WP (WP Performance Systems) is KTM Motorrad's own suspension brand and is now looking to apply its expertise to the mountain bike sector in a similar way to Öhlins. Although KTM Motorrad and KTM Fahrrad are two different companies with different owners, the Austrians are now launching a mountain bike fork on the market for the first time in collaboration with Magura. The damping cartridge of the Boltron upside-down fork has its roots in the children's motocross sector. There, the system weights (bike/motocross+rider) are similar to those used by adult mountain bikers on their bikes.
Facts about the WP/Magura Boltron
The Boltron comes with suspension travel between 120 and 160 millimetres and a 110x20 millimetre thru axle. A fork for 27.5-inch tyres was on display at the Eurobike Media Days. We were not told whether the Boltron will also be available for 29er and 27.5 plus tyres. At just over two kilos, the fork won't be a lightweight, but it should be extremely stiff thanks to the large overlap between the stanchions and lower tubes. As usual, the spring stiffness can be adjusted via the pressure in the air chamber and the rebound via a separate rotary knob. There are no additional compression or progression adjustment options on the Boltron fork shown. You can find the driving report at the end of this article.
DRIVING REPORT:
It's a little bang for the buck! Together with WP Suspension (KTM's own brand for motorbike suspension), Magura has developed a new upside-down fork. The Boltron offers a choice of 120 or 150 millimetres of travel and can accommodate 27.5, 27.5+ or 29er wheels. The fork was developed to meet the requirements of e-mountainbikes. Ultimately, however, the Boltron can also be fitted to bikes without a motor. The front wheel of our test model (27.5x2.8 Nobby Nic tyres) is clamped between the downtubes by a 110x20 mm thru-axle. On the Fleckalm trail in Kirchberg with 1000 metres of elevation gain, there was nothing to complain about the response of the 150 millimetre version. The stability of the fork when braking over bumps was excellent. The reason for this is that the fork has stable 40-millimetre tubes near the crown, where the highest leverage forces occur. We also felt very little twisting between the bars when cornering. The Boltron has good travel and releases the full stroke on bigger hits. The Achilles' heel for use on normal bikes of the otherwise well-functioning fork: the compression damping cannot be adjusted. The weight of 2200 grams (according to Magura) is quite high for all-mountain use. During the long descent, the rebound lost some of its performance, but this is probably due to the pre-production status of our test model. The grip on the front wheel remained consistently high. The long installation length (540 mm) flattens the steering angle slightly. Conclusion: The Boltron leaves a positive first impression. It will be officially presented at Eurobike, and hopefully not just for e-bikes.
- Price from Eurobike - Weight 2200 g - All mountain use
