I have a Pike Solo Air RCT3 which is over due a damper service. Looking at the Rockshox manual the process doesn’t look overly complex, assuming you have all the tools etc. Reading the manual and doing it however can sometimes be very different. What are peoples experiences with completing a damper service – is it ok or actually a real pig, ie it would be better to pay the £120ish to get a shop to do it? Any steps in the process to watch out for?

Cheers

Piece of piss.
Only issue is the bladder which needs a 5/8″ allen key or something.

Perfectly doable with the correct tools. In fact, so much so, that you might as well tinker with the shim stack if you’re curious.

I used a 16mm hex adaptor for a Race Face crank arm.

Not done one yet, but I’m not sure if all you need to do is bleed it which some threads and articles suggest, or always should do the full service in the manual which involves a fair amount of steps compared to older traditional dampers and an important statement which insists you must replace the seal head (and is this always if you just open the thing up or per service interval)? Also stresses drying the tube out perfectly as moisture can crack the bladder, apparently. Their method involves compressed air, which I don’t have.

Manual says both full strip down service and bleed for 200hrs though.

It’s been fine for me.

Read the manual, watch some videos, have the correct tools (listed in manual) to hand.

Took me about 2h as I’d not done a bladder in a fork for ages

I got away with just flushing and bleeding the cartridge for a few years but eventually something popped which required a rebuild. Sods law it went on holiday! I’d do the same again but rebuild every couple of years.

Really easy but a bit fiddly and a lot of steps so you have to be mariculture. Unless there is something wrong with your shock I wouldn’t bother. I doubt it needs it. I did mine because it was an early pike and the seal head had gone. The fork was 3 years old and had been riddled all year round if all the winter crap and crud and never serviced before. When I stripped down the damper it was absolutely as clean as a whistle, so other than the failure of the seal head it didn’t need touching at all.

Sounds like its doable then. Its a 2015 pike and its never had a damper service. I have done the lowers plenty and the air shaft side (it was sucking down). There is nothing really wrong with it but i guess prevention is better than cure while on holiday somewhere!

Straightforward if you follow the instructions;

https://www.sram.com/sites/default/files/techdocs/gen_0000000004461_rev_b_2014_-_present_pike.pdf

Check you have the tools on hand, some 16mm hex bits are close enough to 5/8 to work, some dont fit. (My cheap 16mm fits, good one does not).

You need a pair of circlip pliers with small tips for one of the circlips.

Take your time bleeding the damper, you want all the air out, no point in rushing.

I use a vacuum bleeder but you can bleed them by hand as per the instructions.

Slightly harder than say an old moco fork but still like’s been said just a case of following the instructions. One thing you can say for rockshox, they design their stuff to be servicable

You need a pair of circlip pliers with small tips for one of the circlips.

As I found out today. The circlip holes for the compression cam are tiny! Need to buy some new circlips as mine wont fit. Good thing I’m not in a hurry.

Slight thread hijack- has anyone serviced a deluxe rt3 shock damper? Mine sounds a bit wheezy.

I’ll take it off the bike and remove the air can to check it’s the damper but if I’m doing that I’d like to service the damper too, or at least refresh the oil