Ridden and Reviewed
Fox 38 Grip X2
It’s been a while since Fox released a new gravity-oriented fork or damper. By my count, it’s been three years since I reviewed the Fox 40 with the Grip 2 VVC damper back in 2021. I’m still a big fan of that damper and haven’t ridden anything I prefer to date. A 38 Grip 2 VVC and a 40 Grip 2 VVC are still firmly mounted on my bikes. I’m often a bit worried when a company releases a new version of something I like. The Grip 2 VVC damper is already so good, how could they possibly improve it? So it’s with high expectations I nervously approached this new fork and damper from Fox.
I've been testing the Fox 38 for 2 months now on the local mountains in Vancouver.
It's done multiple days in the Whistler Bike Park.
And the new 38 has been on a riding trip through the French and Swiss Alps.
The only change Fox has made to the chassis is an updated bushing design to increase lubrication but with the same spacing and overlap. Otherwise all the features and dimensions of the old fork carry through. There's some gold as well but the orange version seems to look just like existing fork. So in short this new Fox 38 has a revised compression damper, some updated bushings, and a new gold colour.
The new damper is housed in the right leg with familiar dials to adjust the high / low speed compression damping.
Much like the old fork, the air spring is in the left leg, and for me required the same air pressure as before.
The Fox Air Release Technology (F.A.R.T) Valves are unchanged from before.
And the same fender mounting system is used as the old 38.
So onto the damper then. Fox claims the new Grip X2 is, “the most tunable, supportive and smoothest descent-focused damper ever created by FOX. Riders reap the benefits of sitting higher in the travel while tires stay glued to the ground, cornering with increased traction. It gives you the confidence to push the limits of downhill and enduro racing, all while reducing overall rider fatigue. GRIP X2 is the winning difference.” This sounds a bit too good to be true, like the marketing folks got a bit overzealous.
Summary of changes with the new Grip X2.
The outgoing GRIP 2 damper had a 20mm base diameter and seven valves. Fox claims the new updated GRIP X2 scales up the tunability by increasing the base diameter to 24mm with 23 valves. As mentioned above, Fox claims this their most tunable, supportive and smoothest descent-focused damper yet.
The new Grip X2 Compression Assembly.
The existing Grip 2 Compression Assembly.
Setup of the new 38 with the Grip X2 is fairly easy if you already have settings on the old 38. With the spring side unchanged, I used the same air spring pressure (108 psi) and the same number of tokens (3). Fox recommended one more click open for the rebound adjusters than my previous settings. There were no compression recomendations, so I set them in the middle and went for a ride.
The new Grip X2 excels in making traction, especially on trails like this where corners are rough cobblestone.
My first ride was in Bellingham, and I immediately noticed the fork was more supportive. Oh oh, is thing going to be harsh? First fast, rough trail, and the fork just opened up. I wound up nose-heavy off the first jump because the high-speed circuit was so effective. Huh? Weird. The fork seemed to eat the lip of the jump. So I added a click of high-speed compression damping, and the result was incredible. More supportive than the old fork, but also more supple. Maybe the marketers weren't just blowing rainbows?
Neds fork puddle splash ...
... has a nice setup ...
... but the puddle needed some stocking before the shot!
After testing through bike parks I can confirm the new Fox 38 is more supportive, yet it's also more supple. The high-speed compression circuit seems much more effective. I'd brace for a harsh impact event with the new Fox 38, and they never seem to materialize. You can run more low-speed compression on the Grip X2, giving more support under braking and rider inputs, but the high-speed compression circuit seems to move so much oil that harsh chatter bump and big impact spikes melt away. The result is a fork that rides high in the travel but generates more traction, and results in less hand/arm fatigue.
I experimented with the full range of damper adjustments, and there is usable range on either side of where I wound up. Out of the box, I think the stock Grip X2 should have a great setup for the vast majority of riders without needing a custom tune.
The supportive chassis helps with direction changes.
Setup summary:
- Air 108 psi with 3 tokens
- HSC 3 out
- LSC 3 out
- HSR 4 out
- LSR 4 out
With more compression damping than the old damper, little bump hits can be poppier.
