Marzocchi Z5 (?) 2001 forks

the phantom pieman

I have had these since new ... they have been sitting on the front of my wifes bike for about 2 years and have had little use.
She is keen to get on the bike again and do some riding ... but the forks have become "slow to respond"
Is this like to mean:-
a) A full rebuild - in which case I will throw them a way and buy some new ones?
b) Could the oil damping have leaked - so emptying each leg, and refilling with new oil will solve the issue?

Cheers

supersonic

Sounds like they need a strip and service. Oil may be contaminated (also be aware forks can slow down in the cold)

Are easy to strip - guides also on the net.

Check bushings and seals too.

the phantom pieman

And it is cold here ...
I live in Switzerland and even though the garage is sort of heated , it is probably not more that 2 or degrees ...
Are seals etc still available?

supersonic

I believe so, Zocchi usually very good at spares.

Bushings will be harder to replace, but if there is no play in the forks then you need not bother.

Was a reliable and well made fork. However, if the cost mounts up, I'd look at a replacement, as Toras can be had n the UK for less than £100.

Hopefully just pulling apart cleaning a new oil will suffice. I believe it uses 7.5 wt fluid, but the manual should have the volumes.

the phantom pieman

Thanks - I have the volumes from the on line manual and it is 7.5 weight ...

But once I have to start in repairing seals etc the little quantum amounts add up and, as you say I may as well replace ....

Lets see what happens with an oil change!!

uniqueride

a mate had a very similar fork (might have beenthe same one) and he found it very easy with little knowledge to change the oil. Now for the theoretical bit, i dont know what swiss tempretures are year round but if they are always low would a fractionally lower weight oil work better?

supersonic

Yes, it may well do. Problem is that listed weights can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

You can also mix them to get a desired weight.

Can't remember if the Z5 has an internal rebound adjuster or not. I wouldn't go any lower than 5wt.

the phantom pieman

In winter it is cold ( -14 recently) but in the summer it is hot enough to boil a monkey's bum.
The other fcators will be altitude and how hard you work the fork ( which I presume warms up)
But I think it's old and knackered but worth changing the oil ....

uniqueride

use will warm it up but by how much i dont know, altitude affecting the oil density?
Marzocchi fork like yours were built alot better than the seem to be now so i would say keep it going if you can.

the phantom pieman

uniqueride wrote:

use will warm it up but by how much i dont know, altitude affecting the oil density?
Marzocchi fork like yours were built alot better than the seem to be now so i would say keep it going if you can.

Cool - I'll make sure I don't destroy them during the service ...
Perhaps the crap quotient for forks is constant because rockshox used to be awful then and seem to have got a lot better!!

the phantom pieman

uniqueride wrote:

use will warm it up but by how much i dont know, altitude affecting the oil density?
Marzocchi fork like yours were built alot better than the seem to be now so i would say keep it going if you can.

Cool - I'll make sure I don't destroy them during the service ...
Perhaps the crap quotient for forks is constant because rockshox used to be awful then and seem to have got a lot better!!

the phantom pieman

25 quid for seals, if I can find them , mean they are probably going in the bin!