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Seven Introduces Max 45 Tapered Carbon Disc Fork for Maximum Tire Clearance

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max-45-tapered-fork

Known for their high end custom titanium frames, Seven also has their own line of components to help build out their bikes. Since more and more roadies are riding their road bikes off road as much as on, when it came to introducing a new carbon fork it had to be as versatile as possible. Calling it the best in class tapered disc fork on the market, the Max 45 blends massive tire and fender clearance with a lightweight form shadowing their 5E road fork. The only catch? For now, it’s quick release only…

Seven Cycles Max45 Disc Fork

When it came to designing the new fork, the Max 45 had to be torsionally stiff enough for the disc brakes, and it also had to include fender mounts with a ton of clearance for big tires. Specifically, clearance for the namesake 45 mm tires or 38 mm tires with full coverage fenders. Because most of the forks out there were repurposed CX forks, Seven decided it would be beneficial to design their own. Using a continuously molded carbon fiber construction, the fork includes an aluminum crown race seat on the tapered 1.5″ steerer for durability.

Available only with a 9mm QR dropout, the choice of axle standard should be well received by consumers who don’t want to replace their wheels, hubs, or end caps. Dual housing guides lead to the 160mm post mount tabs for the brake caliper which can handle 160-185mm rotors. Available in a 45 mm rake with a 395 mm axle to crown measurement, the Max 45 will retail for $545 and has a claimed weight of 484g with full 300mm steerer.

sevencycles.com

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22 Comments
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John
John
8 years ago

Just say no to QRs on disc forks/frames.

Let us know when a thru-axle version is available.

Micah
8 years ago

Almost identical to the Whisky No 7, but more expensive. Great!

Seraph
Seraph
8 years ago

That’s cool I guess. No 15QR though, seems kinda silly to offer all that tire clearance but none of the increased stiffness that is often required to make the best use of a fat tire like that.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
8 years ago

Micah, this seems to be made in-house at a pretty darn low volume. I bought a SEVEN about 8 years ago…well out of my budget but well worth it. I could have paid for a made in China Ti bike but there’s something about having something made by a real bike craftsman rather than something made by an overseas factory worker that may or may not even ride a bike

HailLemmy!
HailLemmy!
8 years ago

Veganpotter, that’s exactly where this fork is made. Asia. Just like the Seven road forks…

STS
STS
8 years ago

Thru axles on rigid forks is a work-around for people not knowing how to properly operate a quick release. I agree that for the majority of dummies riding a bike out there a thru-axle is the go-to-solution to increase their safety. But you won’t gain any stiffness when compared to a QR9-compatible fork, a proper hub and a real-world quick release like those from Shimano, Campagnolo et al.

craigsj
craigsj
8 years ago

Thru axles are a proper solution for those who desire a product to work better and who have no need for rapid wheel changes enabled by QR designs for the smallest segment of the riding population. Thru axles replace the long-standing embarrassment that is QR.

“Proper hubs and real-world quick releases”, on the other hand, are imaginary terms for solutions to problems that exist that argue against STS’s pro-QR narrative.

Andrew
Andrew
8 years ago

The fender thing is pretty great. I always wondered why Enve didn’t put fender mounts on their similar fork. If you’re going to have a bike that can do everything, why not have it do everything?

Jasen
Jasen
8 years ago

A mountain bike with disc brakes and QR => no problem
A road bike with disc brakes and QR => very dangerous
I just don’t get it. Learn how to use QR’s properly people!

Micah
8 years ago

@Veganpotter – Ah, I didn’t realize they were actually making it themselves.

@STS and others about QR / thru axles: The biggest benefit is for brake disc brake alignment.

CDG
CDG
8 years ago

Agree with STS. My MTB has disc brakes and QR’s, as does my CX A bike, and I don’t have an issue. I get the benefit of proper rotor alignment, but the solution shouldn’t be to dumb-down the fork, vs. learning how to install your wheel properly.

STS
STS
8 years ago

@Micah Do you actually own two comparable setups, one with a QR-hub and drop out and the other with a thru-axle? I do and I can tell you that there is no difference with regards to the alignment. It’s a non-issue. BUT IF the faces of your axle end caps are not perpendicular to the axle – and that’s a problem with a lot of hub with threaded axles – then of course the position of the rotor relative to the caliper might differ more or less after each wheel change. But that is not a problem of the QR drop out design by itself but rather a case of inadequate manufacturing.

Roy
Roy
8 years ago

I have 2 almost identical gravel bikes with discs, one with QR, one with TA. My wheels have not fallen off as millions of mtbs with QRs have proven. But, I absolutely notice more rotor sing when cornering on pavement and no noise on the TA version. I think the reason QR was a non issue with mtb is that even on pavement, there was too much noise from tires to hear the slight mis-alignment of the brake system when laying it over in a turn or pedaling like a spaz. As for safe QR operation, those that can do those that can’t will never. It’s over for the QR, Tulio had massive impact on the industry that is far longer running than just about every other feature of a bike, but that too must pass.

Dan
Dan
8 years ago

Rise of the QR! Q-R! Q-R! Q-R!

I love my QRs; never let me down….

Serge
Serge
8 years ago

QRrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!
QRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Dave
Dave
8 years ago

My feeling is, options are always nice. Give us choices so we can choose for ourselves what works best for our given situation. Those that want TA can buy TA, those that want QR can go QR, and no need to waste energy trying to proclaim their choice as superior. Everyone’s needs are different. What is annoying is when manufacturers take away our choices, especially when it’s due to marketing pressure, not that this is the case here.

CXisfun
CXisfun
8 years ago

I’m fine with QR, but Seven, if you’re listening, hire a better product photographer. I’m happy to help.

Charlie Parkour
Charlie Parkour
8 years ago

I came here for the qr/ta debate, and I was not disappointed. Good looking fork, and designed to be useful. Good work.

Dominic
Dominic
8 years ago

Well, to pile on the griping, in semi defense of Seven; in all fairness 15mm TA is just weird. 20mm has existed since like the turn of the century and can actually measurably contribute to the stiffness of the fork, whereas 15 is just like some XC guys, probably 29er-riding XC guys trying a proper 20mm hub equipped fork and going “This is way stiffer than my QR 29er fork but too big to seem light”.

Matthew
Matthew
8 years ago

As a randonneur and touring cyclist who uses dynamo generator hubs for lighting… I’m kinda glad that this fork exists. I need the clearance for a big tire with fenders on the randonneuring bike (700x35c right now), and considering most of the quality hubs are still QR9 right now, a thru-axle fork is a non-starter.

Tim
Tim
8 years ago

@craigsj- you use some strong narrative against QRs but never say in your post one bad thing about them (you even actually admit their biggest plus, rapid wheel changes). So- what is so bad about QR’s that they’re actually an embarrassment?

Hampco
8 years ago

Just curious: how is this different from a cyclo-cross fork?

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