All Fork Oils The Same?

[Ladd Jasper]

I plan to change the oil in the Pike this weekend, and was wondering if one might be superior to others out there. I've got some 5 wt. Finish Line I picked up for the Stumpy's OEM fork, but that was an old beat-up Axel. The Pike is a different animal, one I don't want to skimp on. Is fork oil just fork oil, or are there definite advantages to using a particular brand?

[TURNERob]

I'm sure the Finish Line would be fine, but I like to use Spectro or the synthetic Golden Spectro. Maxima is also good stuff. Its probably doubtful you'd really notice a difference so you may as well use what you have. Unless RS specifically recommends using synthetic then yours will be fine. The key is just to change the oil often enough, especially after initial break in.

[bananaseat]

Originally Posted by FXRob

I'm sure the Finish Line would be fine, but I like to use Spectro or the synthetic Golden Spectro. Maxima is also good stuff. Its probably doubtful you'd really notice a difference so you may as well use what you have. Unless RS specifically recommends using synthetic then yours will be fine. The key is just to change the oil often enough, especially after initial break in.

How often would you recommend fork oil changes??

Originally Posted by bananaseat

How often would you recommend fork oil changes??

It depends on how much you ride your bike I suppose. I thought I heard that its good to do it a few months after the initial break in period of the fork, then maybe once a year after that....again depending on how much you ride. When we did my Marzocchi, I was surprised at how dirty the oil was. I may do my Firefly pretty soon.

[CalEpic]

I changed mine after over two years of frequent riding. It was really feeling pretty bad. After the change, it felt like a new fork. I was amazed at the difference. 5 wt. Maxima Ladd. Enduro Fork Seals has pretty good instructions on their site if you haven't seen that before. Much more detailed than the Fox manual.

C

[Ladd Jasper]

Appreciate the responses, boys. Very helpful.

Craig, good call on the Enduro site--bunch of useful info. over there. Have you used their seals/wipers? They offer a Pike kit that looks like a decent upgrade over the stock setup, but I'd like some feedback first if you've got it.

Thanks again, all.

[TURNERob]

Yeah Craig put the Enduro seals on his Fox fork when he changed the oil.

I bought 2 sets, 1 for my Talas and 1 for my AM1......just haven't gotten around to putting them in yet. Looks like I may have to be sending in my Fox back to Push for a creaking crown so I'm glad I haven't touched it yet.

[CalEpic]

As Rob said, I used the Enduro seals for my Fox on the Epic. I'm not sure I can give an evaluation vs the stock seals since the ride quality on the stock ones degraded over time along with oil, but it was convenient to order, the price was good and I've never heard anything negative about them. For you, it's an added bonus since the seals are blue.

As I said earlier, the change in my fork is dramatic.

C

[Ladd Jasper]

Originally Posted by CalEpic

I'm not sure I can give an evaluation vs the stock seals since the ride quality on the stock ones degraded over time along with oil, but it was convenient to order, the price was good and I've never heard anything negative about them. For you, it's an added bonus since the seals are blue. C

Yeah, a seal's performance can be tough to quantify (there's a joke in there, I'm sure of it). I'd pretty much decided anything short of "they disintegrate upon contact with air" and I would order them. And so I have.

Thanks, C.