Sunday DHX issues

RaID · May 29, 2006

whats youre weight? and what current settings are you running?

ska todd · May 29, 2006

Check the DU bushings for said "chattier-ness". What shock settings did Mike at the Fox truck recommend? (Drop me a PM if they recommended anything different then the following.) The bike comes stock w/ a 300# spring which will typically suit riders in the 170-180lb range. Set air pressure around 125psi with the bottom out 1/2 way. Add maybe a click or two of propedal if needed per course conditions.

-ska todd

dhbuilder · May 29, 2006

mark.
this may or may not have a relation to your shock problem.

i recently put the swinger back on my bike while i'm waiting on new hardware from fox.
i immediately noticed that the swinger felt much better in the first couple of inches of travel over the dhx. that wasn't the case when the fox was new.
i'm going to have to get a hold of them for info, or send it to them for some t.l.c.
since it was an off the shelf item, it may need to be customized to my bike, weight and riding style.

so it may be a shock issue and not that new frame.

S.K.C. · May 29, 2006

Hmmm...

Mfzbike:

going fast through little rough stuff like braking bumps....real "chattier" feeling....
the thing is i didn't touch the shock....it just started feeling like that...

...here's what I'm thinking: if you said you haven't touched the shock AT ALL could we assume this would also include adding air to the piggy-back reservoir?

You do realize that these shocks can loose as much as 25psi a day depending on the shock, weather, and riding conditions.

If you haven't added or checked the air in your DHX chances are you could have been riding on a shock with nearly Zero PSI... this could potentially do REALLY awful things to damage a DHX... I'm not trying to scare you - it may not be the case - but definitely something to ask yourself.

dhbuilder · May 29, 2006

mark's a good rider and good mechanic.
shock air pressure was probably the first thing he checked.(you did didn't you ?

)

Bicyclist · May 29, 2006

S.K.C. said:
Hmmm...

Mfzbike:

...here's what I'm thinking: if you said you haven't touched the shock AT ALL could we assume this would also include adding air to the piggy-back reservoir?

You do realize that these shocks can loose as much as 25psi a day depending on the shock, weather, and riding conditions.

If you haven't added or checked the air in your DHX chances are you could have been riding on a shock with nearly Zero PSI... this could potentially do REALLY awful things to damage a DHX... I'm not trying to scare you - it may not be the case - but definitely something to ask yourself.

Hold up, they lose 25psi a DAY? That BLOWS!!! Even my Swinger was able to hold a pretty consistant pressure.

skinny mike · May 29, 2006

Bicyclist said:
Hold up, they lose 25psi a DAY? That BLOWS!!! Even my Swinger was able to hold a pretty consistant pressure.

as much as is the key phrase there.

Bicyclist · May 29, 2006

Still. Even 10 psi a day would be about 9 psi too much for me.

SXtrailrider · May 29, 2006

on the sx trail isn't the DHX set up in a neutral amount of air pressure, and if it looses as much as 25 psi a day how can you pump air pack in, because of fitting issues they made it so you can not.

Bicyclist · May 29, 2006

SXtrailrider said:
on the sx trail isn't the DHX set up in a neutral amount of air pressure, and if it looses as much as 25 psi a day how can you pump air pack in, because of fitting issues they made it so you can not.

I would assume it would lose pressure out of the valve so you're safe. I'm sure they thought of this.

dw · May 30, 2006

mfzbike said:
i never touched the shock, sorry except to check the obvious, air pressure.....
i just don't get how it was was one the quietest and smoothest bikes i had ever ridden for a 2-3 weeks and then just went to crap....

It sounds like you have a shock problem. I'm not sure how much experience you have with shocks or blown ones for that matter, but if you don't mayBe a friend can help determine if you have a problem with the shock.

Here are a couple simple things to check:

1) are your aluminum fox bushings ovalized?
2) are your DU bushings in your shock worn out?
3) Is your damper functioning properly?

Also, you mentioned chain slap, just put a piece of hardware store PVC clear flexible tubing over your rear derailleur cable and it takes away any chain noise. its a $0.3 investment.

Hope this helps.

Dave

ska todd · May 30, 2006

dw said:
...mayne...invenstment...

Misspelling "maybe" & "investment"...are you still drunk from the Sauza on Sat night?

-ska todd

RD · May 30, 2006

ska todd said:
Misspelling "maybe" & "investment"...are you still drunk from the Sauza on Sat night?

-ska todd

BOOYA!

dhbuilder · May 30, 2006

Bicyclist said:
Hold up, they lose 25psi a DAY? That BLOWS!!! Even my Swinger was able to hold a pretty consistant pressure.

yeah, he went a little overboard with that statement.
i'd go for weeks without checking the air pressure. and then just for grins i'd check it. i never ever lost as much as 1lb. in almost a year of riding.

Transcend · May 30, 2006

Oh dear, this thread will go downhill now! Search google for ....

Also, Todd, my chick wants to know if she can have the recipe or mix brand that you used for the carne asada steak, it kicked ass.

