My wife’s new bike has a Tora SL coil-sprung fork. When you stand by the bike and lean on the bars to compress the fork, there’s a noticeable (but only slight) bit of “sticktion” at the top before it moves. I know it’s not a high-spec fork, but just wanted to know what’s normal before it gets ridden too much and possibly wears prematurely.

Being an old-stock 2009 bike, is it possible that the fork has “dried out” in storage? Should I be stripping it to check the oil, or am I just being paranoid?

(there was no sign of leakage BTW – nothing was slimey or anything)

There’s often not enough oil in them from new, so worth a check, and they do tend to feel a touch sticky when new.

aye, give them a fresh load of oil bath oil and see. I need to do this on some off kates specialized as they have never felt right.

Thanks folks, I’ll give them a quick service then just in case.