Here is a crucial tip rockshox has not included in their instructions. Newer rockshox suspension products use maxima plush suspension fluid, so whenever you are servicing a fork if you use maxima fluid you need to use sram butter on the o-rings and the shaft NOT dynamic seal grease. If you use the rockshox brand fluid then use the dynamic seal grease. I talked with rockshox tech support and asked for clarification and this is the rule they told me to follow for fork services. Guess maxima doesn’t play nice with the dynamic seal grease. Also to prevent the air spring sucking up into the stanchion while letting air out in preparation for a service actuate the fork every 10psi you let out. This will equalize the positive and negative air chambers so you will end up with very little air pressure in the negative air chamber so it can be easily removed. More importantly it is crucial to make sure the negative air seal is pushed up all the way to the top of the air spring to it is I contact with the bump stopper and you can’t see any of the shaft at the top. The entire air spring assembly needs to be together when you reinstall it into the lower or else you will trap air in the negative air chamber and cause suck up, losing some of the small bump compliance of your fork. In the video you can see he leaves a huge gap between the top of the air spring and the negative air seal head, there is a small air exchange dimple on the inside of the stanchion this is how the air pressure gets equalized between positive and negative when you cycle the fork. When you leave a large gap the top of the air spring will pass this port, trapping an amount of air related to how much distance is between the top of the air spring and the negative air seal. When you get the c clip back in and pull on the air spring you will be fighting against the air pressure stuck in the negative air chamber. You can see in the video how his air spring is already sucked up into the stanchion because he has air trapped. This won’t be fixed by just inflating the positive air chamber and cycling it, there will always be a little extra air stuck so you will notice your fork when unweighted if you pull the legs down they will suck up a small amount and you will lose 5-10mm of travel depending on how bad it is. Proper technique is to install the air spring with all the parts close together then after the c clip is installed slightly burp the air spring to purge any small amount of air that may have gotten trapped you do this after you have installed the top to the air spring just push up slightly and you will hear it equalize then stop pushing and pull it down. Then inflate the air chamber to 25-30 psi so that you prevent a vacuum from forming when you re install the lower legs. All these steps, while seemingly minor and nitpicky are crucial to eliminating trapped air and suck down. These recommendations are from rockshox, push suspension, and volsprung and I work professionally on suspension. Attention to detail is the key to a professional level service.
Holy cow, he's back from the dead! 😁 Awesome Feedback myman. This is exactly what I was hoping for when making these videos. People helping each other with servicing their bikes. I was unware that maxima fluids had a compatibility issues with dynamic grease, but then again, I've only been using rockshox fluids up to now for both mine and others forks as I still have a bunch of those oils sitting around from a sale a took advantage of a while back. As for the airspring install to avoid suckup,, GREAT Catch! I must of gone through each clip a handful of times when editing this video and was so distracted with the editing part that I didn't notice this detail until you mentioned it. so many distractions when making these videos. To all out there. At around 38:10, when installing the airspring into the upper fork tube, you will notice that the head of the airspring is near the middle of the shaft. make sure to push the airspring to the top of the shaft prior to installing it into the upper fork tube. I will say for those who have a C1 head and B1 pike chassis you should be ok as rockshox pretty much solved the suckup issue with this head. but still, this is good practice in general.. I will add this to the video description Thanks for the input bob 👍
@@zoubtube lol I'm always with yooouuu. But for real I do a lot of suspension work in my job as a bike mechanic and the instruction say you can use either sram butter or dynamic seal grease, but then in the steps they switch randomly. So I called their dealer support and talked with their suspension guys and they told me about the maxima/dynamic seal grease thing. I need to ask them about the shocks though cause all the info says use dynamic seal grease. I think it has something to do with the weight but ill find out!
@@zoubtube Rockshox Service manual suggests you use the Maxima Suspension Lube LIGHT for the lowers and HEAVY for the uppers. Searching online it seems pretty clear that rockshox 0W-30 is a direct alternative to the LIGHT lube but I can't find anywhere that suggests it's okay to use in place of the HEAVY lube. The service manual states HEAVY should be used in the air spring uppers. In this video he uses 0W-30 in the uppers and I just want to confirm that's okay to use. Thanks!
@@MoCoBomb per the manual: Maxima PLUSH Dynamic Suspension Lube Heavy or RockShox 0w-30 Suspension Oil Maxima PLUSH Dynamic Suspension Lube Light or RockShox 0w-30 Suspension Oil either way its 0w-30, which works just fine. I've been using it on one of my pikes that has a ridiculous amount of miles on it with no issues so far. I do keep up with the 50 hours best I can though which personally I think offers teh greatest benefits. one side note, I can't believe how archaic my first video look 😅. I'm going to redo them so they can be clearer
Super helpful. I’ve done this procedure just from the manual a couple times but I don’t do it often. Your video was a great realtime companion that gave me confidence in what I’m doing.
