Scooter fork

Scooter Forks/Introduction

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In this section, we will look at the anatomy of the fork. It mainly consists of a vertical tube – the steerer tube, two ‘forks’ that surround the wheel, and a small container for the headset – the crown. In the following, we will go through the various parts of the fork.

The steerer tube is the vertical part of the fork. The top part of the steerer tube is the part that is connected to the bar. Most forks have a diameter of 28 mm.

The fork crown is placed at the bottom of the steerer tube and holds the ‘crown race’ which is the most important part at the bottom of the headset.

The two forks that keep the wheel in place have different terms. Please see the picture to understand this. A fork with zero offset means that the wheel is placed directly under the bar. That means that is it easier to make bar spins and nose manuals. However, this does not appear on vary many forks as the offset causes the scooter to be more rigid in terms of direction like a shopping cart.

Scooter Forks/Threadless vs. Threaded

See the selection of scooters


Threadless:
Threadless forks are the most commonly used among pro riders. The steerer tube has a smooth structure and requires a threadless headset and compression system. This constellation makes for a sturdy scooter.

Threaded:
Threaded forks are used on inexpensive scooters. These forks are not used by pro riders as a threaded fork requires a threaded headset which is not as strong as a threadless headset. Also, it is almost impossible to maintain this type of compression as well as the selection of threaded forks is poor at best. It mostly appeals to beginners.

Scooter Forks/Compression bolt types

Threadless forks are a misinterpretation of forks in general. They are only called threadless because they do not have an external thread. All forks, except for the ICS system (and forks with non-integrated star nut), have an internal thread. Of course, this is so the compression system can function.

There are many types of compression bolts – long, short, and with caps. The short bolts are used for all types of compressions systems while the long bolts are only used for ICS, which at times are completely without thread (threadless).

Scooter Forks/Fork Crown types

Fork crowns are placed at the bottom of the fork’s steerer tube and is also where you find the crown race of the headset. Typically, the crown race needs to be pressed onto the fork crown which requires a special tool in order to do it properly.

If you want to remove the crown race, it might be very difficult.

To avoid the headset crown race, some forks have integrated fork crowns. This makes the mounting of the fork easier. The argument against this is that these forks are only good for integrated threadless headsets.

Scooter Forks/Steerer Tube length

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Forks have different steerer tube lengths so they can fit different headtubes. Headtubes on decks have different lengths. This includes when the headset is installed. Therefore, the length of the steerer tube depends on the compression system, deck, and headset.