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I know this has been done before, and last time I asked I got an answer, but need another one.
I cannot find a source for 5w Rockshox oil for my Reba damper side. Last time I asked I was told that Castrol 10w oil was of a similar viscosity, but I couldn't find any. I ended up using their fully synthetic 10w but it doesn't behave like the fork used to.
I am in the process of changing the O rings and seals (thanks unklehomer!) and have managed to find some 15w Rockshox fluid for the lowers, (Hoorah) but can only find 5w in ridiculously expensive 120ml bottles, and I need 123 ml.
Local M/cycle dealers have Rock Oil 5w and Silkolene 5w. Are either of those any good, or will I burst into flames on the rooty sections?
Any other suggestions for alternatives?
I have also been offered some Halfords 10w fork oil by a mate. Will that work, or will it make my forks go on backwards and cross-thread the pedals?
Yes, you will need to use the 5w oil for the damper side & it needs to be suspension oil & as you say available from motorcycle dealers.
I've used RockOil 5wt on RS Revs/recons. Can't say I've noticed any difference
Motorcycle stuff is all you need. It's about a quarter the price of branded MTB stuff and is probably better. Mine happens to be Silkolene.
wysiwyg - Member
> http://www.peterverdone.com/wiki/index.php?title=Suspension_Fluid
Down the bottom
So if I scroll down to the comparison charts should I be looking at the viscosity columns to get as close to the same damping effect as the 5w Rockshox?
That's the badger, but I would guess you'd be hard pushed to notice the difference. Just see what's available and match with what you're happy with.
I use RockOil in 5w and 15w on my Reba's - not killed me yet 😉
Can't say it's any worse - felt better after I first changed from the RockShox stuff but that's probably just the removal of 6 months of crap as opposed to the oil..!
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=8399
If you want to do it OEM, I'm pretty sure RockShox 5w is just rebranded Torco 7w.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Torco-7W-RFF-Motorcycle-Racing-Fork-Fluid-1Litre-/290634975987
I used Motoul expert fork oil last time i service my forks, bought it with service kits from Loco. It is available on ebay for about £12 a liter.
Wow, thanks for the info.
I now have the choice of Silkolene 5w from Earnshaws, Rock Oil 5w at DC Motorcycles, or the 10w Castrol originally recommended in my last thread which is back in stock at Halfords. I guess that given how easy it is to change the oil in the damper unit only I can happily try the cheapest and if it doesn't work as I want it to I can always try another.
wysiwyg - Member
> http://www.peterverdone.com/wiki/index.php?title=Suspension_Fluid
Down the bottom
scapegoat - Member
So if I scroll down to the comparison charts should I be looking at the viscosity columns to get as close to the same damping effect as the 5w Rockshox?
I used the same info to work out Red Line suspension fluid is the best stuff and their lightweight 5w (18.4cSt) is close enough viscosity to Rockshox fluid (15.9cSt) although you can mix it with Red Line extralight to get the exact viscosity using this calculator http://www.provire.com/index.php/mtb/
http://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-60183-red-line-lightweight-suspension-fluid.aspx
Whatever the motorbike shop has.....
Slightly OT but I just got my Totem coil forks serviced at lbs. (normally go to Loco but this was an "emergency")
It was a lower service with seals, I put them back on my bike and the rebound is now really slow, loads slower than before even on fastest setting, the rebound dial works but from really slow to stupid slow.
Any ideas?
Too thick an oil
BINGO!
Hence the reason to make sure you've using the correct cSt viscosity rather than assuming all "5W" oil etc is going to be the same, it's all in the below link already posted by wysiwyg
http://www.peterverdone.com/wiki/index.php?title=Suspension_Fluid <
Does this apply for the oil in just the lowers?
That's all I had done
Local M/cycle dealers have Rock Oil 5w and Silkolene 5w. Are either of those any good, or will I burst into flames on the rooty sections?
I did my totems last week & used silkolene 5w. It's a little bit thicker than the RS stuff but 1st impressions are that there's a marked improvement in control and damping over using RS oil. I say that guardedly, however, because the difference could be down to having nice fresh oil in them. I also used Silkolene 15w in the lowers which, again, seemed a bit thicker than the RS stuff that came out.
Well, I've ended up with Rock Oil 5w(I was in that part of town anyway) If it doesn't work I'll order some of the Torco stuff. It was a lovely blue colour, which was nice.
Interesting (for me) little snippet from that Peter Verdone site is that Totems use 2.5w oil in the damping side. Now, if only RS had put that in their service guide, which states 5w.
This would explain why the old stuff was thinner than the new 5w I put in there. having said that, The Silkolene 5w seems to suit the fork - each damping adjustment now makes a noticeable difference.
Does any oil experts out there know if this thicker oil would be more consistant on very long descents (mega, mountain of hell etc.)?
Also, would the thicker oil at the same oil volume put more pressure on the internal seals etc?
I generally put a bit higher weight oil in than normal, slows down compression & rebound but never noticed any other effects.