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Whisky No. 7 RD+ fork provides option for straight steerer, rim brake, 650b Road Plus

Written by Zach Overholt
30 Comments
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Whisky’s new fork was the focal point of the newest All-City Mr. Pink, but it’s also available as a stand alone fork. Why does that matter? Well, in terms of what the No.7 RD+ offers, there isn’t a lot out there that fits the bill. Between the massive tire clearance and the complete lack of disc brake mounts, this fork is in stark contrast to the current trends. Which means it might just be the perfect fork for builders out there who just haven’t been able to find what they were looking for…

Photos from the Whisky Parts Co facebook page

On the All-City Mr. Pink, the No.7 RD+ fork is used to clear 700 x 28c tires, but it can fit up to 35mm casings (Mr. Pink has a tire limit of 32mm, likely due to the clearance at the chainstays, not the fork). Of course, it is rim brake only – designed around a 47-57mm mid-reach brake caliper.

What makes it really interesting, is that it will also fit 650b wheels with up to a 47mm tire like the WTB Horizon.Whisky Parts Co. points out that the Tektro R559 brake works very well since it has the reach, and it has the width to clear the tire.

Offered with a straight 1 1/8″ carbon steerer tube, the fork uses a standard 100mm QR dropout with hidden fender mounts. Axle to crown measures 373mm with a 45mm rake, and weight is claimed to be 385g with an uncut steerer. The forks are in stock now at QBP and available through your local Q dealer for $399.

whiskyparts.co
Zach Overholt
5,768 articles

Zach Overholt is the Editor in Chief of Bikerumor. He has been writing about what’s new in the bicycle world for 12+ years. Prior to that, Zach spent many years in the back of a bicycle shop building and repairing nearly every type of bike, while figuring out how to (occasionally) ride them.

Based in Ohio, Zach is now slowly introducing a new generation to cycling and still trying to figure out how to fit the most rides into a busy schedule as a new dad.

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30 Comments
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Curtis
Curtis
8 years ago

HOw many 650b rim brake RIMS are available to the market?

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OGMarkV
OGMarkV
8 years ago
Reply to  Curtis

Hed Belgium Plus, Velocity A23, Velocity Atlas, plus some others. But not a lot.

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thesteve4761
thesteve4761
8 years ago
Reply to  OGMarkV

Most of which are too narrow for a nearly 2″ tire….

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Peter Chesworth
Peter Chesworth
8 years ago
Reply to  thesteve4761

A23s carrying Compass BSP 42mm … not a problem.

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Dinger
Dinger
8 years ago
Reply to  thesteve4761

Narrower than ideal, but it wasn’t all that long ago that we ran 2.2’s on MTB’s with rims that had 13-14mm bead-to-bead widths.

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Katherine
Katherine
8 years ago
Reply to  Curtis

I got some fairly wide ones from Velo Orange. More for touring and not lightweight, but at least they’re an option for rim brakes.

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Handy velove
Handy velove
8 years ago

Too bad it doesn’t come with enough rake for small bikes

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Dolan Halbrook
Dolan Halbrook
8 years ago

Weird… I think tapered steerers are pretty uncontroversially better. The only real reasons I could think to go with a straight one these days are either you’re trying to fit older frames, or aesthetics.

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Fork Dork
Fork Dork
8 years ago
Reply to  Dolan Halbrook

Tapered on a steel frame requires a bigger, heavier headtube for basically no advantages. Industry acceptance of tapered has to more with manufacturing and safety testing than real world advantages.

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JasonK
JasonK
8 years ago
Reply to  Fork Dork

Tapered steerers are absolutely controversial for people shopping for a new fork for their frame with a 1-1/8″ non-tapered head tube.

Remember, this is an aftermarket fork. Think about how many bikes are out there now that can only = take 1-1/8″ straight-steerer forks. The size of the market is absolutely a consideration when trying to justify the cost of a new mold.

