How can I stop Rockshox poploc sticking?

EddGee
EddGee Posts: 12
edited January 2014 in MTB workshop & tech
Hi folks,

apologies if this has been asked before and chances are it probably has but can anyone advise regarding Rock Shox Poplock's.

I recently bought a Cube Reaction XT with Rock Shox Reba Race U-Turn, 85-115 mm with Motion Control & Poplock lockout.

The issue I have is that after a few muddy & gloopy rides the poplock system is sticking a little and is reluctant to 'spring back' when I push the loc release button.

I currently have to press the release button and push the lever back with my finger and it does spring back with a little assistance. Surely this can't be right?

Has dirt, grime or water got in somewhere? I always clean the bike with a watering can and sponge after every ride and stay well away from pressure washers or high power hoses, so can anyone assist or point me in the right direction?

Cheers

Comments

  • ride_whenever
    ride_whenever Posts: 13,279
    I'd clean out the inner cable and give the lever a bit of tlc, a good clean and some lube.

    I'd also check the cable.

    The other thing is that the returning is not done by the little lever but by the spring loaded cap on your forks, dash of light lube and a wiggle seems to free mine up when it starts to stick.
    Neeermad
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  • nicklouse
    nicklouse Posts: 50,675
    clean the cables?

    how does the dial move without the cable attached?
    "Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
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  • Electricpics
    Electricpics Posts: 20
    I've got a Cube LTD Race with a Reba SL fork, and the same problem. It's caused (as ride_whenever said) by grit getting between the spring-loaded compression adjustment knob and the plate it's mounted on. A good clean and a squirt of muc-off bike spray works, as long as the excess spray's wiped well away.
  • maximus69
    maximus69 Posts: 347
    someone i know had this on his cube with reba forks, but he hadnt been anywhere on it when he noticed. take it back to the shop or a shop might be a fault?
    "My life is like a porno-movie, without the sex".
  • rd350lc
    rd350lc Posts: 84
    And that someone was me ... thank you Mark :).

    Yeah mine still do it,if I try to unlock the fork whilst its under load it will just stick so I just press the release button then pull up on the bars to take the load off the forks and it releases every time .... its no problem!!!

    Rich
  • SmogLee
    SmogLee Posts: 10
    rd350lc wrote:
    And that someone was me ... thank you Mark :).

    Yeah mine still do it,if I try to unlock the fork whilst its under load it will just stick so I just press the release button then pull up on the bars to take the load off the forks and it releases every time .... its no problem!!!

    Rich

    I'm sure this is just a characteristic. it's not sticking. Just needs the forks to move before release.
  • maximus69
    maximus69 Posts: 347
    didnt know yours did that, i was talking about andys cube. weird.
    "My life is like a porno-movie, without the sex".
  • mattrixdesign2
    mattrixdesign2 Posts: 644
    I am having this problem on my Rebas/Poploc on a Cube, will try some of these soutions, anyone else solved this?

    I must admit the poploc is pretty cheap looking plastic, tempted to just go to having adjustment on the fork.
  • Twelly
    Twelly Posts: 1,437
    Pop the blue cap on the top of the fork off. Dust and grit gets inside. Clean it and a dab of grease and it should be fine for a while.
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  • YateleyChap
    YateleyChap Posts: 24
    Put it in the bin and just adjust at the fork. I've been through 2 remotes since May on a 2013 Reba solo air and have come to the conclusion that the poploc remote unit is simply cheap plastic rubbish with internals that disintegrate after moderate to heavy regular usage. Sorry that's not very constructive help but I've been trying to sort this out myself for a while with zero success. At first I thought it was an issue with the damper internals, but it's definitely the remote unit itself. Shame really as the forks aren't cheap and perform fantastically in every other way. I've rigged mine to stay in the open position and to be honest I don't miss locking out the fork at all.
  • shindig
    shindig Posts: 173
    Get an old thumbshifter and use that. I have a DX one on my Revelations and it works well.
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  • rockmonkeysc
    rockmonkeysc Posts: 14,774
    Best thing to do with a poploc is bin it. I have had two and they are hopeless. The lever is a terrible design.
    My Revelations have got a poploc which works the opposite way to normal so if I remove the lever I need to remove the return spring in the compression damper. It's a stupid bloody thing and I can't understand who would ever want it on a fork like the Revelation.
    They just don't work when they get dirty.
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  • Bushy88
    Bushy88 Posts: 9
    Is it possible to remove the remote and just have a lever on top of the shock instead?
  • Twelly
    Twelly Posts: 1,437
    You have to change the entire damping unit as far as I know. You can just remove the lever and run them open all the time
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  • Bushy88
    Bushy88 Posts: 9
    New damping unit sounds expensive, i may just ditch the remote
  • jimothy78
    jimothy78 Posts: 1,407
    Bushy88 wrote:
    Is it possible to remove the remote and just have a lever on top of the shock instead?

    Yes, you can. The remote-controlled MoCo unit has a return spring in it, that pulls it back into the "unlocked" position when the remote is released. The crown-controlled MoCo doesn't have this spring, as it is controlled in both directions by the dial on the fork crown.

    Although the "official" fix is a new damper unit, the remote version can be modified to work with a dial simply by removing the damper unit (it unscrews with a 24mm socket wrench) and unhooking or removing the spring, so it won't pull the damper back into the unlocked position.

    You'll also need to replace the little plastic washer under the blue cable-holding top-cap with a rubber o-ring to stop it getting jiggled around accidentally, and clamp something in the top-cap's cable-clamp to use as a lever. Alternatively, you can buy the official crown-control lever top-cap , but it's something like £20, which is criminal for something so simple if you ask me.
  • Horton
    Horton Posts: 327
    There's a useful FAQ from Nick...
    http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40073&t=12686393
  • mattrixdesign2
    mattrixdesign2 Posts: 644
    In order to get mine working I have replaced the cable inner, cable outer, removed the dial, cleaned it out... still not enough pull back on the spring, although there is clearly some pull its obviously not enough.

    Happy to ditch the PopLoc if its as bad as everyone says (seems a re-occurring problem after googling it).

    Would like to go to a manual dial, but £20 seems a bit pricey and I don't really wish to intefere with the inner workings of the fork.

    The bike was bought end of 2012 (Nov/Dec Sales), so would that make it a 2011 model, any sure way to date my forks? I know they are Reba SLs, I don't know if they are revised annually or less often, easy to presume they are 2011?

    What is the warranty on these normally, 1 year? Going to contact Sram.

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