After teasing it when they showed us their gravel road bike suspension fork in December, the Lauf Carbonara fat bike fork has finally made it out on the snow.
According to company founder Benedikt Skúlason, it’s their most laterally stiff fork ever:
“I was skeptical on how lateral stiff (i.e. soft) it would be (since the fat tires are able to take up huge lateral forces) and also, I was very skeptical on that it might become bouncy, being coupled to the soft fatty tire. These concerns were both put to sleep immediately! It is by far our laterally stiffest creation, yet. The increased spacing between springs, increased hub-width and redesigned stiffer chassis make a HUGE difference. As for any unwanted bounciness, it just plainly wasn’t there. I can tell you that it’s awesome to ride! We are super excited here!”
The basic specs are 150mm axle and clearance for “at least” 4.8″ tires. Weight should be between 1050g and 1120g depending on steerer tube length, including their thru axle. Travel is 60mm, same as their XC TR29 forks, and will be unaffected by temperatures…something that should make many northern fat bike riders happy. The one shown above is a near-final prototype, production models should be very similar. Look for it to start shipping by June 2015.
