The off season is a great time to be thinking about servicing your MTB suspension. It not only makes the bike perform better, it also prolongs the life protecting from regular use and wear and tear.
Read more: Off Season, the perfect time for servicing MTB Shocks and SuspensionWhy?
MTB’s with suspension need quite a bit of care. If you have suspension then the likelihood is over the summer it’s been doing a lot of work for you on all those trails. Dirt, dust, moisture, friction and impacts all add up and take some of the freshness from your ride.
Suspension components tend to be very expensive and preventing wear is key to keeping your parts lasting a long time and running in the best performance. For front and rear suspension this might mean changing oil and replacing seals and wipers… we can get into that below.
No matter what type or brand of mountain bike you have – service is very important. A hidden benefit is also early identification of issues that could be safety related. Ultimately, staying on top of your shock maintenance is inexpensive insurance that makes your bike perform at it’s best.
When?
The off season is a great time to service, as you will have more time and if you use a bike shop they will have more availability than summer.
But how often do I need to do this? Luckily for us, there are guides to help us know when… bike service schedules just like your car! (schedules and links below)
On Rockshox front forks you can normally find the serial number on the backside of the fork close to where it attached to the frame. On
How?
No suspension service is for the novice, some procedures can be undertaken by a competent home mechanic and some require a very skilled bike shop technician. It all depends on the level of service.
First – Take a look at your bike and note the Brand of suspension components, there’s normally stickers and its likely to be either FOX or ROCKSHOX. Also take a note of the model name if it’s printed on the stickers or if you see a serial number this can help also.
Often it will require very specific tools and equipment to replace, service and repair if needed.
For looking up any service required you will need to know how old your bike is and approximately how much riding you have done. It’s also a good idea to think back to the general conditions, dry dusty, muddy wet etc.
Second – Use the info below and research your gear, find the manuals etc. Even if you are going to take to a bike shop, its worth a little bit of time to identify your components.
Helpful Info
SRAM / ROCKSHOX Service Intervals
For SRAM / ROCKSHOX Users – Lots of cool videos and information can be found here:
https://www.sram.com/en/service
https://www.youtube.com/@SRAMtech
Other Rockshox Cool Links
Trailhead is a stupid name but useful tool if you have Rockshox , it will guide your setup, service and spare parts…. https://trailhead.rockshox.com/en/
FOX Service Intervals
In general FOX service is every 125hours or yearly, whichever comes first. It’s a good idea to visit the FOX site and look up your particular model, theres a tab in the owners manual for Service intervals.
https://www.ridefox.com/fox17/help.php?m=bike&listall=manual
For FOX Users – Lots of cool videos and information can be found here:
https://www.ridefox.com/service.php?m=bike
https://www.ridefox.com/fox17/help.php?m=bike&ref=topnav
Summary
My advice on this is that since suspension is really expensive and you want it to perform amazingly, then take to your local bike shop. It’s worth the money and they can advise and order replacement seals or parts specific to your bike.
Questions? always welcome drop a comment below
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