rockshox pike rc1 - compression adjuster does zilch

hiredassassin

Likes Dirt
Just after some quick opinions from some other RS Pike owners out there.

I have 120mm travel 2014 Pikes on my Specialized Camber 29. The camber comes with the basic model pike (RC1 I think) so only has compression adjustment at the top of the right leg, and rebound on the bottom. Problem is - the compression adjustment doesn't appear to do a damn thing. Whether I have it wound right out, or whether it's all the way to the (padlock) end of the setting - no difference that I can feel.

I took it back to the shop and they initially told me it was my setup - i didn't have enough air (really?!). Then another guy in the shop looked at and said, yeah, that's not right - so they sent my forks away to SRAM. Two weeks later, forks came back and compression adjustment still does NOTHING. The guy at the shop said that SRAM rebuilt them and fully tested them and they are as they should be. None of this seems right to me, if there is an adjuster on a fork that has a little padlock icon on it, it should really lock out shouldn't it?

So - can any other PIKE owners please tell me - does your compression adjustment make any noticeable difference?

I just wanna see what other peoples experience is with this fork before i go hassle the shop again.

cheers.
 

ChopSticks

Banned
def not right, in lock mode.. forks should 'lock out'
if you cant feel a difference then theres something wrong.

take it back and tell them to do it right. jump on whatever demo/display bikes they have and flick the forks lock and ask them why yours dont lock out like their ones...
 

hiredassassin

Likes Dirt
def not right, in lock mode.. forks should 'lock out'
if you cant feel a difference then theres something wrong.

take it back and tell them to do it right. jump on whatever demo/display bikes they have and flick the forks lock and ask them why yours dont lock out like their ones...
My old Pikes (409 coils - lovely things) also only had compression adjustment and yeah, lock was LOCK. Good. thanks.

Sadly though they don't have any demo bikes... the problem with buying from what's mostly a roadie shop.
 

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
The Charge Damper in either the RCT3 or the RC should provide lock out when set in lock out mode.

Where abouts are you situated? (Coogee?)

I'm might not be too far from you and can let you have a feel/look at the my pikes to compare?

Taken from the SRAM website.


"ADJUSTMENTS External rebound, low speed compression to lock"
 
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T.3

Likes Dirt
I had an Enduro 29er with the same fork albeit longer travel. It should lock out when turned to the padlock graphic.
 

The Duckmeister

Has a juicy midrange
Some Rock Shox forks take slight offence to the bike being laid over (such as in the back of a car) with the fork unlocked; both my old Recon & current Reba lose locking for a while if left in this state. A few pumps with the lock both on & off will soon get the air & oil back where they belong & restore normal function.
 

hiredassassin

Likes Dirt
thanks folks - this is pretty much what I expected but i just wanted to make sure before I give up my bike for another 2 weeks! I've booked it in for tomorrow.

Some Rock Shox forks take slight offence to the bike being laid over (such as in the back of a car) with the fork unlocked; both my old Recon & current Reba lose locking for a while if left in this state. A few pumps with the lock both on & off will soon get the air & oil back where they belong & restore normal function.
yeah that's definitely not the problem - bike is always stored upright (even on the car it's on the roof), and the lockout has never worked.
 

Wombatone

Likes Dirt
Welcome to the world of RS.
2 weeks of riding to every 4 weeks in the service centre.

If you ride an RS it pays to get 2 forks so you can keep riding while one of them gets fixed.
2 weeks turnaround to get a fork fixed is a joke.

Hope you get it sorted this time round, otherwise you can always sell them an get a reliable fork - Xfusion.
 

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
Welcome to the world of RS.
2 weeks of riding to every 4 weeks in the service centre.

If you ride an RS it pays to get 2 forks so you can keep riding while one of them gets fixed.
2 weeks turnaround to get a fork fixed is a joke.

Hope you get it sorted this time round, otherwise you can always sell them an get a reliable fork - Xfusion.
In fairness, I've had both RS and x fusion.
There's not too many horror stories re Pikes when u think how many units they sell.
 

rider124

Likes Bikes and Dirt
That's about how long it takes for Fox to fix a shock.
closer to 2 months when all the recalls were going. was so god dam painful!

In relation to the OP. 2 of our customers at our shop have come back with the same issue. (we have sold upwards of 10 bikes with the same forks)
Pretty sure we just sent it back to the importer under warranty. Even though it may be an easy fix, its better off to send it back to make sure its done properly, instead of doing it yourself and voiding warranty on a set of decent forks.
 

Wombatone

Likes Dirt
closer to 2 months when all the recalls were going. was so god dam painful!

In relation to the OP. 2 of our customers at our shop have come back with the same issue. (we have sold upwards of 10 bikes with the same forks)
Pretty sure we just sent it back to the importer under warranty. Even though it may be an easy fix, its better off to send it back to make sure its done properly, instead of doing it yourself and voiding warranty on a set of decent forks.
2 out of 10 forks = 20% failrate.
This just confirms my believe that you need a spare fork or local shops learn how to fix these things properly once they fail and do not have to send them away for minor repairs.
It is a shock absorber not brain surgery and I find it amazing that shops can not even fix minor problems with shocks in a faster way that does not void warranty?
To be told that forks have to be send away for a 2 week (or longer) repair for something that could be fixed by any competent mechanic within an hour is just rubbish.

