New mtb forks?

[BIGMat]

Hi, newboy here.

I have recently been given a mountain bike, it is a silverfox bigfoot attitude. The reason i was given it was that it has been sat at the bottom of a garden for 3 years and has rusted somewhat.

The chain is a solid piece of rusty metal, the brakes were all seized (disks front and rear) the freewheel is ruined and the front cogs haven't faired much better.
But the worst part as far as i can tell is the forks. They are what i believe are downhill style forks, but are only sprung, no oil or air suspension here!! They sit on the bike in a triple set and the tubes are quite badly rusted, some of the chrome has come off and they do not move that well.

My question then, are these things worth saving? or is it just easier to replace them?

Leading to Q2. Can the downhill style forks be changed for the more common type of suspention forks with a single tube through the headstock?

Thanks for any help guys and girls.

[DaveM]

I think you could swap for normal forks. But I think the bigger question is whether to bother. Unless this is a much higher end model than I'm seeing, it looks like these go used for $50-$150. If so, probably not worth trying to bring this one back to life. You'll spend at least that much just to get it functional and it may still have bearing, shifter, etc, etc. damage. Sadly, it may best used to strip for parts. But of course, this all depends on what level of bike it is and what access you have to replacement parts, etc.

[nfmisso]

The reviews are pretty awful:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverfox-Attitude-Speed-Unisex-Mountain/dp/B000N6SR2O

and they appear to be not in much demand:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Silverfox-Attitude-Bigfoot-Bike-/221266272876?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item33847f626c

Unless there is something special for you in it; I recommend parting it out.

[BIGMat]

Thanks for the replies chaps.

Yeah, i get that its a cheap bike, but it was a freebee, and i don't have money to burn. My idea is to get this one ride worthy, then upgrade all the parts individually when i have the money.

I am planning on upgrading (better quality than stock) all the running gear, freewheel, front cogs, pedal arms, derailliers (F&R) axles and wheel bearings, also the pedal crank (all for around £100 ($155). Most of the list was knackered anyway, so a no-brainer. The frame is in good nick, and pretty light, as far as i'm concerned, I'm a big lump, so the weight was never going to be an issue.

If i get some decent forks in there it'll be a relatively decent bike for me. I haven't really ridden a pushbike for 15 years or so, so anything is better than nothing, and without having thousands to spend, its good enough for now

Is the stem size of 1 1/8 inches an industry standard now?

[DaveM]

I think our point is that you could buy a comparable, fully functioning bike for less than it will cost you to fix this one. If you can get all the drivetrain parts for $155 and then buy any decent suspension fork, I'd think you're going to be over $300. You say the brakes are seized, you may need new calipers, disks and pads too. But there are a lot of factors that could affect that so you'll need to decide.

I think 1 1/8 is fairly standard still. You should be able to find forks this size. Pay attention to whether you need threaded or threadless.

[BIGMat]

This project is now complete.

[nfmisso]

(09-10-2013, 08:56 AM)BIGMat Wrote:  .....
This project is now complete.

Mat; not quite - you have to post pictures here before you can declare it complete