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First Look! DVO Suspension’s New Inverted Fork!

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2013 DVO Emerald inverted suspension fork for mountain bikes

They’ve been teasing it ever since most of Marzocchi’s US team jumped ship, and now the DVO Emerald inverted suspension fork is finally shown.

There are several features that look to make it special, but the biggest visual standout is the one-piece carbon fiber lower leg shield. Dust covers and rock shields are nothing new on inverted forks. Cannondale’s Lefty and Manitou’s Dorado have used them all along. DVO’s is entirely different. It’s a patent pending design that resembles a standard fork’s lowers in that it’s one piece with a “Carbon Torsion Arch” that goes over the wheels. It uses a proprietary layup and “Hex Core Carbon”, which DVO’s John Pelino says increases torsional stiffness at the wheel by 50% over normal, unsupported lowers. For those unfamiliar with inverted forks, they generally rely heavily on the thru axle to keep the wheel tracking straight and prevent the legs from twisting, flexing or moving independently.

The arch is split in two, much like Magura’s forks, to provide better clearance at the crown. Really, though, that’s just the beginning…

2013 DVO Emerald inverted suspension fork for mountain bikes

The upper and lower crowns are forged CNC’d pieces that use a collet clamp rather than bolts. In the pic above, notice the gray rings at the top of each crown around the ano green legs. Looks to us like you’ll use a standard outboard BB tool to tighten them into place, and clamp options will be available for either 26″ wheels or 27.5″/650B wheels. The clamps will have slightly different offsets for the 650B wheels to keep trail the the same as with 26″ wheels.

The 43mm-41mm upper legs are hard anodized 7000-series alloy with a slight taper, and the stanchions are 36mm of the same material with a Molybdenum Disulfide smooth coating. Dropouts are forged magnesium with an oversized contact patch between them and the 20mm axle.

If all this sounds big, it’s because the fork is aimed at the downhill mountain bike segment and has 203mm travel in both wheel size configurations. Interestingly for a DH fork, it uses a tapered steerer, which should make it easier to use with adjustable angle headsets.

2013 DVO Emerald inverted suspension fork for mountain bikes 2013 DVO Emerald inverted suspension fork for mountain bikes

Inside, the fork uses a Twin Tube Open Bath Cartridge for hydraulic damping and an air spring. Externally, you have both high and low speed compression and rebound damping controls. On the compression side, the internals have “Advanced Dynamic Valving” coupled with valves and shims. The rebound also gets ADV plus piston shims. The entire damping assembly threads in through the bottom of the leg so it’s easily accessible and replaceable without any oil loss during removal.

On the other leg, it has the air valve and a coil negative spring with adjustable preload that allows fine tuning the balance between air positive and spring negative.

Target Weight is 2900 grams. Look for retail around $1,600 to $1,800 and available in May 2013. Word is a DH shock will follow, then something more in the all-mountain range. The DVO team is at Taichung Bike Week, so we’ll work on getting more tech details on the internals as they wrap up that show and head home…and there’s a pretty solid collection of general suspension tech on their website. We do know the fork is being made for them by Suntour, a partnership that let them bring the new design to market so quickly.

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22 Comments
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a
a
11 years ago

Hard to imagine how the carbon torsion arch would make a significant contribution to torsional stiffness…

Sevo
Sevo
11 years ago

No reason at all a carbon arch couldn’t make a world of difference.

Unless of course, your understanding of carbon fiber as well as bicycle engineering comes from eating pizza while posting to online forums when you should just go ride.

No reason this cant work.

alex
alex
11 years ago

Looks like some fresh ideas.

g
g
11 years ago

a, cut out the center rung in a 3 rung ladder and twist it…let us know the difference.

Steve M
Steve M
11 years ago

That green is so ugly……… I love it.

Spencer
Spencer
11 years ago

DVO is going to kill it!

Ricky Bob
Ricky Bob
11 years ago

This is awesome! I hope the “all mountain” version is a conventional design though. A lot of people don’t want a double crown.

satisFACTORYrider
satisFACTORYrider
11 years ago

definitely want to see what shocks and 160mm offerings they bring out.

pmurf
pmurf
11 years ago

I think it says a lot about Suntour that DVO trusted them with manufacturing.

G.Clinton
G.Clinton
11 years ago

speak for yourself rick bob. I love double crown trail/enduro forks. Front wheel tuck sucks.

Ricky Bob
Ricky Bob
11 years ago

I didn’t say everyone including G. Clinton hates dual crown forks. Also, what does front wheel tuck have to Di with the fork? Last I checked it had more to do with riding skill than equipment.

Devin
11 years ago

Collet crown clamps? Badass. Sooooooo much more secure than pinch bolts.

Despite not having been on a DH bike in years, I am so stoked on this company.

Mindless
Mindless
11 years ago

Easier to use with angleset with tapered? WTF are you talking about. It actually makes it harder, and I wonder what is the point of it with a dual crown.

Heck, I wish Fox kept the straight option on their 34mm forks.

Dr.Unk
11 years ago

Thank you, Sevo.

vectorbug
vectorbug
11 years ago

Would love to see a lightweight all-mountain or xc version to replace my Maverick Duc32.

a
a
11 years ago

It isnt the fact that the arch is carbon that makes me doubt it’s torsional stiffness, it is the fact that it is an open section rather than a closed tube, and that it is only joined to the rest of the fork right down by the dropout.. The dropouts are already linked by a nice short 20mm axle, does a big wabbley thing detouring all the way round the top of the wheel make more difference than just beefing up the axle would?

ccolagio
ccolagio
11 years ago

if you really want to read more about this fork and its arch design which DVO claims to increase torsional rigidity by a claimed 50% over the same Emerald fork without the arch in place…

then just read this article: http://www.pinkbike.com/news/dvo-emerald-first-look-2012.html

Matty D
Matty D
11 years ago

Maybe that arch doesn’t really do anything and is just there to get us talking about it…hey, whaddaya know, it worked!!

Johnner
Johnner
11 years ago

@ Sevo – best comment ever! ha ha!

call420
call420
11 years ago

ccolagio:
half of a sh!tload is still a lot. just sayin’.
maybe some numbers comparing a conventional fork stiffness to theirs would be more enlightening.

Nikoli
Nikoli
11 years ago

Ever notice that bridges have arches, some span large distances …I am sure they are not there for looks….The folks at DVO know their stuff…and do not strike me as a company into gimmics…they wouldnt be messing with this arch if it did not serve it’s intended purpose.

Kevin
Kevin
10 years ago

g – with a 3 ring ladder, guess where the center rung attaches? The center. That is why a conventional fork is stiff. But this CTA is attached not in the center, but at the DROPOUTS.
As a said, it is a very long arch and not a closed stiff member. I am sure a beefier axle, or larger 25 or 30mm axle (Foes/Curnutt F1) would be stiffer for less weight (the CTA is 300 grams, .66lbs, not really light).

Nikoli, look at how a bridge arch is used though, the center is used for support, there are no vertical sections and there are usually cables or supports along it. Extremely difference structure and this doesn’t make use of that strength. Take thin stick and hold your hands close together and bend it, it is stiff, not open your arms wide and bend, easy to bend. The CTA is very long and it isn’t a stiff shape to begin with.

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