Blackline Ebonite Bandit Fork

Intend Blackline components are a trickle-down, higher volume version of the super high-end, german engineered and hand-manufactured, custom components from Intend. They share the same technologies, same air spring, same seals, same Stiffmaster-bearings and so on, but the approach of the product is different. Intend Blackline products are not cheaper or have worse quality, they are more affordable due to the reduction of not necessary colours, more economical production and a lower effort for selling products that make more sense to the wider consumer market (like forks that aren't up-side-down).

The intention behind the Intend Blackline Ebonite Bandit fork was to increase the stiffness of the complete fork/frame/handlebar system.  Especially hard or heavy riders will benefit from this architecture.  The Intend Blackline Ebonite Bandit fork is even more hungry for the nastiest trails, the biggest hits and even the climb back to the top.

The Bandit construction improves not only the disc brake side with more strength and stiffness, but also gives more space for improvements of the air spring system. With larger positive and negative air chambers as well as a second positive air chamber, the Ebonite Bandit is capable of greater adjustability and control. The second positive chamber in the Ebonite Bandit fork is pressurized with higher pressure than the first air chamber. The low initial overall pressure improves the small bump sensitivity, while it ramps up faster throughout the travel range until it reaches the pressure of the second chamber, then they act like one big chamber with higher pressure and less progression, giving you greater bottom-out prevention and that bottomless feel. You can even set the limit of movement of the separating piston and tune the progression in the last 20mm of the stroke to your personal needs.

The high-strength 7075 aluminium alloy materials, the double wall thickness of the steerer tube (6mm tapered to 3mm), butted upper stanchion walls (thicker at the crowns), deep stanchion sockets in the crown (where the stanchions press into the crown) and CNC machined axle assembly at the base of the lowers, has all been designed to prevent flex and reduce binding through the entire range of motion.

The damping of the Ebonite (and also all other Intend forks) is done with closed cartridge, shim stack-based architecture. There is a compression piston and a rebound piston which provide the highspeed circuits, and there are low-speed ports with external adjusters to get the setup done from outside. The damper circuit also features a long rubber bladder on the inside of the stanchion, making it easy to assemble and disassemble the unit for service or tuning.

The air spring of the Intend forks is made with a special mechanism to fill both chambers, negative and positive at the same time. There are 2 valves, which are connected when you attach a shock pump and then separated when you disconnect the shock pump.

You can adjust the travel by simply adding or removing 10mm spacers. 

• Ride Style: Enduro / Freeride
• Travel Range: Maximum stroke 180mm / Adjustable in 10mm steps / Minimum stroke 140mm
• Wheel Size: 29"
• Max headtube length: 145mm (measured incl headset)
• Spring Type: Air spring with dual positive and single negative air chambers and low friction pneumatic seals
• Damping: Open bath closed cartridge
• Adjustments: Rebound / Compression / Air spring / Progression
• Weight: 2450g
• Brake Mounting: 180mm
• Dropout: 15mm x 110mm Boost
• Axle System: Bolt-On thru-axle with pinch bolt security
• Axle Material: Light alloy
• Fork Offset / Rake: 44mm
• Steerer Tube: Tapered 1 1/8” - 1.5”
• Steerer Tube Material: High-strength 7075 aluminium
• Crown Material: High-strength 7075 aluminium
• Stanchions Material: High-strength 7075 aluminium
• Stanchions Diameter: 35mm
• Lowers Material: High-strength 7075 aluminium
• Colour: Black anodized
• Other: Royal flush coating / SKF D35 green dust wipers (Without collar) / Main and current sag indicators