FoxFloat32 Evolution, 2016 FIT4 FactorySeries Damper Upgrade
OLLYTURTON
Posts: 22
Fox Float 32 Evolution - 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper Upgrade - Details
Firsrtly, I'd like to in-directly thank Mojo for their fantastic customer service today. They're a very friendly company who'll do a lot for you even when little/no profit is made for themselves. They don't often have people take their own products in, instead, they usually receive work from places like Evans for repairs, so when they do get someone come in I'm sure they give you priority, especially if you organise a 200 mile round trip to visit them yourself as I did today.
So I set off from Coventry at 6:00 this morning to make sure the 2 hour long journey would get me there on time for their 8:30 opening. I arrived at around 8:10 to be greeted by a great lad called Luke immediately offering me a coffee knowing how far I'd driven, who I've been speaking to regarding my concerns with my current fork and the clicking sounds it had been making (Mentioned here in another thread:http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=13041996). We organised the trip in order for them to have a good look at the fork and to inspect the sounds it was making, as I'd read it was a very good idea, I opted to upgrade my damper to the 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper whilst they were checking it out.
It turns out the old 2015 CTD C/O damper was the route cause for all my concerns, once it was removed, Luke showed me just how bad it was. Without a video it's hard to describe, but the damper piston would move in and out way too far on it's own after each stroke, meaning when pushed in it would push itself out and visa-versa, I was assured this was not at all correct for it to be acting like this.
Moving on, after the new damper was fitted they were kind enough to re-set my sag after the store I bought my Mondraker Foxy from did a terrible job of getting the correct PSI in the shock. After this I took it for a ride and WOW! The bike feels incredible, and to think I felt 'Happy' with it's performance before is just crazy because the performance improvement is like night and day, that's the honest truth.
The old 2015 CTD C/O damper has three different modes (Climb, Trail & Descend). The new 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper sports a similar three modes, just with different names (Open, Medium & Firm). The big difference is, in the open setting (Descent Equivalent), on the factory series damper, there's now an 22 stage adjustment for low speed compression which starts with the most anti-clockwise position being the softest possible setting and the most clock-wise position being the firmest. This is why I would recommend the 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper upgrade to anyone still running the old version, it's better in every way. The small bump sensitivity has improved ten-fold and the fork feel has dramatically improved. Just from one ride I can tell how different the entire bike feels!
Of course this is open to your own opinions and if you're happy with your fork and don't fancy paying for it outside of warranty then that's completely understandable, but if you want an improved fork and don't fancy paying the full way for a brand new one, this is for sure the way to go if you're running the old cartridge still.
For anyone interested, the new 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper's part number is here: 820-08-596-KIT.
Mojo are currently offering the following deals for anyone considering the upgrade:
Fox 32's - Service and Fitting of 2016 FIT4 Performance Series Damper Cartridge (Mid Specification) - £175
Fox 32's - Service and Fitting of 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper Cartridge (Top Specification) - £250
Thanks for reading, any questions about what I've said here, fire away and I'll do my best to answer them.
Olly.
Firsrtly, I'd like to in-directly thank Mojo for their fantastic customer service today. They're a very friendly company who'll do a lot for you even when little/no profit is made for themselves. They don't often have people take their own products in, instead, they usually receive work from places like Evans for repairs, so when they do get someone come in I'm sure they give you priority, especially if you organise a 200 mile round trip to visit them yourself as I did today.
So I set off from Coventry at 6:00 this morning to make sure the 2 hour long journey would get me there on time for their 8:30 opening. I arrived at around 8:10 to be greeted by a great lad called Luke immediately offering me a coffee knowing how far I'd driven, who I've been speaking to regarding my concerns with my current fork and the clicking sounds it had been making (Mentioned here in another thread:http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10002&t=13041996). We organised the trip in order for them to have a good look at the fork and to inspect the sounds it was making, as I'd read it was a very good idea, I opted to upgrade my damper to the 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper whilst they were checking it out.
It turns out the old 2015 CTD C/O damper was the route cause for all my concerns, once it was removed, Luke showed me just how bad it was. Without a video it's hard to describe, but the damper piston would move in and out way too far on it's own after each stroke, meaning when pushed in it would push itself out and visa-versa, I was assured this was not at all correct for it to be acting like this.
Moving on, after the new damper was fitted they were kind enough to re-set my sag after the store I bought my Mondraker Foxy from did a terrible job of getting the correct PSI in the shock. After this I took it for a ride and WOW! The bike feels incredible, and to think I felt 'Happy' with it's performance before is just crazy because the performance improvement is like night and day, that's the honest truth.
