It is possible to completely rebuild the damper with all new seals/ bladder (if you can get them) although it’s a bit fiddly. I’m sure JTech/ whoever would sort it out if you don’t want to DIY it.
Are they just leaking out the top? From memory it’s not particularly hard to fix this – doesn’t require a full strip down although does require the right seals.
ive been told that the seals in question cant be bought. Apparently this is what Rockshox said themselves. Seems crazy to bin a damper due to a couple of 10p seals!
I had that happen with an old blackbox damper but crazy if it’s happening with Pikes. I’d be fairly surprised if it’s true, though0- you can definitely buy most of a charger damper in bits (I don’t want to say “all” because I haven’t looked closely enough but you can get the damper top/bladder assembly, rebound leg, seal head, etc…)
Whole damper is under £200 from a few places (maybe not the latest version) but I see a lot of those are EU so maybe not as simple as it was. Is it with a proper suspension place or just a bike shop? The difference between people who can “do a service” and people that really specialise in forks can be pretty big
I think it is true that RS no longer sell the seal kit aftermarket. Which is really annoying – I bought one and did my Charger a year or so back. Nevertheless, it’s just a collection of correctly-sized o-rings so perhaps someone can supply those (or at least tell you which ones to order). If it’s the bladder itself that’s a bit more tricky. I have a spare somewhere I think.
Unfortunately RockShox dont sell all the Charger 2/2.1 seals or include them in the service kit, you are just supposed to replace the damper if it leaks out of warranty. Full seal kit includes the seal head, but not the bladder etc. RockShox do not supply instructions for stripping the bladder/compression assembly.
Leaks out of the compression adjuster at the top of the fork appear to be semi common.
If you have a look online you can see what people have been doing to fix them. There are a couple of youtube videos, some pictures of one fully stripped etc.
WSS are good for aftermarket bladders.
I think some people where fitting an o ring to the HSC spool, others were fitting a new X ring.
What a shitshow. And why is the boost version different from the nonboost?
I was pretty impressed when I was looking into upgrading my Fox 36s, they’re a 2015 model but I can basically drop in parts from every Fox 36 made since then, I can fit any newer damper, most of the air springs, the Smashpot coil upgrade I bought will fit any fork up to 2020 without a single new part and the 2021 model with just one small change… I can even swap on newer lowers or uppers, though Boost knackered that a bit. And every part for my old fork is available on top of the forward compatibility.
Meanwhile Rockshox haven’t maintained the intercompatibility and they’re not even selling service parts.
I’m having a different issue with my ’18 Pikes – combination of worn stanchions/worn bushings on the left hand leg – but it turns out, like the seal mentioned above, RS can’t or won’t supply replacement CSUs for a 4 year old fork. Not impressed.