Great to hear it helped you out. I plan on re-recording some of those older fork and shock videos with the new setup in order for them to be brighter and clearer. 👍
Thanks for the compliment my man. Much appreciated. I'm assuming your asking for the airsping side. I mainly use red 271. I've never tried blue but i wouldn't be surprised if it would work just as well. Enjoy the rebuild. I love doing them. it's like therapy. Just finished up a FOX 34 along with a dpx2 for friends. I'll be posting those soon. Let me know if you have other questions. 👍
I was going to ask the same question. I was a motorcycle mechanic for many years before getting my mechanical engineering degree. Red was reserved for things that your really didn't want to take apart again while blue maintains the future serviceability of the part. I would recommend blue in that case. My DVO shock also uses Loctite and they also use the blue. Really great video and comments. Oh, wondering what the metric thread size is on the $1. tool you made. You might have mentioned it but I guess I missed that. Very good idea. And love to see a list of some of the tools like the fork seal removal and insertion tool and even the vise (Fortus?) and jaws. Would the SRAM brake bleed fittings fit the damper or is this another special tool for forks? Thanks for putting this out, so helpful and clearly done.
I believe the bolt Heath was referring to is the one that connects the air spring shaft to the lower boots. It takes a non-stop rattling of a beating, which is my guess why both rockshox and fox recommend Red. Fox actually recommend using heat prior to removing this bolt. I'm sure blue will work, but I'd have to go with the manufacture recommendation on this one. An M8 Bolt with fender washers that are comfortable for your hand in size will work "Would the SRAM brake bleed fittings fit the damper" GREAT question! I just tried the rockshox bleed fitting on a Guide ultimate brake lever, and it fits perfectly, so I have to assume the SRAM fitting will work with the damper for a bleed. It never occurred to me to look into this. Thanks for the insight. If anyone out there tries this, Make ABSOLUTELY sure to clean out any residual DOT fluid in the syringe before the bleed process The Vise I bought from Harbor Freight. I believe the name is central Forge. It's a simple 2.5 inch vise but comes in handy. they sell if for around $30 now.. Amazon has similar ones that are 3.5 inch for the same money, which I would have bought if I knew at the time. The tool I use for the seal removal is the Icetoolz tire lever. Any similar style tire lever tool with a plastic coating on it will work. It really helps with not chipping paint on the lowers
So your the one watching them 😁The torque wrenches are snapon. the ATECH1FR240b for low torque settings and the ATECH2FR100B for mid torque settings. I'm a big fan of snapon torque wrenches, been using them for decades (started with rebuilding crotch rockets around 30 years ago) Id say they are a bit overkill for bikes, but torque wrenches are about precision, so no precise torque wrench is overkill imo. I bought them used years ago for a really great price and send them in to be calibrated to keep them precise, which is another nice thing about them. great support structure
2 years later and its still a great video with a great comments section. I haven't watched the whole video yet, but at 15:38 you show stuffing a paper towel on a stick down to clean out the lower boot. I expect you've haven't had a problem, but wouldn't a lint free material be a better option for wiping any of the inside parts?
Thank you very much for the thoughtful comment. Whenever I see some of the first videos, it feels the same as when I see old pictures of my grandma's parents. They look like they were from a lifetime ago, yet it's only been about 2 years. I'm still amazed at how much there was to learn, and how much there is still to learn, when it comes to making these videos To answer our question. Yes! It is better to use a lint-free cloth like Scott shop towels. If you don't have them handy, then bounty paper towels work great as well and won't do any harm to the lowers. Those two are all I've used for the last 20 or so years. I basically buy them in bulk when they go on sale at Costco. I will say that I find the bounty towels to be much more effective in general than the Scott, though Thanks again for the comment 👍
@@zoubtube I'm going through your video again and tooling up to do my first shock, a Rockshox Lyric. I bought the bike used and have no idea if the shock had ever seen service since it was new 2 owners ago. I'm going in with both feet. Thanks for the video.
One tiny comment. I think in your description, the SKU numbers for the PIKE A1-A3 (2014-2017) are flipped! Otherwise this is GREAT. Thank you for doing this!
thanks for the comment. I'm not sure what to fix though. I copy and pasted from the rockshox catalog and did it again just to verify and it matched. when you get a moment can you help clarify so I can fix anything that is off. It would be much appreciated 👍
Thank you very much. I'd stick with the 2.1. it just a question of time before they release an updated version of the charger 3. Considering winter is coming I'd wait.
Great explanation! I'm glad there are people who have this job and for free! I have a PIKE SELECT fork and I switched to the CHARGER 2.1 RCT3. I have a doubt... In the FIRM position, does the suspension lock completely? I apologize for the English, I'm from Portugal!
Hi there, The "lockout Mode" won't lock the fork 100%. There will be some movement but it will take significant force to make it move when the fork is on the bike and extremely difficult to move by hand when the damper is removed from the fork. If you feel that there is to much movement, example: your easily able to move it up and down an inch or so without putting to much pressure when the fork is on the bike, or if you remove the damper and you can easily move the shaft by hand when in lockout mode, than something is wrong. this could be due to a bad seal. Hopefully this helps a bit
Excellent video, thanks for taking the time! I see you put oil in the spring side upper - everything I've read from RockShox says grease only (for all Pikes). Do have different info?
Thanks for the compliment. When Rockshox released the C1 head they made a minor change the service procedure in the service manual, which is to add a bit of oil on top of the piston prior to inserting the air spring assembly into the air side upper tube. IMO they should have advised this many years ago. This small change plus regular 50-hour service will without a doubt spoil you once your settings are dialed in. It’s really is a great time to be into mountain biking. Let me know if you have any other questions or comments 👍
You mentioned that the bolt you use to bleed the damper is an M8. Do you know the thread pitch? Also approximately how long is optimal? Thanks so much for the great video I'm about to take this on.
