![]() ![]() Everyone kept arriving at the same times on timed stages with both offsets. On our test rides and timed runs, nobody has been able to identify the shorter fork in a blind test. I think that 42mm is not very short compared to 51mm (meaning it doesn't make a large difference –Ed.). Recently I've tested the offsets that are available for 29" wheels. How would you determine the best use of a shorter offset fork? What parameters are involved when you consider making a shorter offset benefit the handling of a bike? After all, MTB is a cool hobby and people are after the latest stuff that could make their ride more fun. I believe that people are going for shorter offsets because of well-targeted marketing, of course. I think that because this is a technical article, we can talk straight. Why do you think there's been a sudden increase in interest for shorter offset forks? But it appears that for each bike released with a shorter offset, there’s a different take on its implementation. To name a few, Ibis, Specialized, and Orbea have released 29-inch wheeled models with 44mm offsets (a regular 29-inch fork offset is 51mm) and Specialized’s 27.5 Stumpy EVO has a 37mm offset as does the Transition Patrol and Scout (a regular 27.5-inch fork has a 44–46mm offset, depending on the brand). Since Transition’s SBG was set loose, a number of brands have added a bike that includes a shorter offset. If you are looking for more detail, Uncle Dave wrote a good piece on offset and trail. To do this they're shortening the offset and making less drastic changes to other geometry elements. As you're about to read, some manufacturers are looking for that increased stability associated with a longer trail measurement, but without making their bikes much slacker. Shortening the offset increases the trail measurement, which is also what a slacker head angle does. The shorter offset also brings the hub toward the rider’s mass making it easier to weight the wheel and provide steering stability. When the head angle gets slacker, the trail is lengthened and wheel flop can make handling feel unstable, requiring more input from the rider. Shorter offset helps balance handling characteristics to enable the bike to be ridden comfortably and quiets steering, helping stabilize the front wheel. Bikes with a longer front-center and a slacker head angle push the front wheel further away from the mass of the rider.
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