Hi, I`ve recently got hold of some Rockshox Reba 15 x 100 27.5 Forks that I want to fit soon and was wondering what the best option was as they require a Thru axle (I got them 2nd hand without one)
I was slightly suprised to see the official Rock shox one was around £35 and not seen many around on ebay? I guess they usually get kept together with the forks.
Is there any other good options, I have seen that Brand X do a version which comes with the QR style lever which I think I would prefer for convenience.
Also the dust seal looks off line and uneven on one side, the forks still seem to function well so was wondering if this is anything to worry about. I`m guessing it would be a big job to correct that but if it could be an issue then maybe I need to. Thanks
Let me check my spares shelf. I think I may have a spare that I don't need.
I do have a brand new Rockshox/SRAM Maxle Ultimate 15x100 on the shelf. Keep meaning to get it on eBay. I'd let it go for £25 posted.
brand-x £12.99 on crc /wiggle or tredz
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/brand-x-bolt-thru-axle/rp-prod176624
option 6
RockShox 15x100mm 146mm 11mm M15x1.5 65g
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/brand-x-switch-lever/rp-prod166680
the little brand-x lever is great too, gives me the leverage to unscrew the bolt, that my multitool can't
Re: the dust seal, it should be easy enough to push it back in with a tyre lever or similar blunt object. Just make sure you don’t push it too far as most forks these days have flangeless seals (the top of the seal should be level with the top of the fork).
The Rockshox thru-axles ive had have always been made of gorgonzola and either waggle loose or bend themselves when trying to unscrew, I now just use a burgtec thru axle
https://www.stifmtb.com/products/burgtec-fork-axle
Bolt up axles are the way to go imo, always hated the vague 'leave a mark in your palm' as an indication of correct tightness, a lubed axle tightened to the correct torque has never given me a problem, people rounding them off then blaming the axle maybe need to question themselves. The brand x are well priced and the switch lever whatyadoinsucka suggested is a great option if running matching f&r axles or just one.
I like the Brand X one.
Thanks for the replies regarding my axle options. I am tempted to go for the Brand X two piece option. The price sounds reasonable and if the build is solid then it sounds good to me.
Regarding the fork leg, I have put an image up showing the seal. It seems like it is going to take some serious force and effort to reseat it? I see the comment about using something like a tyre lever, it just seems very tough to do as is?
https://ibb.co/6nC749S
https://ibb.co/TBRdZNn
As long as you're careful not to do any damage, shouldn't be that hard to pop the seal back in. I'd give it as much of a clean as you can and lube it up as much as you can.
It's a bit odd that it's popped off like that. I'd be tempted to do a quick seal/foam ring service on the forks and make sure it's not the visible effects of something odd going on. Advantage of that is it'll make it very easy to pop the seal back in.
Thanks for the advice euain, I will give that a go with some lube as they feel like they are performing well at the moment as they had not seen much off road action, they were just used in the dry majority of the time on tarmac. If it doesn`t pop back in easily then as you suggest it may require removing the stanchions but I would rather not have to resort to doing that just yet. I know you can buy service kits you as I did this with some older style marzocchi forks I had and as you say it would be good to be sure nothing odd is going on. It is a little strange how it has come away in this manner?
I'd pop those lower legs off, its not that difficult, I've heard people using plastic pipe to make a homemade seal tool and popping the seal in the freezer makes it easier to fit.
I am a bit concerned now there may be an issue with them. It does seem strange that it has partially come out on one side. Will I need to drain the oil on them also when taking them out to check things out. I will have to do some more research.
There's only 5ml per leg if you're just taking the lowers off, you can probably seat the seal with a tyre lever, hope you got a good bargain considering the wonky seal and no axle.
Download the service manual from sram website, you'll need suspension grease and 15w fork oil.
I am thinking I will have one more attempt at putting the seal in with the forks still assembled but I do not want to damage the seals as they still look decent overall so would rather not have to replace them. I have had a look at the lower leg removal and if I get hold of some suspension oil (I see CRC do the rock suspension oil) is that a decent option? I see the rockshox stuff is not that easy to buy locally and only comes in at a similar cost for a mini bottle though I only need a very small amount it seems. Then I can remove the lower legs which would give me the chance to check the o rings and that the seals are ok further down.
The reason I am a bit more concerned now is I have read that leaking air pressure can force the seal off, it does seem unlikely that these seals can just come away in use from the fork lower passing through but I guess it is a possibility it occured that way also? I want the forks to be safe to use of course also most importantly. I did put some air in them when I get them (110 psi) three months ago and it is at around 100psi now, not sure if a bit has leaked?)
Was the seal like that when you got them, if not the seal on the solo air shaft will be leaking, those seals also might be dry as a bone, I wouldn't hesitate to pull the lowers off, I'd rather make sure it was all greased up and the foam rings are well soaked in oil.
You could carefully tease the metal ring off the seal and slide a small zip tie down between the stanchion and seal to see if air escapes.
Thanks for the reply. I had a go at reseating the wonky seal earlier this evening but it seems a super tight fit and half of it is out so its not going back in like that it seems. As you suggest greeny30 the seals might be dry so it makes sense to get them in the right shape again otherwise they will more than likely need more work in the near future and I would rather get them running nice than just make do. The seal was like this when I got the forks so I am thinking that once the seal is set up properly they should be ok. The guy I got them off hardly did any off road but they still would have had his weight on them and I think they are off a 2017 highish end Decathlon XC bike so will be OEM jobs.
Do you need specific grease also for this service then? I have seen sram and a few others do that. They also mention cleaning everything is isopropyl alcohol which I may also get.
You can service forks without the iso, I just use muc off disc brake cleaner but its not essential, you can't just use any grease on the seals so suspension grease is advised, some people on here use red rubber grease, white lightening clear grease is safe on seals but not as slick as suspension grease, slick honey is the most popular choice, I can post you some dynamic fork grease, the stuff bike24 sell in the black tub with the yellow stripe, I can put a few spoonfuls in a little tub if interested.
I`ve finally got the bolt axle ready and have gone to check the lowers out after I noticed the seal was uneven as pictured earlier. Now I have gone to put the spring type circles over the seals before reassembling them but unfortunately one of the circles has snapped? Are these critical before reassembly, really disappointed as I thought I had all this sorted out but not sure whether I now need to buy another one?