Carbon forks are easier to manufacture with the large crowns that tapered steerers facilitate and they more easily pass Euro safety tests with large crowns, just as Fork Dork asserted. Consumers love to shout, “Dude, stiffness!” but the engineering side of things is more complicated.

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1Pro
1Pro
8 years ago
Reply to  JasonK

agreed. and looking at this crown and overall weight, i’m almost suspect.

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jimmu
jimmu
8 years ago
Reply to  JasonK

How many bikes come with a 383 axle to crown though?

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blah blah blah
blah blah blah
8 years ago
Reply to  Fork Dork

so safety not a real world advantage, i kinda like the idea off a fork that wont fail

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Dinger
Dinger
8 years ago
Reply to  blah blah blah

If you can accept a certain reasonable weight, there is no safety issue. Re-read Jason K’s post for more insight..

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jimmu
jimmu
8 years ago
Reply to  Dolan Halbrook

You forgot keeping production costs low. This fork was designed around the cost of an All-City, I guarantee it.

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Marin
Marin
8 years ago

Is there a tapered version? Could use one for my Heretic 🙂

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anonymous
anonymous
8 years ago
Reply to  Marin

You could always put an oversize crown race if you don’t mind the transition, they make them to fit old MTB forks to new frames.

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Heffe
Heffe
8 years ago

Novelty item

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lop
lop
8 years ago

FYI according to Whisky’s comments on IG, a tapered version is coming.

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Jason
Jason
8 years ago

I like it, and have been waiting for this. I agree that there isn’t a huge market for this fork but there are several bikes that would work well with this fork…

All City Mr. PInk, Cielo Sportif, Rivendell Roadeo (dont tell GP), Comotion Nor’Wester, Soma ES, Black Mountain Cycle, New Albion Homebrew, Breadwinner Continental, Gunnar Sport, Hampsten Strada Bianca, Signal Saltzman.

That’s 11 right there with many more. From high-end to more budget oriented frames. I hope to see custom builders using it at NAHBS.

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lop
lop
8 years ago
Reply to  Jason

Unfortunately, the Roadeo is 1″ threadless, so this fork won’t work.

I mean, did you really expect for GP to come out with 1 1/8″ headtube…?

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Jason
Jason
8 years ago
Reply to  lop

Ha ok your are correct, I got one wrong. Good point on the 1 1/8″ headtube GP would never approve.

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trevor
trevor
8 years ago
Reply to  Jason

The old caliper brake Salsa Casserolls as well (their geo chart shows 383 and 45 rake). Its a hair taller than the fork that comes on the Surly Pacer (376 v. 383).

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Alex
Alex
8 years ago
Reply to  Jason

Don’t forget Surly Pacer, I’m sure there are a few of those out in the wild. I’ve got a Black Mountain Cycles Road frame and I’m pretty stoked on this fork.

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Woody
Woody
8 years ago

Should’ve been a 50mm offset at least given effective tire OD + fender and resultant toe-overlap on small/med frames.

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Jason P
Jason P
8 years ago

Why in the world is it rim brake only?!

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lop
lop
8 years ago
Reply to  Jason P

Because there are like a hundred disc forks that already work this way?

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Evan Bacon
Evan Bacon
8 years ago

The Velocity Cliffhanger is the rim you want for this.

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satanas
satanas
8 years ago

Unless some of the pics are suffering from serious wide angle distortion this is the first fork I’ve ever seen that has straight blades when viewed from the side, but curved blades when viewed from the front. Why?

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The Truth
The Truth
8 years ago

Why not? Rim brakes offer builders a fork that can offer flexible fork blades for a better ride. When you have blades that have a disc mount they need to be rather stout. Yes carbon offers great vibration dampening but actual flexing of fork blade to really suck up irregularities. Everyone wants the latest and greatest to keep up with the Joneses…carbon, disc, tapered steer, thru axle, etc.

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