2015 FLOAT 36 RC2 sheds more than a half pound (300g) off its 2014 predecessor and, even more impressively, comes in 23g lighter than the current FOX FLOAT 34 CTD. Against arch rival RockShox, the 36 is in the ballpark at 63g heavier than the 35mm-stanchioned Pike RCT3 on paper. However, with a required disc brake adaptor, washers and longer screws needed to run a 180mm rotor on the Pike, the weight difference is much narrower in reality as FOX has designed the 36 to accept the caliper for a 180mm rotor natively without adaptors.

Fox 36 Chart Weight

It should be noted that part of the weight reduction comes by eliminating the old 36's quick releases and thru-axle crank system. In their place are a pair of 5mm hex bolts on each dropout and a 5mm hex hole for removing the thru-axle-the configuration FOX used on the 36 prior to 2008. FOX offers a number of justifications for the back-to-the-future move, some of which we'll get into later. The bottom line is that it's mildly inconvenient if you only take off your front wheel for maintenance. If you need to take off your wheel to transport your bike-it's a real pain.

Continue to Page 2 for more on the Fox 36 FLOAT and TALAS fork, riding impressions and full photo gallery »

Fox 36 QR bolt Compare

The new FOX 36 fork dropouts (left)-which revert to the fixing configuration FOX used prior to 2008-are more complex but lighter than the QR 15 version (right). The latest version does, however, allow the use of either a 15 or 20mm thru-axle.

Chassis Part 2: Convertible 15mm/20mm thru-axle system

Though most forks have drifted to 15mm thru-axle configurations, FOX sought to give riders the choice of running either a 15 or the stiffer 20mm axle that's been the hallmark of the 36 for years. FOX accomplishes this by supplying a 20mm "native" thru-axle, as well as a 15mm version that uses a pair of side-specific adapters that nest in the fork dropouts.

In either configuration, the non-drive side is threaded, and the axle is tightened until bottom-out to establish a perfectly straight fork leg alignment, according to Jordan. The four pinch bolts are then tightened to fix the axle in place.

Fox 36 Multi

The 36's fixed-axle differs from pinch-clamp designs that have the potential to introduce side-loads and skew the fork-leg alignment creating friction, according to Jordan.

Chassis Part 3: Industrial design revisions

With an arch and dropout design based on the 40, an optimized five-taper tube section, bushings overlapped to reduce friction and wear, and a 180mm direct disc post-mount, the lower leg casting got the lion's share of the 36's industrial design revamps. But FOX also put significant effort into the upper assembly, optimizing the steerer tube for weight and stiffness, reducing the crown's press-in height to minimize axle-to-crown length, and by introducing an even finer polish to both the internal and external upper tube surfaces which are already impregnated with FOX's slippery Kashima coating.

Fox 36 Chart Geometry

Axle-to-crown length effects how high the bike's front end and handlebars sit. With 27.5- and 29-inch wheels, riders are more keen than ever to keep this measurement as low as possible, and FOX have done well by reducing a-to-c by 9mm on the new 36.

Chassis Details: Don't you forget about me

While the tapered 1.5-inch steerer tube has become the standard for bikes the last few years, and bigger wheels are all the rage, FOX recognizes that there's plenty of perfectly good bikes out there with both 26-inch wheels and straight steer tubes. To accommodate, they're offering 1-1/8-inch steerer, 26-inch wheel versions of the 36 FLOAT in 160 and 180mm, the 36 TALAS in 160 and 180mm, and the 36 VAN in 180mm. FOX apparently gets that despite all the 27.5 hype, it will take decades for its install-base to match the 26er.

Fox 36 Clear Model

FOX brought along a nifty clear model of the 36 that shows off its parts configuration and details. And no, you can't ride it. Photos by Colin Meagher

Internals Part 1: Improved FIT RC2 damper

FOX first used a version of their sealed-design FIT RC2 damper nine years ago on their 40 DH fork. The design promises consistent performance along with a high level of external adjustability for high- and low-speed compression, as well as rebound. In the version they're using on the new 36, FOX wanted to dial-in better smoothness and suppleness, particularly at the beginning of the stroke. To do so, they lowered the oil weight and borrowed the seal head design from the RAD 34 which they say offers better small bump sensitivity without sacrificing support.

