What Full Suspension Mountain Bike Should I Choose

By U Learn It | January 15, 2010

A full suspension mountain bike is also known as adual suspension off-road bike because it is equipped with shock absorbers for both wheels. This is in contrast to the hardtail mountain bike that has a shock absorber only for the front wheel. Both sorts of mountain bikes have their own uses. The hardtail bike is easier to pedal and is faster than the full suspension bike on smooth terrain. However the second kind can run faster on rough terrain as the shock absorber allows more traction by soaking up the effects of stumbling blocks. Except for offering the rider a more comfy ride, the bike suspension also enhances potency and safety.

Kinds of bike Suspension

The suspension system can be implemented thru a suspension stem, suspension front fork, rear suspension, suspension seat post, or suspension heart. A combination of these methodologies might also be applied. It should be observed the suspension stem is not popular.

The front suspension is generally made possible by using two shock absorbers for the front fork. The shock absorber is sometimes made up of a spring and a damper. The spring can be a coil spring, compressed air, or elastomer. The damper is usually supplied by letting oil pass through shim stacks or small openings.

Sorts of Rear Suspension

Rear suspension is often regarded to mean full suspension because off-road bikes with single suspension frequently apply a front suspension technology. The types of rear suspension include the single pivot, soft tail, Horst link and four bar suspensions, unified rear triangle, Virtual Pivot Point, FSR system, DW-link, Equilink, Monolink, and split pivot.

The single pivot is the most straightforward kind and is also the cheapest. Numerous bike makers have implemented their own designs for rear suspension and each design has its own advantages and disadvantages. It is up to the purchaser to determine which of the features are most crucial to him.

Purchasing a Full Suspension Mountain Bike

When planning to purchase a full suspension trail bike it’s critical to ask if you’re truly serious about having the ability to ride across rough terrain. A good hardtail mountain bike will be faster than the least dear full suspension bike as the latter is usually heavier aside from being laden with the inherent drawbacks of a rear suspension.

The amount of suspension travel is also important when buying this type of mountain bike. For uphill or cross country racing, suspension travel should be less than 4.5 inches. These are lighter because the less suspension travel, the lighter the bike.

However for those that wish to do some jumping or free riding, the extra weight isn’t a primary concern. Therefore, this sort of mountain bike will sometimes need six to 8 inches of suspension travel. And in between these 2 is the trail bike, which needs up to 6.5 inches of suspension travel.

Top Selling Full Suspension Mountain Bikes