M8 1.25 (course). as for lengths, I'd go with 3 or 4 inch. The fender washers is what makes it more comfortable to hold. also, please note in the "a Please read" in the description section. While recording I didn't realise that the c1 head (the red barrel on the air piston) wasn't pushed up against the black bumper when installing the air spring. make sure that ALL parts of the air spring are pushed to the top when installing the air spring into the fork upper stanchion. let em know if you have any other questions
I have a Rockshox 30 silver TK and I have an issue regarding this fork. The rebound knob is not making clicking sounds while trying to adjust the rebound damping, it just slides round and round smoothly and also it is harder to push the knob in its position. Can you tell me what is causing the problem? Do I need to replace the rebound damper with new one?
Did you check to see if the issue is with the Allen key that is attached to the rebound knob? Is it freely spinning in the knob when applying pressure? if yes then just replace the knob. You can test the damper without the knob by inserting a 2.5mm Allen key (assuming its 2.5mm on the 30 silver), just make sure the Allen is long enough. try both first and let me know how it goes. hopefully its a quick fix
awesome video, thank you! I have a pike FS-PIKE-RCT3-A2 from 2014-2017. I did both the debonair air spring and charger 2.1 damper upgrades. the seal head on the airspring is definitely the pre C type, ie smaller than C seal head. Will the seals in the regular 200 hour service kit for my original fork model work? how can i get replacement seal head and damper replacement parts? Thank you again, your vid is really helpful!
I don't know why I'm second-guessing myself right now, but I'm 99% sure the answer is yes. The seal head seals between your version debonair and the c1 should be the same. I have a spare c1 sitting in a drawer, and your air spring is in a fork, on a bike that's hanging from my bedroom ceiling. A part of me is dying to open it just to make sure I am accurate on this. But I'm pretty sure I am. fyi, I'll be recording the service again very soon in the newer setup so it much brighter and clearer. just and fyi. thanks for the kind comment and for watching the video
i have the same fork RCT3 B1 2018, but in 2020 i upgraded the airshaft to 160m debonair. Will the rockshox 200hr kit have the correct seals for this new airshaft? or will i need a seperate kit for this shaft as well? thanks, love you vids.
Thanks for the comments. I’m assuming the 160mm upgrade was with the C1 air spring. if that’s the case then the 200h part number: 00.4315.032.646 has all the seals needed for the 200h service. The other part number: 00.4318.025.020, comes with the seal head. The air spring seals are the same between the original seal head (shorter) and the C1 Head (larger). I’m adding the 200h service kit part numbers for the different pike fork chassis (2014 and on) in the description to help. It can get real confusing
Hi there, Is it safe for me to assume that its a 2020 pike DJ fork? If yes, then I don't think the internals changed much from previous few years of the pike DJ, meaning that there will be some differences (best way to know for sure is to lookup your serial number in the Rockshox trailhead tool trailhead.rockshox.com/en/search/ ) From what I know the DJ uses the original charger damper so the bleed process would be different, though the damper seal head portion would be the same. As for the air spring, since its a dual piston things will look quite different when after removing the air spring (you'll have a DPA piston, Wave rings etc as opposed to the C1 piston you see in the video). The overall process will be the same though. you just need to make sure you install all the parts in the same order that you removed them. taking a picture of the air spring after removing will help with this. but again I will say that if the fork does have the original changer damper then the bleed process is different and a bit trickier. its one of the changes they made to the charger 2.0 and higher dampers, which simplified the process
Hi can I ask you some info about my fork? I have a pike with charger 2.1, it is suggested to use maxima plush 3wt, but i already have the rockshox 3 wt. Can I just use the one I already have?
YUP! That's what I'm running in my 2.1. Just remember to take your time with the bleed. its a super important part of the process. Have fun with servicing the fork and let me know if you have any other questions.
@@Leo-wf7qc M8 (Metric 8mm) threaded bolt. chose a length that's comfortable for you. I went with a 4 inch but could have easily used a 3 inch. You can buy them at any hardware store, home depot etc. no need to buy the fancier metals. altogether with washers and nut should cost a buck or two.
Great video, wanted to get an idea on servicing. I’ve just upgraded my Coil Recon to a 2023 Pike Ultimate. Any chance you’ll do a video for these with the new Charger 3.0 damper?
@@zoubtube I’ve subscribed so I’ll keep an eye out for it. Winter now in the UK so I probably won’t put much use on it until spring, so will be a while until I get to the service. Had no idea what bleeding the damper involved from going through the RS manual. So the videos helped massively giving a better idea of what’s involved.