Fox 36 RC2 Damper Moab

While RockShox's Charger Damper borrows from FOX's long-used FIT RC2 damper design, the new version of the latter (above) had to do some catch-up in terms of feel. As you'll read in our ride test later, the update seems to have done the trick.

Internals Part 2: New FLOAT air spring

The 36's new FLOAT air spring has changed dramatically from its prior iteration, particularly its negative spring, whose job is to help smooth the start of the fork's travel as well as its top out feel on return. Gone is the negative coil spring of old, and in its place a self-equalizing air chamber design that uses a bypass port to ensure consistent axle-to-crown length regardless of rider weight or spring pressure. It also saves some weight and eliminates noise associated with the coil spring.

Fox 36 FLOAT Airspring

The new FLOAT air spring promises to be more responsive, lighter and quieter.

Internals Part 3: Travel and air volume adjustments

In order to give a rider maximum tuning and travel options FOX has made internal air volume and travel changes fairly simple on the new FLOAT. Aluminum spacers that install under the negative spring plate govern travel and can reduce the fork's travel up to 50mm in 10mm increments. We're usually ones for more travel, given the option, but Jordan points out, for example, that people might want to run a stiffer, more supple 36 on a shorter-travel bike that's designed around a 140 or 150mm fork without disrupting its geometry. And since the 36 weighs about the same as a 34-and now has the same axle-to-crown length-why not? Conversely, the 36 might be just the ticket for dirt jumping-meaning it's got much more application latitude than we're used to seeing in a fork.

Fox 36 Chart Float Travel Ranges

The FLOAT 36 can be reduced up to 50mm in 10mm increments from its native travel length.

At the same time, travel reduction will likely require a reduction in air volume, so the fork ramps up accordingly. The FOX 36 ships with plastic volume spacers in 7.6 and 10.8cc increments that make the fork do just that. Though such a change would likely take some trial-and-error, the spacers simply snap on the shaft, making the process fairly straight-forward.

Fox 36 Spacers Moab

The FLOAT 36's travel and air volume adjustments give the fork incredible range, meaning you can set it up for a marathon XC event like the BC Bike Race or lower it and ramp the spring curve for dirt jumping. Most riders will keep it between those extremes, but it's nice to have options. Photos by Colin Meagher

Continue to Page 3 for riding impressions and full photo gallery »

The Ride: Taking the 2015 FOX FLOAT 36 for a spin

Fox 36 LPS Landscape

Beauty in the rough: Moab's Porcupine Rim is as rugged as it is beautiful, and a perfect venue for suspension testing. Photo by Colin Meagher

All the techno mumbo jumbo aside, the real question is how does the new FOX 36 ride, and more pointedly, how does it compare with the category-leading RockShox Pike? As we alluded to earlier, FOX gave us the perfect opportunity to answer those questions by having us bring the bike and fork of our choice of our choice to ride and compare at the Moab launch.

For the task, we loaded up our de facto 29er long-travel test bike, an Intense Carbine 29, equipped with the defending champion RockShox Pike. Confidently, FOX wanted us to ride our own forks on the first lap to get a feel for the terrain on a familiar bike. Thus equipped, our band of journos, led by Transition Bikes' honch Lars Sternberg and FOX's Ariel Lindsey headed out on a six-mile loop of Moab's Lower Porcupine Singletrack, followed by a descent down the old Porcupine 4x4 road climb.

Fox 36 Moab Ariel LPS

FOX Engineering Tech Ariel Lindsey goes for some style points on LPS at the FOX 36 press launch in Moab, Utah. Photo by Colin Meagher

The route gave us enough rocks, drops and jumps to test our dental work as well as our bikes, and actually made a perfect venue for testing the new 36. With our baselines established, FOX's Darren Garrison installed the new 36 on each of our bikes and helped us set our sag, compression and rebound. From there, we did another LPS shake-down lap with Jordan and Lindsey taking us through some compression setting tests designed to show the forks massive range of adjustability.

Fox 36 Darren G Moab

FOX Suspension Tech Darren Garrison swapped out or existing Pike for a new 36 at the Porcupine Rim trailhead in Moab, Utah. Photo by Colin Meagher

Supple and silky

After some lunch back at the trailhead, we headed out for a stint down the full Porcupine Rim, starting with a third rip down LPS. It was in this session that we really started to get comfortable with the 36 and feel how its upgrades would measure up-which is to say very well. Gone was the stick-slip of the old 36, replaced by a supple, easy initiation of travel. As advertised, the motion felt similar to that of the RAD 34 and, indeed, the Pike-silky and sensitive straight out of the box.