Bikeshops let me tell you one thing - shape up or close up - give us the service we need or I might as well buy all my gear from overseas.
 

cramhobart

Likes Dirt
Two weeks seems pretty good, about 3 1/2 months I sent emails to fox in the US and the local distro requesting info on part numbers and availability- follow up emails a week and a fortnight later- to date still no reply.
If they can't answer an email in 3 months I'm scared to think how long it will take to actually source a part- but since I have a fox fork in at the lbs awaiting a replacement part (4 weeks and waiting) I guess I'm gonna find out. The local mechanic just rolls his eyes when asked about fox product support.
I now own a pike.
 

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
2 out of 10 forks = 20% failrate.
This just confirms my believe that you need a spare fork or local shops learn how to fix these things properly once they fail and do not have to send them away for minor repairs.
It is a shock absorber not brain surgery and I find it amazing that shops can not even fix minor problems with shocks in a faster way that does not void warranty?
To be told that forks have to be send away for a 2 week (or longer) repair for something that could be fixed by any competent mechanic within an hour is just rubbish.

Bikeshops let me tell you one thing - shape up or close up - give us the service we need or I might as well buy all my gear from overseas.
I left a set of Fox 32's with my LBS for creaky CSU syndrome, had them back in 1 week with a new CSU under warranty.
I for one, cant justify having a set of $800 forks sitting in a box as a "spare" set.... and I'm not sure too many other people could either.

2 weeks is not a long time when you consider shipping and handling. As for getting local bike shops to carry out warranty work, part manufacturers are in the business of making money, and when warranty issues arise, they lose money. The cheaper the fix, the better, so paying some LBS to do their warranty work is not good business.

Taking a sample of 10 identical bikes sold in one shop is not a fair representation of diversity throughout the range so I would argue that 20% is not a realistic percentage.
There may well be an issue with the RC Pike, these are only sold as OEM on particular bikes and OEM parts can be sub par.
 

wkkie

It's Not Easy Being Green
......these are only sold as OEM on particular bikes and OEM parts can be sub par.
There is no reason why oem parts should be sub par. They are made by the same manufacturer using the same materials and mostly the same parts. They should be just as well made as the after market parts. And if a manufacturer ever said their oem parts were sub par, I know I'd be steering clear of them that's for sure.
 

SummitFever

Eats Squid
... instead of doing it yourself and voiding warranty on a set of decent forks.
Provided you don't break anything trying to fix your fork, there is no way that any diagnostic dissassembly or other routine maintenance will void your fork warranty. SRAM have all of the manuals online and set out all of the service procedures in a clear, step-by-step fashion.
 

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
There is no reason why oem parts should be sub par. They are made by the same manufacturer using the same materials and mostly the same parts. They should be just as well made as the after market parts. And if a manufacturer ever said their oem parts were sub par, I know I'd be steering clear of them that's for sure.
I agree with you that a manufacturer would/should never state that they are not to the same standard as after market parts (maybe my use of "sub par" is the wrong wording), but the reality is that some OEM components are near identical to the after market cousins, but some are made of cheaper materials and mass produced.

SRAM have already shown this with their previous 1X11 drive trains, after market are cranks were carbon, OEM are alloy.
 

Wombatone

Likes Dirt
I left a set of Fox 32's with my LBS for creaky CSU syndrome, had them back in 1 week with a new CSU under warranty.
I for one, cant justify having a set of $800 forks sitting in a box as a "spare" set.... and I'm not sure too many other people could either.

2 weeks is not a long time when you consider shipping and handling. As for getting local bike shops to carry out warranty work, part manufacturers are in the business of making money, and when warranty issues arise, they lose money. The cheaper the fix, the better, so paying some LBS to do their warranty work is not good business.

Taking a sample of 10 identical bikes sold in one shop is not a fair representation of diversity throughout the range so I would argue that 20% is not a realistic percentage.
There may well be an issue with the RC Pike, these are only sold as OEM on particular bikes and OEM parts can be sub par.
I am not the kind of rider who will miss out on 2 weeks of perfect spring riding cause a bikeshop can not be bothered to give you the service you need.
For my part I want good service and had it up to here with shops with this lazy "warranty work is not good business" attitude.
These shops could not fix a fork even if they tried.(warranty or not)
If you do not want to buy a spare fork good shops will either fix it quick or go the extra mile and give you a spare fork (or bike) while yours fixed.

Once again Bikeshops - shape up or bugger off.
 

rider124

Likes Bikes and Dirt
These shops could not fix a fork even if they tried.(warranty or not)
*removing myself from just the shop i work in at the moment*

you will find a lot of shops not doing in house servicing even if they are able to.
I know of a shop (no naming names), that has 2 ex SRAM mechanics working for them, these were SRAM mechanics that went not only around Australia, but around the world to do this sort of stuff (sram, rockshocks, avid etc). Yet, their shop still sends all forks and shocks back to the importers for servicing.

What i have also found from doing my own forks vs sending them off. With the money that it costs to rebuild the forks yourself, there is a lot of money to be made doing fork servicing in shops, especially once you include freight to and from the importers. If a bike shop kept the spare parts and had a week turn around for fork servicing, there would be a bit of cash involved.

feel free to poke holes in my theory. But this is just my assumption.
 
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