Understand Suspension to Choose The Best Mountain Bike for You

Mountain bike is a special bike that is designed to be able to cross off-road terrain. A mountain bike might look the same as bicycles in general, but it has many special components on the bicycle that will support the bike performance on off-road terrain. As a cyclist who’s new in mountain bike cycling activity, you might be confused about what kind of mountain bike that you would purchase. Is it better to buy a full-suspension or hardtail MTB? Do you have to buy an XC mountain bike or trail MTB? Do not worry! Here are some explanations and tips about choosing the best mountain bike for you based on the fork! 

Let’s Take a Look at The MTB Fork 

You might notice that the fork of a mountain bike is different from other bikes. As a component that connects the front wheels with the handlebar, a mountain bike’s fork is a little bit different since it has suspension on it. This is because the suspension fork can absorb shock, while the rigid fork could not. 

Suspension will help the mountain bike reduce shock caused by off-road terrain surfaces that have bumpy texture. Suspension fork can absorb shock and prevents the cyclist's body from feeling pain due to crossing on the off-road terrain. That’s why it’s applied on mountain bikes. 

Suspensions on Mountain Bike 

As we have mentioned before, this component would absorb shock and prevent riders’ bodies from feeling pain. But does it really matter? 

The answer is yes. It matters. 

The mountain bike is for off-road terrain. It means that this is the best bike for bumpy terrain that consists of rock, tree roots, sand, etc. The suspensions would compress and rebound to absorb and maintain contact between the front wheel and ground. You still can use a bike that has no suspensions to ride on an offroad train. But, you have to underline the fact that bikes that have no suspension are not recommended for extreme off-road terrain.

There are two types of mountain bike based on how much suspension in the bike, hardtail or rigid and full-suspension. A hardtail mountain bike only has one suspension that is located in the fork. Meanwhile, mountain bikes with full-suspension frames have two suspensions located in the fork and in the middle of the bicycle frame (rear shock or ).

How many suspensions of a mountain bike affect the weights and performance of the mountain bike itself. A mountain bike with one travel suspension or hardtail mountain bike is usually lighter than bikes with full-suspension. Choosing a hardtail mountain bike can be a good choice because it is lighter and able to cross uphill roads easily. However, if you want to conquer rocky and very steep off-road terrain optimally, then a full suspension mountain bike will perform the best on it.

Air Spring vs Coil Spring

Suspension has springs on it. Anyway, what is spring? 

Springs are the thing that absorbs vibrations that appeared because you ride on bumpy roads. Springs make your wheels move up and down when it gets impacted. So the rider would feel less vibrations. The stronger the spring is squeezed or depressed, the more energy it releases. On the other hand, the damper is the one that holds back pressure from the spring from bouncing. The damper will control how much energy is released and how fast the wheel would move up or down.

Talking about the spring, this is a detail that has a big impact on the bike itself. It is related to the weight of the bike, and how the mountain bike will perform. Keep in mind that nothing is perfect, so do these choices of spring. Both air and coil shock have their own advantages and disadvantages. So, which one is the best? Now, let’s discuss it!

Air Spring 

As a popular choice among the mountain bike riders community, the air spring is lighter and easier in control of sag, rebound, and compression. SAG is the amount of shocks that is received by suspension when a rider is sitting in a natural riding position. It is often represented by millimeters or percent (%). Rebound itself is how quick your suspension returns after it has compressed. Meanwhile, the compression is how fast the suspension reacts over off road terrain. 

Air spring works by utilizing air pressure to provide an adjustable spring rate. So, we have to fill the suspension with air. We can adjust the power by add or release some air to the air springs. The stronger the air pressure, the firmer the spring is. The suspension moves progressive, meaning that the more you try to compress it, the more difficult it becomes to compress further. It might be not ideal and feel rough while riding. Air springs are also less responsive to the small vibrations. It needs more vibrations to make the air spring work. We can reduce the air pressure on the springs, but it would not be effective on extreme off road terrain. 

Since we can adjust the power of the air springs by adding or reducing the air inside the springs, it needs a lot of seals, so that there are no air leaks. But, if we add a lot of seal, it may make the springs less responsive to little vibrations and would be hard to clean. The change of temperature might affect the air too. That’s why you have to set the spring into the first setting. We often can find air springs in most cross country and trail mountain bikes. 

So here’s the advantage: 

• It is lighter than coil spring 
• You can easily change the setting 
• Progressive spring rate 
• It’s compatible with many frame

And these are the disadvantage: 

• It needs extra care 
• More expensive
• Might feel rougher at the first time 
• Less responsive to the little bumps. 

Coil Spring 

Coil spring tends to be more responsive and usually has a linear spring rate. Since it is more responsive, it would protect the bike even at a low speed. A linear spring means that the force that is needed to compress the suspension increases linearly with the amount of compression. The material of coil springs could be steel or titanium and it should be chosen carefully since not every bike would be suitable for any coil spring.

You can find coil springs in most downhill mountain bikes or freeride mountain bikes because this suspension is more optimal during heavy riding. Coil spring is more resilient and heavier than an air spring. It would be great for the bike that aimed for steep terrains. It is also easier to maintain than an air spring, but the coil spring’s elasticity will change as time goes by. You have to choose the suitable one based on who will ride the bike. 

Advantage: 

• Better response 
• Easier to maintain
• Travel work linear in every pedaling 
• Great choice to conquer rougher track 
• More stable in long steep terrain
• Cheaper and would not be affected by the temperature

Disadvantage: 

• Heavier than air spring 
• Coil’s spring elasticity change as the time goes by
• You have to choose the suitable coil spring for each rider

Length of Travel on Mountain Bike

Mountain bike types are also divided based on the length of the suspension travel. Suspension travel refers to the distance a bike’s suspension system can compress and extend. The length of the suspension travel affects the height of the handlebar, comfort, stability, and speed. The longer the suspension travels, the more comfortable and stable it is in heavier off road terrain. The length of travel is what marks the different types of mountain bike such as enduro, xc, trail, etc.

The length of travel is related to the terrain that will be crossed. If the terrain is very steep, of course, it requires a longer suspension travel. Meanwhile, if the off-road terrain only has small stones and the rider aims to go to uphill terrain, of course, a short suspension is a great choice. Less travel would make your bike more efficient during climbing. Here are some detail of suspension fork sizes and which mountain bike that use the fork: 

1. Cross Country (XC) Mountain Bike usually have 80mm, 100mm, or 120mm travel.
2. Trail Mountain Bikes usually have travel between 120 mm and 160mm. 
3. Enduro Mountain Bikes often use 150mm, 160mm, or 170mm travel.
4. Downhill and Freeride Mountain bikes often use travel between 170mm and 200mm.

Conclusion 

From the explanation above, now you understand how important it is to consider the suspension too. You are free to choose which suspension that you use in your mountain bike. But we hope that you understand about the advantages and disadvantages from the suspension too. Before buying a mountain bike, it would be better if we also consider the details of the suspension in a mountain bike so that it would suit our needs. The right choice of suspensions and the mountain bike itself will help cyclists conquer the route and also perform well in off road terrain. Rodalink Malaysia has the best mountain bike lineup from trusted brands that are high quality. Not only mountain bikes, but Rodalink also has the best spare parts like suspensions, cycling apparel, and bike accessories that would make your cycling journey more fun. Rodalink Malaysia is the best kedai basikal that will have your back when it comes to cycling. Come and check Rodalink website or go to your nearest Rodalink Malaysia outlet and get good deals for your purchases that will not hurt your savings. Happy cycling!

FIND THE BEST MOUNTAIN BIKE HERE