LPS also gave us a great chance to get a feel for the 36's low-speed compression. Rolling off some larger domed rocks into transitions, the fork smoothly ramped-up and resisted diving, allowing us to confidently roll or drop the trail's bigger obstacles. It also conspired with the smooth off-the-top movement into travel to make for sure footed traction in the few sandy single tracks between rock sections. On climbs it held steady and resisted the urge to bob under power.

Fox 36 Jacksons Ariel Moab

Did we mention we did a few rides in Moab? Here FOX's Ariel Lindsey descends the very techy Jackson's Trail along the Colorado River. Photo by Colin Meagher

Most of the ride down Porcupine is a cacophony of noise-chains slapping, rocks cracking, and the general clatter of barely-managed chaos. But in LPS'slower terrain, we were able to distinguish the 36's audio track in isolation. And while it's certainly quieter without the negative coil spring of old, the 36 is louder than the competition. Which is not so much a complaint as an observation-it doesn't feel like it's about to explode so much as it's working hard. And its only loud enough to be of note when all else is quiet.

Switching to glide

After stopping at the Castle Valley overlook for a snack, the volume level cranked up both figuratively and literally. Porcupine's mid-section is made up of a long, rough 4x4 road section Lindsey described as "jagged curbs pointed up at you." It alternates between ledgy drops, football fields of crumbled boulder and little spans of red Martian sand. Throughout it all, suspension, tires and wheels get punished by high-frequency punches that seem unending at times.

Fox 36 Porcupine Jordan

FOX's Mark Jordan hammers the continuous chunder of Porcupine Rim's 4x4 section-a legendary test of suspension fortitude, general bike durability, and dental work warranties. Photo by Colin Meagher

And it's in this merciless pummeling that the new 36 really shows its stuff. Without much more effort than hanging on, picking one of many bad line options, and keeping your speed up, the 36 manages the rapid-fire hits-along with the occasional rider error-quite well. Riding high in its travel, the fork absorbs and returns in a quick, controlled manner, keeping the bike on top of the fray and only succumbing to a beating when the rider fails to keep speed. Even here it still does pretty well, though less comfortably-more a result of the boisterous trail than any shortcomings on the fork's part.

The damping feels spot-on and the overall movement buttery. At the same time, the chassis' stiffness is evident, responding to steering inputs obediently with little back talk. All this despite tire pressures at 30 psi-a good 5 psi higher than what we run on the dirt-based trails back home.

Fox 36 LPS Moab

Porcupine can be relentlessly rough for long stretches.The FOX 36 don't care. Photo by Colin Meagher

Porcupine is known to be a bit of a masochistic endeavor-you love every minute of it, but you expect to hurt. At the end of this particular run-which, as always, is punctuated by the sublime Porcupine Singletrack finale-we weren't as beat down as expected. Sure, the legs were a little sore from pedaling all day, but our shoulders and arms were fine. Could it be the fork? We definitely think it was a contributing factor.

Fox 36 Miguels Moab

It's a good thing Miguel's in Moab follows Utah's strict liquor laws religiously (pun intended), otherwise day two's ride might have been even rougher. Photo by Colin Meagher

Continue to Page 4 for more riding impressions and full photo gallery »

More, more, more

Fox 36 HyMasa Moab

The new HyMasa Trail takes you to the top of Moab's newest piece of mountain bike nirvana-the Captain Ahab Trail. Photo by Don Palermini

On day two we put the 36 through the paces again on one of Moab's newest and best trails-Captain Ahab. To get there we climbed another new trail called HyMasa. An alternative to the Amasa Back 4x4 trail, HyMasa ascends the same incline to Whale Rock, the inspiration for Ahab's Melvillian moniker.

This extended climb offered the opportunity for more slow-roll testing of the fork. As it had done on the shorter climbs the previous day, the lockout-free 36 behaved well, taking up the subtle bumps, but remaining fairly firm for the long, alternately seated and unseated climb.

We resumed our low-speed compression testing by running the bike into curb-like uphill steps. Dutifully, the 36 swallowed up the impacts with little more than a silky bump. Tug on the bars a tiny bit and the steps virtually disappeared. The more we rode the 36, the more it felt like, well, a Pike.

