Does anyone run a coil shock on their Orange Five and what's you're general opinion?

The Fox Float RP23 shock that came as standard on mine is a superb XC shock and I've got no issues with it for that purpose. However, for more adventurous riding like belting down mountains all day long I've felt that it just can't keep up with the Vanilla forks up front.

It's hard to put my finger on the issues on long descents, but to get the shock feeling right it bottoms a fair bit – albeit very gracefully – and by the bottom of a long descent it feels like it's barely working at all and can be as harsh as anything.

So for the sake of a couple of hundred grams and a couple of hundred quid I thought I'd try a 2011 Fox Van RC when they come out – money well spent do you think?

id probly be of the opinion that if your gonna do it, do it properly and get a CCDB, BOS or RS Vivid. Generally considered the best coils atm as far as ive heard

I reckon it'd feel lush with a coil. I used to have an intense 6.6 that started with an RP23 and I changed to a coil and it felt great… super plush and never felt out of control. Heavier, but much better on the bigger stuff.

You could actually do a lot worse than picking up an old twin clicker (Fox Vanilla RC with piggy back) and having it custom tuned… probably better than most off the shelf shocks except stuff like the Cane Creek DB. Also try the Mojo Clearance list for a DHX. You'll want something with a bit of platform damping to help the pedalling ability.

I also used to have a 2001 SC Bullit (6" rear travel) with a twin clicker on it that I had Pro-Pedalled by Mojo – made a huge difference. Just bought another bullit and will be running a PUSHed DHX5 on it.

They used to make them a few years back with a coil shock as an option – older frame design obviously.

http://www.orangebikes.co.uk/2005bikes/bikes.php?bike=five#

I'd give Orange a bell/email and see what they suggest.

Different bike but I went from air to coil on my nomad a couple of months ago (instead of servicing the air shock) and I am really surprised at how noticable the difference is. Despite it being a lb heavier I won't be going back.

The main improvement I noticed was far fewer pedal strikes when trying to pedal through rough stuff.

Couple of points here.

MBR and Dirt were running an Orange Five with a Cane Creek Double Barrel and the reports I read are that it turns the Five into a whole other beast, capable of going way faster than than anyone thought the bike was capable of.

Second is that the Orange Five has a falling rate suspension design, which means it gets easier to compress the further into the travel it goes. Air dampers get harder to compress whereas coil dampers are more linear. Going from an air can to a coil damper could then make the bike bottom out even more easily.

You would need a coil shock set up for that bike or the ability to increase the high speed compression damping in the unit that you were buying. The CCDB gives you that option as do the Fox RC4/DHX5, BOS and RS Vivid models.

Either way, I would get some expert advice. Mojo seem to do all their testing on Orange bikes, especially the Five so you won't have to go far.

Thanks for the comments, time to call Mojo then!

Is the new VanRC anything special or just a DHX (like the Van-R could be thought of as a DHX-1)?

I keep finding new ways of switching off the self preservation lobe in my brain on the hardtail, full suses just scare me silly when I apply the same principal!

jambo runs his with a coil shock. He likes!

Mojo are selling off suitably sized DHX3's for £150 at the moment. Check the clearance link.

I have just fitted a Manitou IXS 6
A truly brilliant shock much better than the DHX 5

Cheap van rc off eBay. £60 I think. Turned a good bike into a great bike….

Orange 5 has a falling suspension rate?Surely a single pivot with the shock mounted directly to the swingarm with no linkages is rising rate.
At least that is what Orange have said in the past.

Why not try a high volume can on the RP23?

Would a coil work on my Meta 55? I loved my Coil sprung patriot (until it was stolen 👿 )

I can't check now because I don't have access to my PC (am using a Mac) but there is a piece of software called http://www.bikechecker.com which shows all this kind of stuff. I was pretty sure that the Orange Five has a falling rate, i.e. the amount of wheel travel increases for the same amount of shock shaft travel the further into the travel you go. It's the exact opposite of what most other bikes have (progressive rate, i.e. the shock gets harder to compress the further into its travel it goes).

It gets confusing because the terms can be counterintuitive, i.e. progressive rate means lower values of leverage ratio so for example starting at 3" of wheel travel to 1" of shaft travel, then falling to 2" of wheel travel to 1" of shaft travel. Thus the force needed to compress the shock for a given movement in the wheel needs to increase.

See below taken from the bikechecker website. It only runs on a PC but it's fun in a geeky kind of way.

Progressivity – used in two ways – in a geometrical sense and regarding forces. Geometrical progressivity describes the changing of the leverage ratio throughout the travel. A progressive rate suspension means lower values of the leverage ratio for larger travel. A falling rate suspension is the opposite. A linear rate suspension keeps a constant leverage ratio. These affect the “feel” of the suspension. If we take forces into the account as well, we talk about the “real” progressiveness of the suspension. This represents the changing of the rate between the force needed to compress the suspension to a specific travel position, and the balancing force performed by the shock. Thus, a progressive suspension “stiffens up” at larger travel positions, while a falling rate suspension feels really plush and is easier to bottom out. Bike designers tune their suspension for the desired behavior. Short travel cross-country bikes usually use a progressive setup, while downhill bikes usually use a more linear setup to be able to absorb repeated larger bumps. For “freeride” bikes, a progressive setup is optimal at the end of travel to prevent harsh bottom outs on big jumps.

The most important thing here is that coils are cooler. Straight from the fact bank.

is indeed Coogan But the Manitou IXS 6 works better 😉