tomreece Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 I am new to full suspension. I just watched an "every 50 hour maintenance" rear shock video and was baffled. Do I really need to take my bike in to a shop every 50 hours for this type of intense maintenance for my shocks? What steps can I take per ride to keep shocks operating correctly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fontarin Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 Always wipe any dirt/dust off with a cloth or something after each ride. I usually do service on mine once a year and it's fine. If it's been especially bad or I've been riding a ton, maybe I'll do it after 8 months or so, but that's not the norm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridenfool Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 Protecting the seals by cleaning as fontarin mentions is most important. (boots for shocks and those little front fenders for forks are good precautions as well) Checking the air spring periodically, keeping it adjusted for 20% or so of sag, is another way to reduce wear or damage from bottoming out. Then, learning how many of the shocks are pretty easy to work on sews it up in the end. If you are even slightly mechanically adept it may be only a matter of buying a seal kit and doing the work. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4fun Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 2 hours ago, fontarin said: Always wipe any dirt/dust off with a cloth or something after each ride. I usually do service on mine once a year and it's fine. If it's been especially bad or I've been riding a ton, maybe I'll do it after 8 months or so, but that's not the norm. I second this comment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4fun Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 58 minutes ago, Ridenfool said: Protecting the seals by cleaning as fontarin mentions is most important. (boots for shocks and those little front fenders for forks are good precautions as well) Checking the air spring periodically, keeping it adjusted for 20% or so of sag, is another way to reduce wear or damage from bottoming out. Then, learning how many of the shocks are pretty easy to work on sews it up in the end. If you are even slightly mechanically adept it may be only a matter of buying a seal kit and doing the work. And this one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonioGG Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 Doing just the lowers, either rinsing the seals and putting new oil is pretty easy. You get pretty fast at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridenfool Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 A small soft bristle paint brush is perfect for getting the fine stuff off the sealing surfaces. Toss one in the toolbox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamsloan Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 FYI, if you decide to service the fork yourself get one of these to help press in the new dust wiper seals. It makes it way easier. Fork Wiper Seal Installation Press Tool 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RidingAgain Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 WARNING WILL ROBINSON.... When servicing shocks/forks.... MAKE SURE... To get all the air out... Before attempting to open. I'm speaking from experience with a FOX shock. Thankfully my head was a little to the left of the trajectory of the piece I unscrewed. And if for any reason it seems to be hard to unscrew... Chances are there's still air in it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csmceuen Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 1 hour ago, Teamsloan said: FYI, if you decide to service the fork yourself get one of these to help press in the new dust wiper seals. It makes it way easier. Fork Wiper Seal Installation Press Tool I just use an old vitamin bottle, but to each their own. This looks way easier though. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRA Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 (edited) I wipe seals clean and lube them lightly with a little fork oil on a Qtip, keeps them happy. I do this before every ride, 2 minutes well spent. Edited November 7, 2018 by JRA 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamsloan Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 2 hours ago, csmceuen said: I just use an old vitamin bottle, but to each their own. This looks way easier though. I like this tool (the fox branded one works too) because it guarantees that it gets tapped in straight since the long extension slides down past the first set of bushings. No way to get it wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrossPlane Posted November 8, 2018 Share Posted November 8, 2018 In the subject of letting the air out, make sure you do it slowly and cycle the shock a few times, then let out more, repeat. If the shock sucks down and is hard to pull out, put air back in it and repeat the above.I made this mistake the first time I took the air can off and I didn't realize that air got stuck in the negative chamber. Long story short, I ended up having to replace the seals. Not huge deal, but unnecessary at the time.Sent from my CMR-W09 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomreece Posted November 10, 2018 Author Share Posted November 10, 2018 How does a rear lockout work? See my rear shock in the picture. It shows down as unlocked and left as locked. However, when I move it to locked the shock is not locked out and still functions as normal. Whats up with that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 Locked is really just a term. Most shocks today don't fully lockout. It's really just an extra firm platform. They do that so you don't damage the shock if you were to forget to unlock it on downhill. You should be able to feel a difference between the two settings The locked should be much firmer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 You should be able to easily perceive a difference between locked and unlocked. I would ask the shop to rebuild it since you just bought it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcarneytx Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 Locked should be VERY FIRM when pedaling on street. Should move if you stand and push down really hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomreece Posted November 10, 2018 Author Share Posted November 10, 2018 I'll give it a try riding. I was judging my ability to still push it down even while locked, but I think I misunderstood how it should work. Makes sense now. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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