Review: Marzocchi's New Z1 Coil Fork - The Return of a Classic

Depending on when you started mountain biking, there’s a good chance that the Marzocchi name still brings back memories of open bath, coil-sprung forks that were dead simple to set up and service. When the original Z1 came out in 1997 it helped fuel the fire of the freeride movement, and the years that followed saw the release of classics like the Monster T, Junior T, and then the 888 and 66.

Marzocchi returned the Z1 to their lineup in 2018, but it was air-sprung, and despite its excellent performance, fans were still left clamoring for a coil-sprung option. Well, the wait is over, and the coil-sprung Z1 is back. The $749 USD fork is nearly identical to the air-sprung Z1 – it still uses a Grip damper for compression and rebound adjustments – except that now there’s a coil spring sitting inside the left stanchion, with a dial on the top to adjust preload.

Z1 Coil Details

• Intended use: all-mountain / enduro
• Coil-sprung
• Grip damper
• Wheel size: 29″ or 27.5″ options
• Adjustments: compression, rebound, preload
• Travel: 150mm (29 only), 160, 170, 180mm (27.5 only)
• Offsets: 37mm (27.5″), 44, 51mm (29″)
• 36mm stanchions
• Weight: 2,552 grams (29″)
• Price: $749 USD / Conversion kit: $130 USD

Four different coil spring weights are available, which should accommodate riders between 120 – 250 pounds. Medium and firm springs are included with the fork, and additional springs are priced at $45. Perhaps even better is the fact that it’s possible to convert an air-sprung Z1 or Fox 36 Rhythm fork to coil for just $175 USD. At the moment, those are the only forks that can be converted to coil – the kit isn’t compatible with any other series of Fox 36 forks, such as Factory, Performance Elite, or Performance, at least for now.

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