RockShox Recon and Revelation forks were introduced after the Pike and Reba, sharing their simple but rock solid performance in a new mid-travel skeleton. The Recon is certainly rock solid in the weight department, with a steel steerer tube and coil spring pushing weight over 2kg. Having said that, the chunky lower legs do help to give it dependable steering authority on off-camber and rutted sections, though.
Suspension quality is good too, and once it's taken a few rides to bed in, you'd be hard pressed to tell it apart from some of the more expensive forks out there. The Motion Control damping is simple, but rarely gets outwitted - except on extra demanding trails. It's externally adjustable for compression and rebound too, so balancing feel is easy. Being able to wind travel from 85-130mm without compromising smoothness makes it highly versatile in terms of terrain or handling tastes, too.
Since their introduction, RockShox forks have earned themselves a superb reputation for reliability, even in the worst conditions and shabbiest servicing regimes. They've even nicked some of our long term testers in the Peak District to test new seals and other running changes in the most evil conditions possible.
Fixed 100mm, 130mm travel air and simpler damped versions are also available.