@@Justin-ny6un Thanks for subscribing. I'm looking forward to picking one up. I wanted to buy one this past summer, but to say this least it was a oddball year. barely any plans panned out. its winter here as well so there's no rush at the moment but I'll definitely make a service video when I get it. Currently working on a new recording setup as I plan on making more repair videos this winter so the videos should turn out clearer than they were 👍
Do you mean the upper portion of the damper (the compression Assembly)? There is no need to. Since 2017 Rockshox hasn't offered parts or seals for the upper portion of this fork (and many other fork models) to the public. Only the rebound assembly has serviceable parts. Can it be opened? Yes. Have I opened one? Yes, a few times as I used to own a 2016 that was a very similar design, and the last year they offered serviceable parts for the compression assembly. I sold that fork about a year before making these videos, and I haven't come across one since. It's actually a bit of a PITA to service the upper. Hence, starting in 2017, they removed it as a self-service offering to the public. FYI, I released an updated service video for this fork last week. It should be much brighter and clearer to follow. Here is teh link. ruclips.net/video/LeGplbNQEbo/видео.html
In future you dont ever apply sram butter to the dust wipers you already creating dirty , secondly inside air side you dont through oil trying to seal sram butter good enough,
I recently released an updated video for this fork, which is much brighter and clearer. ruclips.net/video/LeGplbNQEbo/видео.html I'm assuming a translator was used for your comment and that it might not have been translated correctly. I will still try to respond new Rockshox wipers come with grease on them. I add more grease to the inside of the wipers, as it helps create a moisture and dirt barrier, and it also helps keep the foam rings and upper bushings lubricated. The job of the foam ring is to collect dirt, which it will still do with the added grease. As for the oil in the air spring side, adding a bit of oil to the grease helps lower the viscosity and makes the air piston work with less friction. Adding oil to the top of the air spring lowers friction as well. This is recommended by rockshox If these don't answer your comments, then please leave a comment in your language, and I will try to translate it on my side thanks for watching
What year Lyric rc? Just an fyi, I came across a really good price for a charger 2.1 upgrade for lyric/yari. if its compatible with your year fork and haven't already done so it might be something to think about. here's are the links. planetcyclery.com/rockshox-charger2-1-rc2-damper-upgrade-kit-fits-lyrik-b1-yari-a1-2016?gclid=CjwKCAiAyfybBhBKEiwAgtB7fr_K-aSO77LIAibcXVGxkHWredWgbyK_p3wnAx5pxxnJUXiqTwUcQxoCgmkQAvD_BwE www.coloradocyclist.com/rockshox-charger2-1-rc2-damper-upgrade-kit-fits-lyrik-b1-yari-a1-2016?gclid=CjwKCAiAyfybBhBKEiwAgtB7frbaYfs2MUmvzLayyr0gOAjFqg-XVb6JT66apla01exYjWP9xy01pRoCILsQAvD_BwE
@@wilhelmw6140 Thanks for the sub. 👍 The 2019 lyrik RC has the charger 2.0 and the debonair so everything will be nearly the same besides some minor details (ex: damper control knob, air spring head (unless you upgraded to the C1 already, If you don’t have the C1, worldwide has 15% off at the moment if you’re interested) www.worldwidecyclery.com/products/rockshox-seal-head-upgrade-kit-debonair-c1-35mm-seal-head-lyrik-yari-a1-2016-pike-b1-revelation-a1-2018 Still, I would check the serial number at trailhead.rockshox.com/en/ just to be certain of the model fork. The RC2 2.1 damper in the link will work with your fork btw. Depending on your where you mostly ride, that could end up being a nice upgrade for a really great price! I’m really tempted to buy one but I’m going to stick to the original plan and buy the 2023 pike for that particular bike instead.
My apologies for the delayed response. If you're talking about the fork not retracting when removing the air from the air spring, this is not an issue. Hold the fork vertically, use an Allen key to press the valve, and apply pressure downward as air is removed. At the end, make sure to remove the Allen key before releasing the downward pressure on the fork. Do this two times, and you will be good to move forward with removing the lower boots.
Here is a crucial tip rockshox has not included in their instructions. Newer rockshox suspension products use maxima plush suspension fluid, so whenever you are servicing a fork if you use maxima fluid you need to use sram butter on the o-rings and the shaft NOT dynamic seal grease. If you use the rockshox brand fluid then use the dynamic seal grease. I talked with rockshox tech support and asked for clarification and this is the rule they told me to follow for fork services. Guess maxima doesn’t play nice with the dynamic seal grease. Also to prevent the air spring sucking up into the stanchion while letting air out in preparation for a service actuate the fork every 10psi you let out. This will equalize the positive and negative air chambers so you will end up with very little air pressure in the negative air chamber so it can be easily removed. More importantly it is crucial to make sure the negative air seal is pushed up all the way to the top of the air spring to it is I contact with the bump stopper and you can’t see any of the shaft at the top. The entire air spring assembly needs to be together when you reinstall it into the lower or else you will trap air in the negative air chamber and cause suck up, losing some of the small bump compliance of your fork. In the video you can see he leaves a huge gap between the top of the air spring and the negative air seal head, there is a small air exchange dimple on the inside of the stanchion this is how the air pressure gets equalized between positive and negative when you cycle the fork. When you leave a large gap the top of the air spring will pass this port, trapping an amount of air related to how much distance is between the top of the air spring and the negative air seal. When you get the c clip back in and pull on the air spring you will be fighting against the air pressure stuck in the negative air chamber. You can see in the video how his air spring is already sucked up into the stanchion because he has air trapped. This won’t be fixed by just inflating the positive air chamber and cycling it, there will always be a little extra air stuck so you will notice your fork when unweighted if you pull the legs down they will suck up a small amount and you will lose 5-10mm of travel depending on how bad it is. Proper technique is to install the air spring with all the parts close together then after the c clip is installed slightly burp the air spring to purge any small amount of air that may have gotten trapped you do this after you have installed the top to the air spring just push up slightly and you will hear it equalize then stop pushing and pull it down. Then inflate the air chamber to 25-30 psi so that you prevent a vacuum from forming when you re install the lower legs. All these steps, while seemingly minor and nitpicky are crucial to eliminating trapped air and suck down. These recommendations are from rockshox, push suspension, and volsprung and I work professionally on suspension. Attention to detail is the key to a professional level service.
