Hi.
I have a pair of (2012-2013) Pike solo air forks that are displaying some familiar signs from looking at discussions in various places. They sit at 20% sag unloaded. They are also like a pogo stick with low response to small bumps. I have read and tried all of the tricks online in relation to pumping up to full pressure and pulling / pushing. Zip ties used on both sides with fork under pressure and with no pressure. I have done a total strip down of the lowers, greased them up and replaced the fluid. All done carefully following instructions / videos. I have checked to make sure the port that equalizes pressure is clear and have tried the methods of blowing grease out of this when reassembled.

So its time to send them off for a service. The question is who is best in NZ. Shockcraft was my first thought they also offer an "un-harsh your forks service for Pike forks" along with tuning the fork for your weight. Has anyone had this done and did it mark a difference?

I have been told that most bike shops use a service offered by the main importer / rep for Rockshox in NZ (can't remember the name, something like Webers). Has anyone used these?

Last question, I have found in one discussion that there have been slight changes to the internal hardware of the damper (parts that would be changed in a full service) that improve the problem of equalization of the pressure in the forks. Has anyone had this done and what were the results?

Thanks in advance. They are due a service so I am just trying to decide if I should pay for a full strip down and replacement of all serviceable parts or should I bite the bullet and look for a newer pair of forks. On servicing the lowers the forks are in great condition apart from some external paint wear. Seems a shame to chuck them.

I'm sure Dougal will be along shortly.

Been in touch with Shockcraft. My forks will be going to them end of next week. Would be sooner but I am off to Rotorua at the start of next week. From the conversation on the phone I am 100% confident that Shockcraft know what they are doing and more. I like it when you come off the phone knowing more than when you started to dial. I rang another place for info but could not get past the telephone messages. The boys at shockcraft were there on the dot at 9am and happy to answer all of my questions even though they had a pile of forks waiting to be serviced. I like the changes to the shock suggested along with the customer service. Anyone who is willing to spend time taking about bikes and stuff even though they are working hard makes me feel confident that they care about what they are doing. Its like when you walk into a good bike shop and all they want to do is talk about bikes rather than just sell you something and get onto the next customer.

My forks are going to Shockcraft and a month later (when the wife is not looking) so is my rear shock.

We'll let you know what we find.

Generally with the Pikes and, to a lesser extent, Lyriks people are looking for problems and solutions in the air side when the biggest problems are in the damper. Sort the damper and the air spring problems become insignificant. People don't need to shag around with zip ties any more.

The stock charger tunes are harsh and geared more towards providing a firm lockout (that no-one needs or uses) than providing good damping control. The result is everyone runs with the compression dials wide open and they behave like an orifice damper (hydracoil judy). Wallowing on smaller stuff and spiking on sharp hits.

But aside from the intentional valving issues in the chargers they have some unintentional compression spiking caused by the rebound valving. I've got a unique way to fix this that no-one else seems to know or do. To date there are only four forks with the full "Unharsh" shockcraft treatment. There are a few more with some, but not all, features as we were developing the package.

One really important thing with custom tuning is to accurately assess your riding style. This is one of the hardest parts. If you think you're a harder and faster rider than you are then you can end up with a firmer tune than you'd like. This is the wide and blurry line between tuning for comfort and tuning for race. A race tune will have a crisper feel and will always give you feedback through the damper. This feedback increases traction, but if you're not racing or riding hard it'll wear you out.

On our aggression scale of 1-6 I'm a 4. This is the top of the "comfort" tunes.

4 sounds good to me. Possibly. Put it this way I am not doing grade 5 tracks yet. I like fast technical tracks with a good filling of roots and rocks. Hot Xbuns is my favourite track at Rotorua. Mainly because it seems more natural in terrain rather than artificial. Corners is great for speed but a bit boring in relation to terrain. I am trying to improve my jumping ability but this is to get down hill faster rather than for the sake of jumping. I will never be flying up in the air. I tend to like rough natural challenging terrain ridden fast with as many rocks and roots as possible. Always looking for more grip on those roots.

Oh hang on just seen what you said about traction. I think 4 would be good compromise between comfort and speed then. Grip is something I am always looking to increase. Currently running Magic Mary front and back to try and get more grip.

Found a great guide for anyone with a hole in their understanding like me.
http://www.vitalmtb.com/photos/features ... turman,109

Rockshox naming their volume spacers "bottom less tokens" has been a terrible thing for suspension tuning.

The whole point of changing air volume is to match ride height with spring stiffness. Because on an air shock or fork you only have one air pressure adjustment which affects both.

Stacking tokens in there to prevent bottom out results in absolutely terrible suspension. A too soft top end, a short mid stroke and an end stroke that is too hard to access and stores ridiculous energy to fire back at you on rebound.

It also means the fork can't suck up sharp edges like rocks and roots. The air spring ramps up too fast and kicks back at you.

So when's the coil upgrade kit coming out?

Velocipedestrian wrote:So when's the coil upgrade kit coming out?

When I've got the other 2000 projects off my list. Rumour has it Push has something coming. Sea-Otter this weekend may reveal if they do.

How many Fruit Bursts does one get for a fork service? ?

beater32 wrote:How many Fruit Bursts does one get for a fork service? ?

2. How many do you need?