Chances are, if you’ve ridden a DH bike, you’ve ridden a Boxxer. Around for almost two decades now, the Boxxer has a serious legacy both on the track and off. The newest version of the Boxxer continues that tradition of extremely capable forks with not only new internals, but a new size option as well. The introduction of a Boxxer in 27.5″ speaks a lot to the future of big(ger) wheeled downhill bikes, with the larger chassis available as an option on all models. Is 27.5″ the future of downhill racing? Either way, the new generation of the Boxxer will be ready.
Details on the new Boxxer blow by blow, next…
While the outside of the Boxxer chassis remains mostly the same, it’s what’s on the inside that counts right? That means the fork retains the 35mm aluminum stanchions with new Fast Black coating on all models. The axle remains the bolt on Maxxle, one of the easiest bolt on designs to use. As mentioned, all models will be available in 26 or 27.5″ versions, but they are not the same fork.
Initially developed for the Pike, one of the biggest upgrades to the new Boxxer is the inclusion of the impressive Charger damper on the World Cup and Team model. Due to the size of a DH damper cartridge, the addition of Charger dropped almost 100g from the fork and the rubber bladder’s sealed design adds damping consistency with less vibration.
“The biggest improvement for me was decreased fatigue in my hands and arms. I attribute the Charger Damper™ to being able to ride the most DH laps I ever have this summer… I did 250 laps in the Whistler Bike Park without pulling it apart at all and only did so then to see what it looked like on the inside.”
-Adam Billinghurst
That of course comes from Adam after his 1 Million Down video where he rode the same Boxxer with a Charger Damper down 1 million vertical feet in the Whistler Bike Park in 57 days without having to touch his fork. Pretty impressive.
In addition to the damping system, the springs (both air and coil) get updates as well. The WC air spring will have a revised spring curve and will gain the ability to run the Rock Shox bottomless Tokens for increased adjustability. Coil forks gain a new factory set bottom out progression.
The forks are equipped with a simple compression adjuster and a beginning stroke rebound adjuster, factory set with Rapid Recovery Tune. Rapid Recovery helps to maintain ride height even after repeated hits for better contact with the ground, and less energy transfer to the rider. Advanced users can apply further adjustments by re-tuning the internal shim stacks to adjust both compression and rebound settings.
New Boxxers will be available this August, and will retail from $865 to $1,735.
Already have a Boxxer but looking for the performance of the Charger damper or Solo Air spring? Why not upgrade? In the case of the Charger damper, you can outfit any Boxxer Race, Team, RC, R2C2, and World cup fork from 2010-2014 – basically any fork with a 35mm stanchion. The entire damping cartridge will set you back $379, but it’s way cheaper than a new fork. You can also upgrade your 2011-2014 Boxxer WC to the newest air spring and take advantage of the Bottomless Tokens for $188.
If the Boxxer RC is still too pricey for you, check out the new Domain Dual Crown. Built with burly 35mm steel stanchions, the 200mm travel fork with a coil spring can take the punishment. Offered in 26 or 27.5″platforms, the Domain will fit a variety of bikes and save you some coin for after ride beers. Available this June, expect to pay around $733 for a Domain.
Finally, RockShox is updating the Monarch RT3 and Monarch Plus RC3 with a new air spring technology they’re calling DebonAir. While it may sound like an April Fools gag, the technology offers a more linear spring curve to make the first 1/3rd of travel extremely plush and prevent any sort of chop on the initial hit. That means better traction since the wheel tracks the ground rather than bouncing and a better ride.
DebonAir will be available on new shocks – Monarch RT3 DebonAir: $365-390, and Monarch Plus RC3 DebonAir: $499, but it will also be available as an upgrade for any model year 14 Monarch/Monarch Plus, and Model year 13 Monarch RT3. The upgrade kit will run $115.50, and will be available in May.
