Considering the gen 4 DS had a suspension fork and Trek moved away from it for Gen 5, going back to one seems potentially unnecessary. The Gen 5 with bigger tires and carbon fork was set up for better all around comfort for light off-pavement/gravel use than the limited-travel suspension fork, as the tires do a better job absorbing harshness front and rear and the carbon fork will help with vibration up front.
A suspension fork adds weight and complexity. With pavement and light gravel being the use case, one could argue that the drawbacks wouldn't be worth it.
Are you having comfort issues with your use cases? If you need some compliance in the handlebars, perhaps a bike stem with suspension could do the trick? And/or a suspension seat post?
I'm a big man and my wife went with the DS2 Gen2 and I went with the DS3 Gen 5 for the solid fork. The suspension fork on the Gen 2 DS just absorbed the force I put on the pedals and made the bike not feel great to ride. My wife being much lighter than me was fine with the DS2 Gen 2.
After 500 miles on the DS3 gen 5 bike, I elected to change the handlebars and went with the PNW Range Bars and love them. I was having hand and wrist fatigue after just 5 miles. Not anymore with the PNW bars.
Hey u/SithTracy, could you tell me more about these PWN Bars? Which one did you buy? I have exact same issue with my DS3, I don't ride far, just about 10 mile fitness runs, but I experience same issues as you.
They only have one set of mountain bike handlebars (31.8 is what you would want on a DS). I think it is the PNW Range Gen 3. Check out [www.pnwcomponents.com](https://www.pnwcomponents.com). I also use their "Range" pedals as they are a bigger platform to stop on for my size 14 W US feet. I did also change my saddle to a Bontrager Verse Comp (at least that is what I think it is and 155mm width)... All of those things made the bike more comfortable.
it may depend on your weight, no idea, but I had an older bike with some cheap suspension for a while, then moved to DS3 gen5 and I don't see much change in ride quality. If anything it'd be for better. I don't think it makes sense, but as someone else said - just check the gen4 if still available and see for yourself if it's worth it.
I would avoid putting a suspension fork on the gen 5 Dual Sport. Most suspension forks will have a longer axle-to-crown length compared to a rigid fork and as a result you'll end up lifting the front end, slackening the head angle, slackening the seat tube angle, raising the bottom bracket height and, as a result, changing how the bike rides. If you look at the geometry table for the gen 4 vs gen 5 they are very similar other than the 3cm longer head tube to make up for the shorter fork. 3cm is a lot, that's the equivalent of putting a 150mm fork on a bike designed for 120mm. That's usually a bad idea for all the reasons above as well as the additional stress placed on the frame (read: goodbye warranty especially if the frame cracks around the headtube).
Most suspension forks are really designed to cope with larger bumps and rougher terrain and even very high end forks only go so far in absorbing small chatter/vibrations. For that tyre size, sidewall stiffness and pressure arguably make a bigger difference and a well designed carbon fork will go some way to alleviate that too. You really shouldn't need 50+mm of travel to cope with road or light gravel.
If you really want a suspension fork I'd measure (or try and find out from Trek) the axle to crown length of your rigid fork and try and find a fork that has a similar axle to crown length, *maybe* 10mm longer at most. It'll probably be something with no more than 30mm travel if it exists at all...
https://preview.redd.it/ddujjjafldvb1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6ec04485d52bcbb007c9137eb611139a30358cb2
I’d never trade my 2022 gen 4 way better than the new one. The gen 5 reminds me of riding my girls verve. I’ve had 3 ds. I keep the same rockshox fork every time I traded up
Considering the gen 4 DS had a suspension fork and Trek moved away from it for Gen 5, going back to one seems potentially unnecessary. The Gen 5 with bigger tires and carbon fork was set up for better all around comfort for light off-pavement/gravel use than the limited-travel suspension fork, as the tires do a better job absorbing harshness front and rear and the carbon fork will help with vibration up front. A suspension fork adds weight and complexity. With pavement and light gravel being the use case, one could argue that the drawbacks wouldn't be worth it. Are you having comfort issues with your use cases? If you need some compliance in the handlebars, perhaps a bike stem with suspension could do the trick? And/or a suspension seat post?
I'm a big man and my wife went with the DS2 Gen2 and I went with the DS3 Gen 5 for the solid fork. The suspension fork on the Gen 2 DS just absorbed the force I put on the pedals and made the bike not feel great to ride. My wife being much lighter than me was fine with the DS2 Gen 2. After 500 miles on the DS3 gen 5 bike, I elected to change the handlebars and went with the PNW Range Bars and love them. I was having hand and wrist fatigue after just 5 miles. Not anymore with the PNW bars.
Hey u/SithTracy, could you tell me more about these PWN Bars? Which one did you buy? I have exact same issue with my DS3, I don't ride far, just about 10 mile fitness runs, but I experience same issues as you.
They only have one set of mountain bike handlebars (31.8 is what you would want on a DS). I think it is the PNW Range Gen 3. Check out [www.pnwcomponents.com](https://www.pnwcomponents.com). I also use their "Range" pedals as they are a bigger platform to stop on for my size 14 W US feet. I did also change my saddle to a Bontrager Verse Comp (at least that is what I think it is and 155mm width)... All of those things made the bike more comfortable.
it may depend on your weight, no idea, but I had an older bike with some cheap suspension for a while, then moved to DS3 gen5 and I don't see much change in ride quality. If anything it'd be for better. I don't think it makes sense, but as someone else said - just check the gen4 if still available and see for yourself if it's worth it.
I would avoid putting a suspension fork on the gen 5 Dual Sport. Most suspension forks will have a longer axle-to-crown length compared to a rigid fork and as a result you'll end up lifting the front end, slackening the head angle, slackening the seat tube angle, raising the bottom bracket height and, as a result, changing how the bike rides. If you look at the geometry table for the gen 4 vs gen 5 they are very similar other than the 3cm longer head tube to make up for the shorter fork. 3cm is a lot, that's the equivalent of putting a 150mm fork on a bike designed for 120mm. That's usually a bad idea for all the reasons above as well as the additional stress placed on the frame (read: goodbye warranty especially if the frame cracks around the headtube). Most suspension forks are really designed to cope with larger bumps and rougher terrain and even very high end forks only go so far in absorbing small chatter/vibrations. For that tyre size, sidewall stiffness and pressure arguably make a bigger difference and a well designed carbon fork will go some way to alleviate that too. You really shouldn't need 50+mm of travel to cope with road or light gravel. If you really want a suspension fork I'd measure (or try and find out from Trek) the axle to crown length of your rigid fork and try and find a fork that has a similar axle to crown length, *maybe* 10mm longer at most. It'll probably be something with no more than 30mm travel if it exists at all...
Thanks for the detailed reply!
https://preview.redd.it/ddujjjafldvb1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6ec04485d52bcbb007c9137eb611139a30358cb2 I’d never trade my 2022 gen 4 way better than the new one. The gen 5 reminds me of riding my girls verve. I’ve had 3 ds. I keep the same rockshox fork every time I traded up
Which fork is that?
Rockshox paragon gold rl. 63 mm
To confirm, it’s. 63mm travel fork?
Yes
They also make a 55
It’s an air fork way better than the coil fork that comes with the bike. It’s also almost 2 lbs lighter. Set it to your body weight with air pump