Holy cow, he's back from the dead! 😁
Awesome Feedback myman. This is exactly what I was hoping for when making these videos. People helping each other with servicing their bikes. I was unware that maxima fluids had a compatibility issues with dynamic grease, but then again, I've only been using rockshox fluids up to now for both mine and others forks as I still have a bunch of those oils sitting around from a sale a took advantage of a while back.
As for the airspring install to avoid suckup,, GREAT Catch! I must of gone through each clip a handful of times when editing this video and was so distracted with the editing part that I didn't notice this detail until you mentioned it. so many distractions when making these videos.
To all out there. At around 38:10, when installing the airspring into the upper fork tube, you will notice that the head of the airspring is near the middle of the shaft. make sure to push the airspring to the top of the shaft prior to installing it into the upper fork tube. I will say for those who have a C1 head and B1 pike chassis you should be ok as rockshox pretty much solved the suckup issue with this head. but still, this is good practice in general.. I will add this to the video description
Thanks for the input bob 👍
@@zoubtube lol I'm always with yooouuu. But for real I do a lot of suspension work in my job as a bike mechanic and the instruction say you can use either sram butter or dynamic seal grease, but then in the steps they switch randomly. So I called their dealer support and talked with their suspension guys and they told me about the maxima/dynamic seal grease thing. I need to ask them about the shocks though cause all the info says use dynamic seal grease. I think it has something to do with the weight but ill find out!
Thanks wonderful tip
@@zoubtube Rockshox Service manual suggests you use the Maxima Suspension Lube LIGHT for the lowers and HEAVY for the uppers. Searching online it seems pretty clear that rockshox 0W-30 is a direct alternative to the LIGHT lube but I can't find anywhere that suggests it's okay to use in place of the HEAVY lube. The service manual states HEAVY should be used in the air spring uppers. In this video he uses 0W-30 in the uppers and I just want to confirm that's okay to use.
Thanks!
@@MoCoBomb per the manual:
Maxima PLUSH Dynamic Suspension Lube Heavy or RockShox 0w-30 Suspension Oil
Maxima PLUSH Dynamic Suspension Lube Light or RockShox 0w-30 Suspension Oil
either way its 0w-30, which works just fine. I've been using it on one of my pikes that has a ridiculous amount of miles on it with no issues so far. I do keep up with the 50 hours best I can though which personally I think offers teh greatest benefits.
one side note, I can't believe how archaic my first video look 😅. I'm going to redo them so they can be clearer
Top tip! ALWAYS wash your fork clean, so that no dirt will get insider the fork when you take your fork apart.
absolutely a necessity. thanks for mentioning it as I forgot to in the video! 👍
Did my first ever 50 hour service, thanks too your guide 👍
Super helpful. I’ve done this procedure just from the manual a couple times but I don’t do it often. Your video was a great realtime companion that gave me confidence in what I’m doing.
Great to hear it helped you out. I plan on re-recording some of those older fork and shock videos with the new setup in order for them to be brighter and clearer. 👍
By far the best video I’ve seen on a fork rebuild! I can’t stress that enough man.
Much appreciated myman. hopefully it helped out a bit. more videos to come. Fox fork video coming soon
Just completed the 200 hr service with your vid, nice work
Glad to hear it worked out for you. After a few rides of dialing it in I'm sure your going to love it.
Most thorough video I’ve seen of the 200 hour service. I’m getting ready to do mine. I wanted to confirm what the red Locktite you were using.
Thanks for the compliment my man. Much appreciated. I'm assuming your asking for the airsping side. I mainly use red 271. I've never tried blue but i wouldn't be surprised if it would work just as well. Enjoy the rebuild. I love doing them. it's like therapy. Just finished up a FOX 34 along with a dpx2 for friends. I'll be posting those soon. Let me know if you have other questions. 👍
I was going to ask the same question. I was a motorcycle mechanic for many years before getting my mechanical engineering degree. Red was reserved for things that your really didn't want to take apart again while blue maintains the future serviceability of the part. I would recommend blue in that case. My DVO shock also uses Loctite and they also use the blue. Really great video and comments.
Oh, wondering what the metric thread size is on the $1. tool you made. You might have mentioned it but I guess I missed that. Very good idea.
And love to see a list of some of the tools like the fork seal removal and insertion tool and even the vise (Fortus?) and jaws. Would the SRAM brake bleed fittings fit the damper or is this another special tool for forks? Thanks for putting this out, so helpful and clearly done.
I believe the bolt Heath was referring to is the one that connects the air spring shaft to the lower boots. It takes a non-stop rattling of a beating, which is my guess why both rockshox and fox recommend Red. Fox actually recommend using heat prior to removing this bolt. I'm sure blue will work, but I'd have to go with the manufacture recommendation on this one.
