fork, shock, and frame linkage maintenance?

littlev21

Active Member
lazy / cheap question. Do I really need to do maintenance on these items? It's not like it's cheap, and after three years, they both still air and seem to be working as new. disclaimer: I'm not a big tuning guy, I pretty much set it in the middle, forget about it, and ride. I just can't feel a big difference. If performance deteriorated over time, I'd likely not feel that. I had a reputable wrench tell me that i should wait and just fix it when it breaks. Honestly, I'm a bit concerned that tearing it apart might be detrimental. Along with that train of thought, how does the gang feel about a disassembly of a frame to inspect the frame, bearings, linkages, (and for my yeti bike the switch infinity) torque to specs, etc....(I'm leaning towards the frame maintenance, as having a frame shit the bed is a much more tragic thing.) Thanks is advance!!!
 

Paul H

Fearless OOS Poser
I check my pivot bearing about twice a year. It gets pretty filthy in there.

Recently did service on my Fox 36 and Float after about a year of use. Was relatively pretty clean. Prolly didn't need it.
The Reverb dropper on the other hand.... which was used for at least 2 years.... was disgusting.
 

shrpshtr325

Infinite Source of Sarcasm
Team MTBNJ Halter's
you dont notice the degradation on the suspension over time, it happens so gradually you adjust to it and it seems 'normal' to you (Unless you are one of a select few people). Where you WILL notice the improvement is after you get it back from service. I send my suspension (fork/shock) out once a year to fox for service, and it makes a huge difference every time.

I used to be on the wait till it breaks bandwagon with my suspension, then i had a fork that slowly lost travel over time, when i finally sent it in the fork was trashed and i had to replace it. Annual service is alot less expensive than replacing the suspension every 4 or 5 years.

as for the frame/pivot service, i would at the very least check the bearings to make sure they still spin free, after 3 years i would guess that they dont. I waited to year 2 for the first round of pivot bearings on my bike and they were mostly seized solid. This time around i did them at a year and half of them were seized solid. They see alot of crap and little cleaning (unless you take them apart regularly, but who does that). The bearings also only rotate maybe 1/4 turn and then back, this is NOT how ball bearings were designed to be used hence a shorter (by alot) service life compared to their claims.

short story, its worth it to do all of it on a regular basis.
 

johnbryanpeters

Well-Known Member
lazy / cheap question. Do I really need to do maintenance on these items? It's not like it's cheap, and after three years, they both still air and seem to be working as new. disclaimer: I'm not a big tuning guy, I pretty much set it in the middle, forget about it, and ride. I just can't feel a big difference. If performance deteriorated over time, I'd likely not feel that. I had a reputable wrench tell me that i should wait and just fix it when it breaks. Honestly, I'm a bit concerned that tearing it apart might be detrimental. Along with that train of thought, how does the gang feel about a disassembly of a frame to inspect the frame, bearings, linkages, (and for my yeti bike the switch infinity) torque to specs, etc....(I'm leaning towards the frame maintenance, as having a frame shit the bed is a much more tragic thing.) Thanks is advance!!!
Everything, annually, usually in December.
 

ebarker9

Well-Known Member
Sure, you can probably get away with longer maintenance intervals than what are specified, but...why? You mention a Yeti with switch infinity, so it's not like we're talking about cheap bikes. Seems worth it to do a bit of maintenance to keep it operating well, even if you're not that sensitive to setup changes. Otherwise, why have nice stuff?

Not sure what kind of "reputable" wrench would advocate ignoring bike maintenance until things break.
 

Santapez

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Aren't those Yeti's susceptible to the Kashima on the slides wearing off destroying them when there is too much dirt and the seals not replaced? Seems like an easy maintenance item right there.
 

JonF

Well-Known Member
I sent my fork+shock in last week for fox factory service. Hadn't heard back from them so gave them a call to get an update. Was told the turnaround time right now is about 3 WEEKS! Yowza, i might have thought twice about that since the weather is drying up and i'm anxious to ride.

Sad Ripley is gonna ride like shit being converted to RIGID. 😭


IMG_20210224_194100.jpg
 

shrpshtr325

Infinite Source of Sarcasm
Team MTBNJ Halter's
i sent mine in early Jan, from the time i dropped it off with UPS to the time i had it back was 13 days, including shipping.

This time of year (as it starts to warm up) is their busy season since everyone wants to ride again
 

JonF

Well-Known Member
Nope. You can pay for expedited service though.

Our turnaround time is dependent on various factors, including:

• When your product is received at one of the two Factory Service Centers
• The number of previously pending services at the time your product is received
• The amount of time it takes to receive approval and payment information for a paid service
 

shrpshtr325

Infinite Source of Sarcasm
Team MTBNJ Halter's
when i sent mine fork/shock back in january the email with the RMA number had an estimated lead time from receipt with the noted caveat that it would a FIFO situation and it could be longer depending on where it landed in the que, when they called with an estimate it was cost and service time.
 

JonF

Well-Known Member
maybe when the service time ramps up, they go with the more open ended statement above (that was in the conf email then sent me) to account for the volume increase.

Looks like in the mean time, i'm riding my 180mm park bike on my local XC trails. Its gonna suck pedaling those Michelin wild enduros through the sand. 😄
 

jdgang

Well-Known Member
fully rigid single speed hardtail, problem solved. As for a real answer once I started during the lower service on my forks, i do notice when it needs it. I do try to preform the service about every 4-6 months. I own hardtails so I cant really talk about the rear
 

Karate Monkey

Well-Known Member
3 weeks is pretty normal for factory service from Fox. I don't think we've ever received something back sooner unless it was a total warranty or expedited (and the expedited service doesn't guarantee fast, just jumping in the queue).
 

JonF

Well-Known Member
3 weeks is pretty normal for factory service from Fox. I don't think we've ever received something back sooner unless it was a total warranty or expedited (and the expedited service doesn't guarantee fast, just jumping in the queue).
OTOH, i've commonly seen people comment that "fox service is super fast, like 2-3 day turnaround time!" I guess that claim is valid... once they actually get to your parts in the queue. But the implication there is 2-3 days total and them back out on the ups truck.
 

Karate Monkey

Well-Known Member
OTOH, i've commonly seen people comment that "fox service is super fast, like 2-3 day turnaround time!" I guess that claim is valid... once they actually get to your parts in the queue. But the implication there is 2-3 days total and them back out on the ups truck.

I mean, sure, I guess. They used to have a scheduling program, and I suppose that you could have dropped it off/picked it up in person. The 2-3 days thing is receive it, evaluate it, repair/ship it. I'd say it's pretty accurate, as the factory service guys can do a full tear down of even a fit4 fork in about an hour-and-a-half. The other damper is way easier to service.
 

sundaydoug

Well-Known Member
I just can't feel a big difference. If performance deteriorated over time, I'd likely not feel that.

This is a trap many people fall into. You don't realize how much performance deteriorates over the course of a few seasons until you gets things serviced and feel the difference.

"Ohhhh, that's what it should feel like"
 
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