Not getting full travel from rear shock...

miss notax

Hello

Just back from a great day at Cwmcarn but i'm getting increasingly annoyed / worried about my rear shock. It's a Fox Float RP2 VX (7.875 x 2.25) apparently, and the bike was new last summer (it's a 2010 model). On any kind of trail the shock is bottoming out and I have stuck loads of air in it (I realise that more will solve this bit) - but i'm not getting anywhere near the full travel of the shock before it's clunking and not going any further. What's the point in having a rear shock that's 'blah' long if you're only able to use 2/3rds of it?

Pics after todays riding below (excuse the mud!) - this is all the travel i'm getting before the dreaded CLUNK



Am I right in thinking that something isn't right here? If I stick yet more air in then I might be able to stop it bottoming out, but I also won't getting anywhere near the full travel. Or am I missing the point, and in fact I should only have this amount anyway? It it some weird Kona thing?

I can't think of how I might have damaged the shock....

I would appreciate any advice as this is the bike i'll be using on the Mega and I really want to get it 100% as soon as possible!

Cheers

nicklouse

sounds like it has issues. i would call up mojo and get it sorted.

miss notax

Ok, so not me being an idiot then. I use all the rear travel on the Orange and the Santa Cruz but I did wonder if this was just how it was meant to be :?

As I only got the bike last year, is this a warranty issue then? Or because the bikes a 2010 model am I stuffed? I don't mind paying to get it fixed if I have to - but if someone else can get it sorted then that's even better!

nicklouse

well 2 things to do.

take the shock of and see how far the rear sus moves. note it down. pics. fit shock and let air out. how far can the sus move? it should be similar. shock should bottom out.

but i think something is amiss. the shock is correct for the frame?

bennett_346

Warranty if it was purchased less than two years ago. Model year should have no bearing as they are selling it as new and thus it is warrantied for two years in the EU.

miss notax

nicklouse wrote:

well 2 things to do.

take the shock of and see how far the rear sus moves. note it down. pics. fit shock and let air out. how far can the sus move? it should be similar. shock should bottom out.

but i think something is amiss. the shock is correct for the frame?

Interesting. As to whether the shock is correct for the frame, I assume so as it's the one that came with it! It just seems funny - it bottomed out (the dreaded CLUNK) after jumping over a bump in the road which can't be right!

ThePriory1978

Hmmm interesting.
From your picture, my RP2 on my Canyon behaves exactly the same as yours, e.g. not using the full length of the shock body, but i dont get clonking or any other bad behaviour from it like you, feels nice and plush otherwise.
I thought this was normal?! Now you've got me concerned...

nicklouse

miss notax wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

well 2 things to do.

take the shock of and see how far the rear sus moves. note it down. pics. fit shock and let air out. how far can the sus move? it should be similar. shock should bottom out.

but i think something is amiss. the shock is correct for the frame?

Interesting. As to whether the shock is correct for the frame, I assume so as it's the one that came with it! It just seems funny - it bottomed out (the dreaded CLUNK) after jumping over a bump in the road which can't be right!

rockers catching the seat clamp?

bennett_346

ThePriory1978 wrote:

Hmmm interesting.
From your picture, my RP2 on my Canyon behaves exactly the same as yours, e.g. not using the full length of the shock body, but i dont get clonking or any other bad behaviour from it like you, feels nice and plush otherwise.
I thought this was normal?! Now you've got me concerned...

Either you have the wrong sag set or wrong bike for what you are riding. Doesnt sound like there's anything wrong with yours just too much pressure.

ThePriory1978

bennett_346 wrote:

Either you have the wrong sag set or wrong bike for what you are riding. Doesnt sound like there's anything wrong with yours just too much pressure.

Nope definately not, but maybe your right there may be nothing wrong with it.

Just took all the air out of it, this is what i get at full compression (note i moved the rubbber band to the base by hand).