An M8 Bolt with fender washers that are comfortable for your hand in size will work
"Would the SRAM brake bleed fittings fit the damper" GREAT question! I just tried the rockshox bleed fitting on a Guide ultimate brake lever, and it fits perfectly, so I have to assume the SRAM fitting will work with the damper for a bleed. It never occurred to me to look into this. Thanks for the insight. If anyone out there tries this, Make ABSOLUTELY sure to clean out any residual DOT fluid in the syringe before the bleed process
The Vise I bought from Harbor Freight. I believe the name is central Forge. It's a simple 2.5 inch vise but comes in handy. they sell if for around $30 now.. Amazon has similar ones that are 3.5 inch for the same money, which I would have bought if I knew at the time.
The tool I use for the seal removal is the Icetoolz tire lever. Any similar style tire lever tool with a plastic coating on it will work. It really helps with not chipping paint on the lowers
@@zoubtube Thanks. Yes heat works loosing up red loctite but if there's enough red I've seen things not come apart without heat. Thanks.
Thanks for the tutorial. Must've have watched this a hundred times haha. Which torque wrench are you using?
So your the one watching them 😁The torque wrenches are snapon. the ATECH1FR240b for low torque settings and the ATECH2FR100B for mid torque settings. I'm a big fan of snapon torque wrenches, been using them for decades (started with rebuilding crotch rockets around 30 years ago) Id say they are a bit overkill for bikes, but torque wrenches are about precision, so no precise torque wrench is overkill imo. I bought them used years ago for a really great price and send them in to be calibrated to keep them precise, which is another nice thing about them. great support structure
2 years later and its still a great video with a great comments section. I haven't watched the whole video yet, but at 15:38 you show stuffing a paper towel on a stick down to clean out the lower boot. I expect you've haven't had a problem, but wouldn't a lint free material be a better option for wiping any of the inside parts?
Thank you very much for the thoughtful comment. Whenever I see some of the first videos, it feels the same as when I see old pictures of my grandma's parents. They look like they were from a lifetime ago, yet it's only been about 2 years. I'm still amazed at how much there was to learn, and how much there is still to learn, when it comes to making these videos
To answer our question. Yes! It is better to use a lint-free cloth like Scott shop towels. If you don't have them handy, then bounty paper towels work great as well and won't do any harm to the lowers. Those two are all I've used for the last 20 or so years. I basically buy them in bulk when they go on sale at Costco. I will say that I find the bounty towels to be much more effective in general than the Scott, though
Thanks again for the comment 👍
@@zoubtube I'm going through your video again and tooling up to do my first shock, a Rockshox Lyric. I bought the bike used and have no idea if the shock had ever seen service since it was new 2 owners ago. I'm going in with both feet. Thanks for the video.
@@joecanuck3751 If anything comes up or you have any questions let me know. where are you located?
@@zoubtube Alberta, up in the great white north. I have to order the parts and tools first. Thanks for the offer.
One tiny comment. I think in your description, the SKU numbers for the PIKE A1-A3 (2014-2017) are flipped! Otherwise this is GREAT. Thank you for doing this!
thanks for the comment. I'm not sure what to fix though. I copy and pasted from the rockshox catalog and did it again just to verify and it matched. when you get a moment can you help clarify so I can fix anything that is off. It would be much appreciated 👍
Great vid again ,thanks. Doing a 200hr service on a select+ 150mm with charger 2:1 rc damper, would you upgrade the damper it and to what ? Thanks
Thank you very much. I'd stick with the 2.1. it just a question of time before they release an updated version of the charger 3. Considering winter is coming I'd wait.
I also have the select + Fork. Is the whole procedure identical for that fork to?
Great explanation! I'm glad there are people who have this job and for free!
I have a PIKE SELECT fork and I switched to the CHARGER 2.1 RCT3. I have a doubt... In the FIRM position, does the suspension lock completely?
I apologize for the English, I'm from Portugal!
Hi there, The "lockout Mode" won't lock the fork 100%. There will be some movement but it will take significant force to make it move when the fork is on the bike and extremely difficult to move by hand when the damper is removed from the fork. If you feel that there is to much movement, example: your easily able to move it up and down an inch or so without putting to much pressure when the fork is on the bike, or if you remove the damper and you can easily move the shaft by hand when in lockout mode, than something is wrong. this could be due to a bad seal. Hopefully this helps a bit
Excellent video, thanks for taking the time! I see you put oil in the spring side upper - everything I've read from RockShox says grease only (for all Pikes). Do have different info?
Thanks for the compliment. When Rockshox released the C1 head they made a minor change the service procedure in the service manual, which is to add a bit of oil on top of the piston prior to inserting the air spring assembly into the air side upper tube. IMO they should have advised this many years ago. This small change plus regular 50-hour service will without a doubt spoil you once your settings are dialed in. It’s really is a great time to be into mountain biking. Let me know if you have any other questions or comments 👍
You mentioned that the bolt you use to bleed the damper is an M8. Do you know the thread pitch? Also approximately how long is optimal? Thanks so much for the great video I'm about to take this on.
