Help me with my new forks

eattherich

Hey everyone,

I've recently got a new bike and it's come with some fairly basic Rock Shox Dart 1 forks. I've not had a mountain bike for a long time so these look like they've come a long way since the old Indy XCs I used to have! Anyway, the bike is brand new (not ridden yet) and I was wondered what's the deal with the preload adjuster on the left leg of the forks.

As I said, I've not ridden it yet but I was wondering if I need to 'set' anything up with this. The forks feel pretty soft to press down and they creak a little (is this normal?). By feeling the adjuster I can see that it's turned all the way in the - direction. Should I just leave it as it is and ride or should I play around with it? It's a 20" hardtail, I'm 6'1" and weigh 80KG (if this matters).

Thanks in advance!

nicklouse

preload adjusts the about of Sag you have when riding the bike.

25% sag is normal.

eattherich

Is 'sag' how much the forks drop whilst you're riding the bike? If so, they look like the compress about 20% when I'm on the bike normally. I guess this is probably about right then?...

Thanks for the advice.

supersonic

About right, but best to measure when stood on the bike in the 'ready' position as if looking down the trail.

Darts tend to loosen up a bit too with use.

mrsavory

yeah sag is how much the forks compress when you sit on it.

eattherich

Ok, great. Thanks guys. I've not actually ridden the bike yet but I'm out on it tomorrow so I'll be sure to check the sag and, if necessary, adjust accordingly.

supersonic

mrsavory wrote:

yeah sag is how much the forks compress when you sit on it.

When you stand on it ;-)