Tuesday 15 December 2015

From the archive: 1998 Marzocchi Mr T

MR T
No, not that one!
The Mr T was Marzocchi's first full production dual crown fork for a mountain bike. The Mr T was in effect a stop gap model that basically used a Z1 fork with stanchion extensions on the top to create the dual crown look, while the works riders got the hand made Super T.

The Mr T also used a new forging for the lower leg that utilised a 20mm through axle design and an I.S. disc brake mount that were both excepted standards for years. The lower legs were also used in the Z1 Duel model.

The lower crown was the same as a Z2 with the lips machined of and was placed over the stanchion join, with the crown fitted with the join at the top. The upper crown was an all-new CNC design that lived on for years on both the Super T and Jnr T models. The upper extensions had cut marks on the outer stanchion and also the inner rods so that the fork could be trimmed down to suit frames with smaller head tubes.

To service the fork was easy, the upper stanchion piece would just unscrew leaving in effect a Z1, with the only difference being 8mm allen key foot nuts opposed to the 15mm foot nuts of the Z1.

Catalogue spec:
Travel: 105mm + 5mm negative travel design.
Spring Type: Cr-Si coil spring in each leg. 3 different rates available.
Damping: Dual hydraulic Bomber cartridges with adjustable rebound.
Crowns: Forged alloy lower, CNC alloy upper.
Adjustments: 15mm preload, infinite rebound.
Stanchions: 30mm Easton alloy with butter smooth finish. Two piece design.
Steerer tube: Easton alloy.
Sliders: Aluminium gravity die cast. Special drop outs for through axle.
Disc brake mount: New 98 standard mount.
Brake Arch: Alloy, forged, CNC machined with optional cable hanger

Mr T
Lower legs
MR T!
pre-load and rebound adjuster
on the work bench, with a stanchion separated
On the cover of DIRT with Tim Ponting
Tim Ponting
exploded diagram MR T 1998
brochure page

Thursday 3 December 2015

from the archives: The Marzocchi DH3

The 1995 Marzocchi DH3 was a 3" travel air sprung and oil damped down hill monster in a world full of rubber sprung and rubber damped suspension forks.


In a pre-Z1 world the DH3 was the most aggressive fork Marzocchi produced and was raced around the world by racers such as Rob Warner.


By today's standards, it very heavy and with just 26mm stanchions it is very spindly, but the ride quality is still very good, especially with the coil spring upgrade fitted.

Some DH3's had a compression knock, this was due to the build up of internal pressure when the fork initially moves. The simple solution was to drill a relief hole on the side of the damper rod about 7mm under the head.

We made a service guide which you can follow here, however the 26mm genuine forks are no longer available.

This is what Marzocchi said about it at the time:

DH3

The DH3 fork is designed specifically for downhill biking. The forged, reinforced crown, the forged T6 stanchions and the extremely rigid brake arch, combined with extended travel and controlled damping, absorb every type of shock without undermining stability.

The oversized tubes make the DH3 one of the most rigid forks on the market. As on the other models, the practical 6-position adjuster knob means the MTB can be adapted to any kind of terrain.

The DH3 was developed with disc brakes in mind, and consequently various adaptors are available

brochure page

exploded diagram

brodhure
.



Tuesday 24 November 2015

Press Release: The Transition Bikes Southern Enduro Series.

We are pleased to announce that Transition Bikes via its UK distributor Windwave have come on board as the title sponsor for the new 2016 Southern Enduro series. The Transition Bikes Southern Enduro series is a new for 2016 event organised by the same team that run the successful QECP Enduro events. 

Transition Bikes brand manager Dan Jones said, “This series represents a major step forward for the Enduro scene on the south coast where our company is based, so when we got the opportunity to get involved we jumped at the chance.”

The Transition Bikes Southern Enduro series will be run over 4 rounds:
Rd1 17th April: Milland, West Sussex
Rd2 12th June: Venue TBA
Rd3 24th July: QECP, Hampshire
Rd4 18th Sept: Venue TBA

Each event will be a one-day race with practice in the morning and racing in the afternoon. The stages will be “predominately downhill with a mix of technical singletrack and fast flowy trails.
Entries will go live on 19th December where you can buy an entry for all rounds in one go for £160. There are 100 of those available. You can enter the individual races two months before each event at £42.50 each.
Links:
Transition Bikes UK
Facebook: www.facebook.com/transitionbikesuk
Twitter: www.twitter.com/transitionUK


Wednesday 21 October 2015

Marzocchi Lives picture gallery

So many great memory's and products, here is a photo gallery to celebrate Marzocchi Lives in no particular order.

888's with ti Nitrate coated stanchions at Eurobike
George Gannicott at Fort William 2015
Bomber girls at the press launch 2005 Austria
samples and prototypes in the office in Bologna
Roco shock on the dyno
Roco Air cross section
Old meets new at the Fort William expo
Marzocchi trade display at the Core bike show
press launch 2007 Cortina
Mountain Mayhem
there are mechanics and then there is Pedro!
Marzocchi HQ Bologna
55 purple edition
RAC brochure page
Race tape at the QECP Enduro 2013
Marzocchi pit bike
Out side expo in a sunny Afan
Chris Smith
Star Fork brochure
Riding in the Aples
testing
Marzocchi race support
The RC3 platform was pretty good!
Z1

Tuesday 29 September 2015

Cycle Show 2015 gallery

Cycle Show 2015 gallery
BBB Cycling booth
New product displays
New fenders
smart phone cases
Colnago booth
CLX
C60
V1-R
Arabesque with Campy 50th group
Roy Hunt's race bike
Abbie Dentus race bike
C60 Ltd Ed
CX Zero
C40 Mapei
V1-R Ltd Ed
FSA and Vision
Chris Smith with Seb and Amy
staff training
Transition Bikes
Patrol Carbon
Rapture Freedom Ltd Ed
Smuggler and Scout (behind)
Scout
Vision Aero stem
say cheese!