Suspension Forks/ Shock absorbers.
Discussion
Reading through the posts in 'Pedal Powered', it appears to be the norm that suspension forks/ shocks are serviced at very regular intervals, with one poster suggesting that a service after every 20 or so, ride hours, was his preference.
The shock absorbers on a car, however, are probably good for 40-50000 miles, carry a lot more weight,are subjected to much higher impacts and cost a fraction of their cycling equivalents.
Is it just me,
or are we all being taken for a ride by the fork 'gurus' ?
The shock absorbers on a car, however, are probably good for 40-50000 miles, carry a lot more weight,are subjected to much higher impacts and cost a fraction of their cycling equivalents.
Is it just me,
or are we all being taken for a ride by the fork 'gurus' ?20-30 hours is mental. if you are throwing that much money at a service, you could buy a new pair of forks every 6 months? in the summer, 20-30 hours would be mean aservice a month for most people which given the turnaround time wouldnt make any sense at all. it just smacks of piss poor maintenance, not checking pressures and not being cautious when you wash it...
The manufacturer suggested service interval for forks / shocks is so incredibly low as to make them actually useless. I would have to send my forks etc every month for service. It would take 1-2 weeks to return and cost over £100.
No one does this. They get serviced at best, once a year and I have figured out how to do it myself. It isnt hard.
No one does this. They get serviced at best, once a year and I have figured out how to do it myself. It isnt hard.
15 hours is in the Fox manual I think for the dust wipers.
8 hours for a Float rear shock air can if it is muddy.
And 50 hours for the full works on a Fox fork.
It is amazing how little servicing you can get away with though, you just won't get the second year of the warranty on some forks.
Dust wipers are the key item and they are easy to check. Once they go wrong you'll get dirt in the oil and the stanchions will wear. Keep the seals good and the oil should stay ok for a lot longer.
I'd be curious to see the sealing inside a motorcycle fork, I suspect MTB forks are under sealed to keep weight down and because the dampers etc work to much finer tolerances?
8 hours for a Float rear shock air can if it is muddy.
And 50 hours for the full works on a Fox fork.
It is amazing how little servicing you can get away with though, you just won't get the second year of the warranty on some forks.
Dust wipers are the key item and they are easy to check. Once they go wrong you'll get dirt in the oil and the stanchions will wear. Keep the seals good and the oil should stay ok for a lot longer.
I'd be curious to see the sealing inside a motorcycle fork, I suspect MTB forks are under sealed to keep weight down and because the dampers etc work to much finer tolerances?
It takes 30 minutes to do a seal service on a set of Rockshox. I tend to do mine twice a year, and that's with quite a lot of riding.
suggested service intervals are a bit silly i think.
Having said that the new Marzocchi forks all come with a three year no servicing required warranty!!!!
suggested service intervals are a bit silly i think.
Having said that the new Marzocchi forks all come with a three year no servicing required warranty!!!!
Your not comparing apples with apples though are you.
Your shiny Fox forks with FIT platform damping, adhjuetable everything, are top of the range race equipment.
The kwik-fit OEM spec replacement dampers on your car, are not.
There the equivalent of the suntour fork on your wife's £149 hybrid.
Also ! It would be a piece of piss for fox/rockshox to make a damper that will go ten years between rebuilds, but you sure as he'll wouldn't buy it as it would be 5 times the weight. You/us as the consumer have demanded a level of performance, maintenance is the by product of that!
And anyway - it's piss easy, all the manufacturers provide instructions. If you want the best kit, be preparedto look after it.
Your shiny Fox forks with FIT platform damping, adhjuetable everything, are top of the range race equipment.
The kwik-fit OEM spec replacement dampers on your car, are not.
There the equivalent of the suntour fork on your wife's £149 hybrid.
Also ! It would be a piece of piss for fox/rockshox to make a damper that will go ten years between rebuilds, but you sure as he'll wouldn't buy it as it would be 5 times the weight. You/us as the consumer have demanded a level of performance, maintenance is the by product of that!
And anyway - it's piss easy, all the manufacturers provide instructions. If you want the best kit, be preparedto look after it.
They are a bit silly, I seem to recall the previous RS Boxxer WC's would need servicing almost daily on an lift based Holiday like Whistler or the Alps, perhaps my memory is going a little over board though.
Fox stuff needs to be servied by Mojo (in the UK at least) at the end of the first year to get the second year warranty. I tend to do a wiper seal / oil change at the 6 month stage, kept my '06 36's running sweet for years. Judging on the state of the more modern 36's I think it's especially important, they seem to love wearing out stanctions! Going to change over to enduro seals next time, I hear that the new seals on the kashima fox's actually are doing more good than the fancy gold stanctions.
Marz stuff seems a tough and durable as ever. My 888 WC's are still perfect and have never been opened.
Fox stuff needs to be servied by Mojo (in the UK at least) at the end of the first year to get the second year warranty. I tend to do a wiper seal / oil change at the 6 month stage, kept my '06 36's running sweet for years. Judging on the state of the more modern 36's I think it's especially important, they seem to love wearing out stanctions! Going to change over to enduro seals next time, I hear that the new seals on the kashima fox's actually are doing more good than the fancy gold stanctions.
Marz stuff seems a tough and durable as ever. My 888 WC's are still perfect and have never been opened.
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