DT Swiss OPM Team Fork Review

In the last couple of weeks both Fox and Rock Shox have released new forks aimed at the XC race market. Am I regretting my DT Swiss purchase in March? Oh no!

The DT fork is without doubt the best fork I have ridden. I’ve been able to get a pretty good handle on them now after riding in a variety of conditions on familiar local trails as well as at both marathon and Olympic cross country races.

In the fully open setting the fork is soooooo smooth and sensitive to trail chatter, it is like a magic carpet ride. It is everything I always hoped a fork to be. I’ve left the fork in this 'Open' setting 95% of the time, diving into roots and technical sections with increased confidence. In the short course race I only switched to the ‘Drive’ setting to increase the damping slightly through two bombhole sections, to help stop the fork compressing at the bottom of the depression. The rest of the race it was left fully open. In the marathon event I selected the 'Drive' setting for the fire road just to prevent wasting energy bobbing the fork, not that I really noticed this to be a problem at all. Socially I have used the full lock-out for tarmac sections on the way to the trail head and the occasional out of the saddle moment. It is worth noting that the lock-out really is rock solid, riding almost like a rigid fork. So in terms of suspension performance 5 stars - I am blown away! Every time I get on the bike this fork impresses me.

The compression damping in the open setting can be adjusted, I backed it right off almost completely. Unless heaving out of the saddle I haven’t noticed any discernible movement in the fork from pedal action. I set the rebound based on the DT Swiss recommendations and have left it there.

The remote switch to select modes can only be mounted above the bars, which is a shame as it would be nice to tuck it away out of harm’s way. However, the action is smooth and intuitive, I haven’t encountered any problems finding the buttons during the heat of battle. It isn’t hydraulic like other manufacturers, but when function is this good the simplicity of a cable actuated remote can’t be beaten. If I’m nit picking a tiny bit more feedback from the return button might be reassuring and the cable routing could be better.

One poor feature.  The axel handle hits the fork leg when rotated. Protective sticker provided! 

I was impressed to notice the steering was more direct compared to my old Rock Shox SID. I did fit a new pair of wheels at the same time as the fork, which might be contributing, but I believe it is the fork that is influencing the super direct feel turning into corners, at both high and low speed.

As you can gather I am impressed with this beauty from DT Swiss, and all this performance comes at a strikingly low 1458g weight, including the remote and 15mm axel. I have the team edition of the fork with carbon steerer and SKF bushings.