I have a 2014 model of reba solo airs converted from 100mm travel to 120mm by changing the air spring. Initially last year when I got the forks they were sitting at 120mm before sitting on the bike and were working well for maybe 3-4 months. More recently the forks have sunk down to 105mm and I am wondering what has caused this. Tonight I had the air pressure at 75psi for my weight and I increased this to 130psi to see if the fork would sit at the correct height and it moved maybe 10mm so it was still not at the 120mm travel position. I have looked in the Reba manual and it says that if the rebound damper has too much suspension fluid this can decrease travel but I have not serviced the rebound damper part so one would hope that they came with the correct volume of suspension fluid.

Has anyone had this issue and do you know how to sort it?

cheers

Yes. Common but seemingly rarely reported issue.

The solo air fork actually has a second air chamber, and occasionally (I think after a hard ragging) an airlock can be produced between the two chambers.

The fix is simple. If you unscrew the allen key bolt in the bottom of the air leg you will find a hidden Schrader valve. Push this to release the air lock and the forks should fully extend again. Be careful of any fork oil spraying onto your disc.

Here:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/rs-solo-air-fork-issues

Isn’t this the first sign of the bleed valve between the two being blocked though IIRC.

The fork is negatively charged, I.E the pressure in the negative chamber is too great for the positive chamber to overcome to get to full travel, when the transfer port is engaged allow equalization of pressure between the two chambers.

As Colin mentions you can use the recessed air valve in the bottom of the air shaft to remove pressure from the negative chamber and then re pressurize, if the problems persists or reoccurs soon after you may have issues with the internal seals or excessive grease in the air system.

Okay thanks. I’ll have a go at sorting this.

My 2015 Revs did the same to begin with. I hadn’t really noticed the gradual sag until it was pointed out they were sitting into their travel when at rest and loaded only by the bike.

I depressurised and then reinflated and the issue hasn’t recurred in over six months.

Right first of all I tried letting out all the air and pushing the fork to the bottom of its travel. Then I used a small clean cable tie to get air past the wiper seals but neither of those things helped. Taking off the bottom nut and pressing the negative chamber valve a few times let out enough air to bring the fork back to the correct 120mm setting and the fork has been okay for one ride so far.

I was wondering if it matters that I lost some fluid when releasing the air as I don’t know much suspension fluid/lube should be in the negative chamber?

iirc there is very little in there anyway either 5 ml or 15 ml and i suspect you lost very little doing this but it is part of basic servicing

You did put air back in the negative chamber afterwards ?

Junkyard you don’t manually pump air into the negative chamber in solo air forks, it makes its way in from the +ve chamber via a dimple inside the stanchion as the fork moves.

A little oil does tend to come out -ve valve.

JUst checked mine they are Dual air- did not know there were different kinds

Ignore me OP , apologies, stands corrected

While we’re on this thread I may be having similar issues (jury’s out so far).

Did I read somewhere these can be converted to a coil?

Warranty or not I could be tempted by a permanent coil fix.