Generally i play with pressures of 185-200psi and i'm 12stone when geared up.

cooldad

You worry too much, Mr Prior.

miss notax

nicklouse wrote:

rockers catching the seat clamp?

Don't think so :?

Worth me contacting Kona in the meantime (before I have time to check it as you suggest)?

nicklouse

miss notax wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

rockers catching the seat clamp?

Don't think so :?

Worth me contacting Kona in the meantime (before I have time to check it as you suggest)?

get the shock out and check that it is not something on the suspension catching then you know it is a shock issue.

YeehaaMcgee

miss notax wrote:

it bottomed out (the dreaded CLUNK) after jumping over a bump in the road which can't be right!

That in itself doesn't mean anything. You can land from a kerb like a sack of spuds and bottom out an 8" travel DH rig.

However, given the remainder of the problem, it does sound to me like something's wrong.
However, before taking the shock out, I'd let all the air out, and cycle the suspension through it's range to see what's going on.

miss notax

Thanks for your comments Yeeha. If I was getting travel along the full length of the shock I wouldn't be concerned - I would just put more air in and that's that. It's that the shock won't move beyond that point :?

I'll have a tinker when i'm at home this evening and see if I can work out what's going on.

bennett_346

To add to that, i'd also unbolt one end of the shock and move the linkages through their travel, to eliminate frame issues.

miss notax

Well, after a quality bit of after work bike fettling, I can confirm that the problem is fixed and that I am an idiot :oops:

Took all the air out of the shock and pushed the saddle down to see what happened - and the seatpost clamp had been skewed a bit (could have happened after a crash - I never noticed that it wasn't straight) so that the stupid bolt was hitting on the rocker bit and stopping it :shock: With the clamp centred there is only about 1mm clearance on either side so i'm not convinced that it's a particurly good clamp for Kona to use, but it does indeed clear it all.

So, I am feeling very guilty at my poor bike taking such a hammering :shock: Have straightened everything up, put the right amount of air back in the shock (which is actually working fine) and am feeling the Kona love

I'm also ordering a more sensible seat post clamp that doesn't have huge bolts sticking out the side, and possibly treating the bike (not me ) to some new wheels by way of an apology..... I even fitted the dropper post that I haven't got around to in weeks, so the bike is actually new and improved now 8)

Thanks ever so much for all of your help - I now feel like a total idiot, but nothing that a beer and a bit of bike-retail-therapy can't fix

nicklouse - just realise this is in fact exactly what you guessed it might be. You, Sir, are a genius 8)

nicklouse

It is a bit of a know problem.

miss notax

nicklouse wrote:

It is a bit of a know problem.

Ahhh..... Flipping daft design - who would honestly notice that their clamp was a few mm's put of line?! Definitely calls for a nice new slimline clamp

nicklouse

miss notax wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

It is a bit of a know problem.

Ahhh..... Flipping daft design - who would honestly notice that their clamp was a few mm's put of line?! Definitely calls for a nice new slimline clamp

As I did point out.

YeehaaMcgee

miss notax wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

It is a bit of a know problem.

Ahhh..... Flipping daft design - who would honestly notice that their clamp was a few mm's put of line?! Definitely calls for a nice new slimline clamp

It's not the clamp that's a stupid design.

ThePriory1978

Glad you got the bike fixed up Notax.

I've had the pressure out of my rear shock and also removed the shock tonight. With the shock off, the suspension moves freely through all its travel, i now know the shock dosent use the entire stroke by compressing it by hand off the bike. I've also figured out theres a good reason for this. If the suspension did use the full stroke the four bar linkage would hit the back of the seatpost.

I guess mines a Canyon design trait/fault whichever way you want to look at it.

So do RP2's have the function to restrict the stroke with an internal bump stop?

YeehaaMcgee

I'd hazard a guess that there's a bottom-out bumper at the end of the shock's travel that you'd never, ever compress with your bare hands.
Or even bear hands, if you were a bear.
Ok, maybe you could with bear hands. maybe.