M8 1.25 (course). as for lengths, I'd go with 3 or 4 inch. The fender washers is what makes it more comfortable to hold. also, please note in the "a Please read" in the description section. While recording I didn't realise that the c1 head (the red barrel on the air piston) wasn't pushed up against the black bumper when installing the air spring. make sure that ALL parts of the air spring are pushed to the top when installing the air spring into the fork upper stanchion. let em know if you have any other questions
Thank you! I saw Bob Saget's comment and I'll be sure to pay attention to that step. Thanks again.
Thank you, great tutorial clear and concise.
Thank you so much for this!
Thank you for watching, more vid to come
I have a Rockshox 30 silver TK and I have an issue regarding this fork. The rebound knob is not making clicking sounds while trying to adjust the rebound damping, it just slides round and round smoothly and also it is harder to push the knob in its position. Can you tell me what is causing the problem? Do I need to replace the rebound damper with new one?
Did you check to see if the issue is with the Allen key that is attached to the rebound knob? Is it freely spinning in the knob when applying pressure? if yes then just replace the knob. You can test the damper without the knob by inserting a 2.5mm Allen key (assuming its 2.5mm on the 30 silver), just make sure the Allen is long enough. try both first and let me know how it goes. hopefully its a quick fix
awesome video, thank you! I have a pike FS-PIKE-RCT3-A2 from 2014-2017. I did both the debonair air spring and charger 2.1 damper upgrades. the seal head on the airspring is definitely the pre C type, ie smaller than C seal head. Will the seals in the regular 200 hour service kit for my original fork model work? how can i get replacement seal head and damper replacement parts? Thank you again, your vid is really helpful!
forgot to mention above that my pike is a solo air spring. I didn't see my shock in the description box. thanks again!
I don't know why I'm second-guessing myself right now, but I'm 99% sure the answer is yes. The seal head seals between your version debonair and the c1 should be the same. I have a spare c1 sitting in a drawer, and your air spring is in a fork, on a bike that's hanging from my bedroom ceiling. A part of me is dying to open it just to make sure I am accurate on this. But I'm pretty sure I am. fyi, I'll be recording the service again very soon in the newer setup so it much brighter and clearer. just and fyi. thanks for the kind comment and for watching the video
Really well done
Gracias por el video. Muy explicativo y claro.
Gracias por tomarse el tiempo para verlo. Esperemos que ayude a hacer el trabajo más fácil. Hazme saber si tienes alguna pregunta.
i have the same fork RCT3 B1 2018, but in 2020 i upgraded the airshaft to 160m debonair. Will the rockshox 200hr kit have the correct seals for this new airshaft? or will i need a seperate kit for this shaft as well? thanks, love you vids.
Thanks for the comments. I’m assuming the 160mm upgrade was with the C1 air spring. if that’s the case then the 200h part number: 00.4315.032.646 has all the seals needed for the 200h service. The other part number: 00.4318.025.020, comes with the seal head.
The air spring seals are the same between the original seal head (shorter) and the C1 Head (larger).
I’m adding the 200h service kit part numbers for the different pike fork chassis (2014 and on) in the description to help. It can get real confusing
@@zoubtube you are really on the ball man, i am very thankful!
Hi, Kindly I own a PIKE RCT3 26 "160/130 mm Dual Position 2020, is the maintenance the same? thank you
Hi there, Is it safe for me to assume that its a 2020 pike DJ fork? If yes, then I don't think the internals changed much from previous few years of the pike DJ, meaning that there will be some differences (best way to know for sure is to lookup your serial number in the Rockshox trailhead tool trailhead.rockshox.com/en/search/ )
From what I know the DJ uses the original charger damper so the bleed process would be different, though the damper seal head portion would be the same.
As for the air spring, since its a dual piston things will look quite different when after removing the air spring (you'll have a DPA piston, Wave rings etc as opposed to the C1 piston you see in the video). The overall process will be the same though. you just need to make sure you install all the parts in the same order that you removed them. taking a picture of the air spring after removing will help with this.
but again I will say that if the fork does have the original changer damper then the bleed process is different and a bit trickier. its one of the changes they made to the charger 2.0 and higher dampers, which simplified the process
@@zoubtube Thancs Absolute Respect
Excellent video
Thanks. I plan on updating this video in the near future so it can be brighter and clearer. just an fyi.
Thank you for taking the time to put this video together. Well done.
Glad it worked for you. more to come soon now that things are settling down a bit.
Hi can I ask you some info about my fork? I have a pike with charger 2.1, it is suggested to use maxima plush 3wt, but i already have the rockshox 3 wt. Can I just use the one I already have?
YUP! That's what I'm running in my 2.1. Just remember to take your time with the bleed. its a super important part of the process. Have fun with servicing the fork and let me know if you have any other questions.
@@zoubtube Thanks , another question: which is the diameter of the screw from the tool you built?
@@Leo-wf7qc M8 (Metric 8mm) threaded bolt. chose a length that's comfortable for you. I went with a 4 inch but could have easily used a 3 inch. You can buy them at any hardware store, home depot etc. no need to buy the fancier metals. altogether with washers and nut should cost a buck or two.
@@zoubtube You are such a kind person, thank you for your time.