After riding the new fork in various locations and trail types, I'd say the new Grip X2 damper is a significant step forward. I prefer the new Grip X2 damper everywhere and have to commend Fox. While the old Grip 2 remains excellent, the new Grip X2 is significantly better than anything else I've ridden. The Grip X2 is more supportive, yet also more supple, generating more traction and reducing rider fatigue. If you already have a 38, the good news is that the new Grip X2 damper is fully retrofittable into the existing 38 chassis (these parts aren't yet listed on the Fox website however -Ed.). The new Fox 38 Grip X2 gets an enthusiastic two thumbs up from me.
Fox 38 Grip X2 - 1,670 CAD / 1,250 USD
Age: 42
Height: 183 cm / 6'
Weight: 83 kg / 182 lbs
Ape Index: 1.055 / +10 cm
Inseam: 81 cm / 32"
Preferred Riding: Gravity Mountain Bike
Bar Width: 800 mm
Preferred Reach: 500 - 520 mm (but this is stack and head angle dependent)
Comments
roil
10 months, 2 weeks ago
I respect your commitment to getting a good splash shot at the expense of proper hydration.
Reply
T-mack
10 months, 2 weeks ago
You can trust he rehydrated with beer after
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cxfahrer
10 months, 2 weeks ago
I don't want to start a boring setup discussion, but seeing that o-ring on the photos I wonder whether "more supportive damping in midstroke" or just a bit much of spacers and pressure is the reason?
I am the same weight (but old and slow..) and run about the same pressure - but with no/one spacer - on my older 38, and rode similar trails in Finale Ligure, and the o-ring never went beyond those ca 150mm. Should it be that way, to have something left for those bad landings, or is it because with lower pressure the midstroke support would be lacking (well it does with mine, but I have the eBike Grip2 vvc, which is soft)?
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Chad K
10 months, 2 weeks ago
I personally think that the x2 damper does have more mid-stroke support as well. I swapped out a grip X2 for a grip 2 recently (without even opening up the airshaft size) and basically copied the exact same damper settings within 1 click... it was pretty immediately obvious the better support of the Grip x2.
I think that is a tricky question, too. I personally only like to have 10% of travel left for the "whoopsies" moments as I feel like any more than that and I'm not making appropriate use of the travel I have. I
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Tim Coleman
10 months, 2 weeks ago
I tend to run the same setup everywhere, and that setup tends to be fairly stiff as my bikes spend a good chunk of time in Whistler. Both in and out of the bike park Whistler requires a very supportive front end, and I'll usually bottom the fork once a day here. Other locations I'll generally have 15 mm of unused travel after a ride. If you have 20 - 30 mm of unused travel on the regular you might want to consider dropping the air pressure a bit so you're using more of the travel, especially if you're already at 0 tokens. Particularly with this new Grip X2 damper I think you could add low speed compression damping to obtain some good support for rider inputs, but still use more of the travel in bigger impacts.
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Dr.Flow
9 months, 2 weeks ago
Hey Tim, do you have any comparisons to the OG Grip2 damper? As shown by Steve in his 38 breakdown video the Grip2 VVC was producing hardly any damping force at all, esp. compared to the aforementioned Grip2 and also the RC2. Thanks in advance, Flo
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Tim Coleman
9 months ago
I personally felt like the Grip2 was a big step forward from the RC2. I found the RC2 damper prone to spiking on high-speed compressions. I struggled to get a supportive chassis with RC2 that wasn't harsh. Grip2 I had to run the HSC quite open to prevent the fork from being harsh. For me Grip2 VVC gave me more usable HSC adjustment, and felt this was an improvement. While VVC didn't have as much compression damping when closed as Grip2, I was nowhere near closed on the Grip2 damper. Moving to Grip X2 I find I can run the LSC more supportive, but the HSC is so much more effective at high shaft velocity it doesn't feel harsh. This has been the progression of compression settings (and honestly these are always changing based on temperature and location) on my 170 mm single crowns.
Grip 2: LSC 4 clicks out, HSC 14 clicks out
Grip 2 VVC: LSC 5 clicks out, HSC 5 clicks out
Grip X2: LSC 3 clicks out, HSC 3 clicks out
Reply
Dr.Flow
9 months ago
Hey Tim,
thx for the reply, very appreciated. Those settings differ a lot from what I've been riding, but here my 64 kg may come to play. I always tend to ride a stiffer spring, LSC on the lower end and quite a bunch of HSC. My Grip 2 settings on the 170 fork are LSC 10-12 clicks out, HSC 7-9 clicks out.
I'm curious on what you describe as "LSC being more supportive, but HSC more effective". Will see if I can get a chance to ride one in the near future.
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