Fox 36 Captain Ahab Nick Charlie

Nick Wilson of outfitter Hermosa Tours takes a high line on Captain Ahab, while his dog Charlie runs it low. Photo by Colin Meagher

Once at the top-actually Ahab's mid-point-we pointed the bikes down what can only be described as a wild lands downhill skatepark. With abounding challenge lines, drops, jumps and occasional spots of mayhem, neither the Captain nor the FOX 36 disappointed.

Fox 36 Captain Ahab Moab

It may not look like much, but Ahab has its share of techy trouble balls like this slot maneuver. Photo by Colin Meagher

Though less chaotic, Captain Ahab's combination of high-speed stutter, and slower-speed bounces and thunks gave us another full-spectrum experience with the new 36. Once again, we were impressed with the fork's performance in every aspect, especially and critically with its damping. Whether it's the changes to the RC2 damper, the FLOAT air spring, or both in combination, FOX got things very, very right with the new 36 putting it not only in the same league with RockShox's Pike, but on par.

On the home front

While we had no complaints about the fork in Moab, we were happy FOX let us take it with us to try out on our more familiar home trails. With its sandpaper-like rock surface, traction in Moab is amazing, so we were keen to see how the 36 felt on some more typically loose and dry dirt. With a couple clicks out on the rebound adjustor and our tires pressure back in the mid 20's, the fork found its happy place. The bike's front end dug in and felt confident, even in bumpy berms where the Fox's new found suppleness came to the forefront.

On mid-sized and larger drops and jumps the fork felt bottomless even on intentionally nose-heavy landings. Popping and preloading was also easy and predictable. After a stint on Moab's rough-and-tumble, a spin at home on the 36 felt like a magic carpet ride.

Fox 36 Captain Ahab Lars

Transition Bikes' Lars Sternberg pops his FOX FLOAT 36-equipped prototype whip down a ledge on Captain Ahab. The fork's bottomless feel makes even nose-heavy landings comfortable. Photo by Colin Meagher

Golden samples, but nothing out-of-the-ordinary

Lest you think our test forks were ringers, FOX claims that while pre-production, our samples went through the same assembly line and procedure that production models will, and had no special sauce or hop-ups added. On that subject, Jordan said the company has added steps and processes to insure more consistent quality coming off the line.

The Bottom Line-A mini Forko Compare-o

Fox 36 Intense Carbine 29 MoabThough we can't yet speak to the 36's durability, we've put a couple hard weeks on the fork and been massively impressed with its performance across a range of terrain. By lowering the weight, reducing the axle-to-crown length, improving stiffness and upgrading both the air spring and dampers, the 36 checks all the boxes of FOX's stated fork improvement punch list. The words "smooth," "silky," "responsive," and "precise" were uttered repeatedly in casual conversation at the 36 press launch-the word "harsh" was not.

While we hate to keep comparing it to the Pike, it's the question everyone is asking. We're happy to report they're alike in many (good) ways. Both retail for around $1,000, both weigh-in at just a hair over four pounds, and both forks posses a fantastic, silky feel right out of the box. We'd also add they perform significantly better than any other forks in the segment we've ridden.

There are also some differences, and, depending on your preferences, these factors may sway you one way or the other. In terms of performance latitude and adjustability, we give the edge to the FOX with it's wide-ranging internal and external fine-tuning options. While very flexible, we found the 36 simple to dial-in. We also like the convertible 15mm/20mm thru-axle which reduces compatibility issues and offers plenty of options.

If you value convenience above all else, the ease-of-use of the Pike's Maxle Lite trumps the 36's four-bolt thru-axle configuration. The Pike's three-step compression configuration (Open/Pedal/Lock) will also appeal to those who prefer simplification. Along the same lines, we've always liked RockShox's sag gradients that are printed on their stanchions, as well as their recommended air pressure charts on the fork legs-probably not a deal breaker for the FOX, but a convenience none-the-less.

We know many Mtbr readers like to work on their own forks, and the FOX's FIT damper has historically been more difficult for the home mechanic to tackle than the Pike's Charger Damper, though we generally leave our rebuilds to professionals. Finally, with a year in the real world under its belt, the Pike enjoys a sound reliability record. The new 36 is unproven on a mass scale at this point, though given the company's track record-and our trust in their word that our early samples are assembled exactly like production models-we see little risk in early adoption of the new fork.

Fox 36 Chart Pricing

For more information visit ridefox.com.