The old 2015 CTD C/O damper has three different modes (Climb, Trail & Descend). The new 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper sports a similar three modes, just with different names (Open, Medium & Firm). The big difference is, in the open setting (Descent Equivalent), on the factory series damper, there's now an 22 stage adjustment for low speed compression which starts with the most anti-clockwise position being the softest possible setting and the most clock-wise position being the firmest. This is why I would recommend the 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper upgrade to anyone still running the old version, it's better in every way. The small bump sensitivity has improved ten-fold and the fork feel has dramatically improved. Just from one ride I can tell how different the entire bike feels!
Of course this is open to your own opinions and if you're happy with your fork and don't fancy paying for it outside of warranty then that's completely understandable, but if you want an improved fork and don't fancy paying the full way for a brand new one, this is for sure the way to go if you're running the old cartridge still.
For anyone interested, the new 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper's part number is here: 820-08-596-KIT.
Mojo are currently offering the following deals for anyone considering the upgrade:
Fox 32's - Service and Fitting of 2016 FIT4 Performance Series Damper Cartridge (Mid Specification) - £175
Fox 32's - Service and Fitting of 2016 FIT4 Factory Series Damper Cartridge (Top Specification) - £250
Thanks for reading, any questions about what I've said here, fire away and I'll do my best to answer them.
Olly.
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Comments
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As a matter of interest how much did the upgrade cost you, assuming the cost of the 2015 damper was covered by warranty?Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.0
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As a matter of interest how much did the upgrade cost you, assuming the cost of the 2015 damper was covered by warranty?
Well It's not as simple as how much it cost unfortunately, as the main factor of the cost was the fact they only had the 2016 Performance & Factory series dampers in stock and not the entry level one. So they were forced to fit the Performance series for free and I managed to negotiate a cost of £26 to upgrade to the factory series as this was the price difference between the Performance Series and Factory Series cartridges. I don't think this would turn out the same for others as they're likely to have the other unit in stock which means you'd have to pay a premium for the Performance Series upgrade and then pay an additional premium for the Factory Series upgrade too.
I believe the Factory FIT4 Cartridge cost around the £205 mark for 'anyone' to buy, possibly pricing the Performance FIT4 Cartridge at around £175 judging from the additional cost I paid. leading me to think the entry level (Don't think it's called evolution any more) being priced at £150 roughly. If this job was carried out beyond warranty then obviously you'd pay close to one of the prices above, as well as the fitting costs:
EDIT (The names of the different levels of cartridge)
Performance (Entry Level) FIT4 Cartridge - £150 (Roughly)
Performance Elite FIT4 Cartridge - £175 (Roughly)
Factory FIT4 Cartridge - £205 (Roughly)
Hope this is useful to you and others who may read this thread.
Olly.0 -
Thanks, makes the Rockshox dampers look cheap! (My daughters Black Box was £76).Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.0
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Thanks, makes the Rockshox dampers look cheap! (My daughters Black Box was £76).
Woah, that is cheap in comparison!
I think possibly because it's their brand new technology which is currently being very hyped up they are able to charge this premium, I've found this article which states the following about the new Factory Series cartridge, here's just a part of it:
http://www.pinkbike.com/news/fox-34-float-factory-series-review.html
"New FIT4 Damper
Here's the news that many riders have been waiting to hear: FOX has ditched their CTD system in favour of their new FIT4 damper. The new damper still uses a three-position adjuster, but the Climb, Trail and Descend nomenclature has been replaced with more traditional Open, Medium, and Firm modes that function very differently. ''The FIT4 damper uses architecture from the RC2 damper found in the 36 and 40, featuring a 10mm shaft design that increases oil flow to the base valve,'' explained Jordan. ''We improved the flow path design in the base valve for the three compression damping positions to provide more adjustment, sensitivity and control. We also increased flow through the rebound circuit for faster recovery from deep stroke hits.'' The new three-position FIT4 damper is said to have a wider damping range than the old CTD system, and FOX also listened to many riders who were asking for a more traditional low-speed compression adjuster dial that would allow them to have more control over how the fork performs - there's now an anodized black dial to adjust LSC when the fork is set to the Open mode, with twenty two clicks that go from nearly overlapping the Medium mode to offering extremely light damping.
- With an expanding bladder and sealed design, the new FIT4 damper looks a lot like the RC2 unit in the 36 and 40, but it offers very different adjustment options.
- The FIT4's bladder expands to allow for fluid displacement as it's compressed. This means that the system can be bled completely free of air to offer more consistent damping.
- The redesigned seal head that plays a big role in how sensitive the 36's stroke feels is also used on the 34's FIT4 damper.
Seems they've hit the nail on the head with this one!0 -
the pike charger damper is only about £1300
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the pike charger damper is only about £130
I guess fox have priced it up in relation to the fact that the technology used in the new damper (FIT4) bled through the DH industry. All companies will make the most of their marketing strategies and FOX are likely to be doing this too so I'd assume that's the reason for the high price.0
