Öhlins RXF38 or Fox Factory 38

[Zed. (Justin is short)]

My overall impressions having not ridden the Fox factory or Ohlins is that Fox is let's say more racing Jumping/downhill focused vs Ohlins more plush and planted in rough terrain?

I think you'll find that fox have spent a fair ammount on advertising and sponsorship

Öhlins all the way. One bit of advice that really makes them shine is to take them to J-Tech Suspension and have them tuned and set up for your riding weight, including your riding pack. Once they’re properly dialled in, the bike feels completely different and far better to ride.

+1

 

[irie]

Either one with Smashpot will blow everything out of the water.

We have Smashpots so unsurprisingly agree with you.

 

[irie]

Either one with Smashpot will blow everything out of the water.

Why not just get the Ohlins 38 with their coil version. Bonus points that you can adjust the fork length with just a tool and not a new spring. But yes, I’m going coil fork on my new Crestline!

With Smashpot a new spring is not required to change fork length.

 

[Ekim]

Hey all, Anyone had the luxury to ride Öhlins RXF38 M.3 and Fox Factory 38 on the Amflow?

Cost isn't the main concern for me rather the better setup without going too overboard like the podium (lots of discussion on that fork here anyway)

I would like to stick with one manufacturer for fork and shock so trying to make my mind up Fox or Ohlins. Any help would be appreciated. To add further to the indecision the new 2027 Fox 38 .

Coming from PL Carbon and don't really want to copy + past the PRO setup so leaning toward the Ohlins fork with a TTX1 anyway.

Thanks

I've been a fan of FOX suspension for many years. I have some off road toys too. Fox has been a leader for many years but have kind of hit a plateau the last 4-5 years. The Factory 38 is not a bad product but it's mostly run of the mill. I upgraded the damper and that helped quite a bit but I have to ask, why didn't Fox just make it this way to begin with? I have become disillusioned with a lot of Fox products. The competition is moving ahead of them rapidly. Rockshox isn't any better, in my opinion they are the worst forks out there. But I'm seeing new products coming along and what I have rode and put through the paces is quite literally head and shoulders above these guys. The Ohlin's has been a remarkable surprise. My next bike will have Ohlins!

 

[Dax]

The ohlins coil shocks are incredibly durable, the forks less so - soft anodising means the service interval needs to be a lot lower than RS or Fox. I’d also consider a cane creek shock as an alternative to an ohlins, they work very well, have better adjustments than Ohlins and seem durable.

 

[ArmyOfEvilRobots]

The ohlins coil shocks are incredibly durable, the forks less so - soft anodising means the service interval needs to be a lot lower than RS or Fox. I’d also consider a cane creek shock as an alternative to an ohlins, they work very well, have better adjustments than Ohlins and seem durable.

I'm curious to know if you've had issues with the anodizing, or if this is just something that's been reported? I have a 4 year old RXF36.m2, and ride all over BC (plenty of granite dust and rocks), and haven't had any issue, even though I've honestly been stretching the service interval quite badly at times. My stanchions still look as good as new, but I haven't dropped them on anything, so maybe that's the risk?
I will say that one of those Fox CSUs I wrecked got quite badly scratched when I leaned it up against some granite and the bike slid a bit against it. I was surprised how easy the Kashima was to damage. Never caused any issues, just fugly.