@@Leo-wf7qc Anytime Myman. Take your time and all should go well. and if you have any other questions let me know 👍
Great video, wanted to get an idea on servicing. I’ve just upgraded my Coil Recon to a 2023 Pike Ultimate. Any chance you’ll do a video for these with the new Charger 3.0 damper?
yup! that's the plan. if All goes well I should have a 3.0 for next season. At the moment I'm waiting for seals kits for fox shocks and forks.
@@zoubtube I’ve subscribed so I’ll keep an eye out for it. Winter now in the UK so I probably won’t put much use on it until spring, so will be a while until I get to the service. Had no idea what bleeding the damper involved from going through the RS manual. So the videos helped massively giving a better idea of what’s involved.
@@Justin-ny6un Thanks for subscribing. I'm looking forward to picking one up. I wanted to buy one this past summer, but to say this least it was a oddball year. barely any plans panned out. its winter here as well so there's no rush at the moment but I'll definitely make a service video when I get it. Currently working on a new recording setup as I plan on making more repair videos this winter so the videos should turn out clearer than they were 👍
Why did you not take apart the damper .
Do you mean the upper portion of the damper (the compression Assembly)? There is no need to. Since 2017 Rockshox hasn't offered parts or seals for the upper portion of this fork (and many other fork models) to the public. Only the rebound assembly has serviceable parts.
Can it be opened? Yes. Have I opened one? Yes, a few times as I used to own a 2016 that was a very similar design, and the last year they offered serviceable parts for the compression assembly. I sold that fork about a year before making these videos, and I haven't come across one since. It's actually a bit of a PITA to service the upper. Hence, starting in 2017, they removed it as a self-service offering to the public.
FYI, I released an updated service video for this fork last week. It should be much brighter and clearer to follow. Here is teh link. ruclips.net/video/LeGplbNQEbo/видео.html
In future you dont ever apply sram butter to the dust wipers you already creating dirty , secondly inside air side you dont through oil trying to seal sram butter good enough,
I recently released an updated video for this fork, which is much brighter and clearer.
ruclips.net/video/LeGplbNQEbo/видео.html
I'm assuming a translator was used for your comment and that it might not have been translated correctly. I will still try to respond
new Rockshox wipers come with grease on them. I add more grease to the inside of the wipers, as it helps create a moisture and dirt barrier, and it also helps keep the foam rings and upper bushings lubricated. The job of the foam ring is to collect dirt, which it will still do with the added grease.
As for the oil in the air spring side, adding a bit of oil to the grease helps lower the viscosity and makes the air piston work with less friction. Adding oil to the top of the air spring lowers friction as well. This is recommended by rockshox
If these don't answer your comments, then please leave a comment in your language, and I will try to translate it on my side
thanks for watching
is it the same for the lyrik rc?
What year Lyric rc? Just an fyi, I came across a really good price for a charger 2.1 upgrade for lyric/yari. if its compatible with your year fork and haven't already done so it might be something to think about. here's are the links.
planetcyclery.com/rockshox-charger2-1-rc2-damper-upgrade-kit-fits-lyrik-b1-yari-a1-2016?gclid=CjwKCAiAyfybBhBKEiwAgtB7fr_K-aSO77LIAibcXVGxkHWredWgbyK_p3wnAx5pxxnJUXiqTwUcQxoCgmkQAvD_BwE
www.coloradocyclist.com/rockshox-charger2-1-rc2-damper-upgrade-kit-fits-lyrik-b1-yari-a1-2016?gclid=CjwKCAiAyfybBhBKEiwAgtB7frbaYfs2MUmvzLayyr0gOAjFqg-XVb6JT66apla01exYjWP9xy01pRoCILsQAvD_BwE
@@zoubtube 2019. oh man, thanks a lot, appreciate it. got my sub:)
@@wilhelmw6140 Thanks for the sub. 👍
The 2019 lyrik RC has the charger 2.0 and the debonair so everything will be nearly the same besides some minor details (ex: damper control knob, air spring head (unless you upgraded to the C1 already, If you don’t have the C1, worldwide has 15% off at the moment if you’re interested)
www.worldwidecyclery.com/products/rockshox-seal-head-upgrade-kit-debonair-c1-35mm-seal-head-lyrik-yari-a1-2016-pike-b1-revelation-a1-2018
Still, I would check the serial number at trailhead.rockshox.com/en/ just to be certain of the model fork.
The RC2 2.1 damper in the link will work with your fork btw. Depending on your where you mostly ride, that could end up being a nice upgrade for a really great price! I’m really tempted to buy one but I’m going to stick to the original plan and buy the 2023 pike for that particular bike instead.
@@zoubtube you're helping me out a lot, glad that there are some people out there like you! perfect video, keep up the good work. really nice guy:)
@@zoubtube one last question, whats the diameter of the threadtool?
Instead of "him" can you call it "daddy"?
figuring out if its a him, her, he, she is pretty confusing these day, but I'm pretty sure daddy or mommy aren't don't fit for pronouns here 😉
My fork does not go down like that when I let the air out. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks
My apologies for the delayed response. If you're talking about the fork not retracting when removing the air from the air spring, this is not an issue. Hold the fork vertically, use an Allen key to press the valve, and apply pressure downward as air is removed. At the end, make sure to remove the Allen key before releasing the downward pressure on the fork. Do this two times, and you will be good to move forward with removing the lower boots.