I have a 2007 Trek Fuel EX8 and decided to do the fork service on my own for the first time. The fork is a Fox Float 130 RL. The Fox guide says: "The anodizing on the upper tubes should be examined. If the anodizing has worn off due to lack of service, replacement of the upper tube assembly is recommended." When inspecting the stanchion tubes, it looks like there is wear on the Spring side. The anodizing has worn off, and I can feel slight grooves in that one section. I'm assuming the section is just about where the dust seals rest when the shock is unsprung, and the grooves go for maybe 2.5 inches. Should I ignore and re-assemble? The worst that could happen is that oil could leak out, right? Can I buy a replacement steerer tube? How much do those cost?
LOL....I don't think there was any oil left to leak. No air pressure issues. The shock seemed to work perfectly before I dismantled it.
So was it leaking oil? Or not filled from the factory? I heard of some Fox 36's not having any oil from the factory.
It has never leaked oil....the shock is slightly over 1 year old. Bought the bike in Dec 2007 and quit riding it in Jan 2008 (to force myself to redo the shock & replace the brakes....who knew riding the old hardtail was actually so much fun???) Don't know about the factory oil....The other side dripped tons of oil when I bled it. The Spring side barely dripped oil. I'm talking maybe a couple drips of black sludge.....The top section with the fox fluid for the air chamber had tons more fluid.
That's a common issue with Fox... stanchions replacement are extremely expensive, and require to replace both and the steerer. If you know what are you doing, get yourself Enduro seals and you'll be fine. If you need any help you can PM me. :beer:
I was speaking with one of Fox's top wrenches(he travels around the country giving classes to bike shops, when he is not wrenching at races etc.) He said that enduro seals are not a good idea unless you plan on lubing your stanchions all of the time, that the Fox seals allow some of the oil to come up and lube the stanchions. He said the Enduro's are double seal design that does not allow oil to lube the stanchions like the single seal fox wipers. Check out Fox's Service site, it has step by step instructions with pictures it even has sections for the part numbers for all of their forks, and the exact amount of oil for each fork.
As Fox dealer and ton of... forks service behind the Enduro works much better, and longer. The double seal prevent the oil to leak out and the dirt to slide in. Yes you need to know how to work with Enduro to prevent extra friction and to shorten the break in period.
As always 2 sides to every coin, one requires more frequent oil changes, the other requires proper maintenance on the outside. :beer:
Just pick what kind of rider you are, honestly from beating the snot out of a lot of forks, if you want THE plushest fork, the stock fox seals are pretty damn good (I sit my fork upside down for a while after a run to allow some oil to pool under the seals) The enduro seals are great for nasty conditions, BUT what keeps the crap out, is the same thing that can add friction when they're dry. pick your poison....
I re-assembled the fork with the Fox seals and everything seems to work alright. I'll know pretty soon if it is leaking. Now that I've done it, re-doing the fork is pretty easy.