To the OP - has the shock gotten any louder? If there is any cavitation sounds you need a rebuild or rebleed. The air pressure may have fallen at one point and caused the air in the chamber to get into the rest of the shock. Thsi will cause some of the chattery symptoms you are having.

ska todd · May 30, 2006

Transcend said:
Also, Todd, my chick wants to know if she can have the recipe or mix brand that you used for the carne asada steak, it kicked ass.

Seasoned the steak w/ chipotle chile powder, salt, pepper, lime juice and then cooked in butter w/ a splash of tequila.

-ska todd

Transcend · May 30, 2006

gracias senor.

vitox · May 30, 2006

ska todd said:
Seasoned the steak w/ chipotle chile powder, salt, pepper, lime juice and then cooked in butter w/ a splash of tequila.

-ska todd

quite the parrillero huh

Transcend · May 30, 2006

vitox said:
quite the parrillero huh

Todd is a better cook than I imagined.

dw · May 30, 2006

ska todd said:
Misspelling "maybe" & "investment"...are you still drunk from the Sauza on Sat night?

-ska todd

damn me and my too fast typing. I rode that tequila off all day on Sunday.

BOOYA!

Zutroy · May 30, 2006

S.K.C. said:
Hmmm...

You do realize that these shocks can loose as much as 25psi a day depending on the shock, weather, and riding conditions.

.

Don't forget that checking the pressure, drops the pressure.

Transcend · May 30, 2006

That squishy noise means you have an oil/air mix going on (free bleed). It may be due to a simple loss of pressure when it was hit really hard, or a faulty seal. You need to get it serviced.

dw · May 30, 2006

just to second or third what the other guys said, your shock is blown from the sounds of it. If the pressure in the chamber got super low, that could have caused it. Get it serviced and you should be all good.

Good luck and have fun.

Oh yeah, Cane Creek, we're still testing it on the bike.

Dave

CKxx · May 31, 2006

Sooo...if my DHX is silent i'm ok? I think I lost pressure once after a large impact. All of a sudden it felt sloppy and soft at the end of a run. Is it possible for a shock to 'fade' as the oil heats up?

maxyedor · May 31, 2006

CKxx said:
Sooo...if my DHX is silent i'm ok? I think I lost pressure once after a large impact. All of a sudden it felt sloppy and soft at the end of a run. Is it possible for a shock to 'fade' as the oil heats up?

Yes shock fade is a real issue, that is why the remote/ piggyback res. was created in the first place. You should see the size of the res. on a trophy truck shock needed to keep the oil on that thing cool.

FastTimes · May 31, 2006

So, if you can hear your shock making a "slurping" sound does that meen it has air in the main chamber? My shock feels fine but I can certainly hear the oil passing through the valves more then I recall it doing when I bought it. I always run the boost vlave at arround 75psi but maybe it slipped during a ride.

Thanks guys,

Transcend · May 31, 2006

Marc, if you just hear the oil, you are fine. If you hear cavitation (bubbles being dragged along) you are not so fine. I run about 120 lbs of air, midway closed chamber, and a 300lb spring.

FastTimes · May 31, 2006

Thanks,

I guess I am having a hard time determining if I hear "bubbles" or not. I am am a bit of a newb to all the shock sounds and what they mean. Here is a bit more info. This is a DHX air by the way, although I had this same issue with my coil last year so would really like to understand all this.

I always run the air in the boost valve above 75psi but it may have fallen during a ride at some point. I started to notice it make a sharp “whistle” sound during the rebound stroke while on a ride. I could stop it by backing off the rebound, stroking it a few times and dialing the rebound back in.

Since then, I have noticed that I can hear the oil being passed through the valves more. It makes a bit more of a “slurping” sound than I remember it initially having. It’s not as noticeable with the rebound backed off so maybe it is just due to the high leverage ratio or that the narrower orifices from the rebound being dialed in amplifies the problem? I removed the air sleeve and checked the stroke from start to finish and it seems solid until the very top (uncompressed) portion of the stroke where it seems to feel like there is possibly air in the chamber. It needed a little tug to get it fully to the uncompressed position. The rest of the stroke feels solid. There is no chatter, the shock feels ok and only these odd sounds have had me even looking at it. The coil-over on my Sunday is quiet as a mouse.

What do you think?

Transcend · May 31, 2006

FastTimes said:
Thanks,

I guess I am having a hard time determining if I hear "bubbles" or not. I am am a bit of a newb to all the shock sounds and what they mean. Here is a bit more info. This is a DHX air by the way, although I had this same issue with my coil last year so would really like to understand all this.

I always run the air in the boost valve above 75psi but it may have fallen during a ride at some point. I started to notice it make a sharp whistle sound during the rebound stroke while on a ride. I could stop it by backing off the rebound, stroking it a few times and dialing the rebound back in.

Since then, I have noticed that I can hear the oil being passed through the valves more. It makes a bit more of a slurping sound than I remember it initially having. Its not as noticeable with the rebound backed off so maybe it is just due to the high leverage ratio or that the narrower orifices from the rebound being dialed in amplifies the problem? I removed the air sleeve and checked the stroke from start to finish and it seems solid until the very top (uncompressed) portion of the stroke where it seems to feel like there is possibly air in the chamber. It needed a little tug to get it fully to the uncompressed position. The rest of the stroke feels solid. There is no chatter, the shock feels ok and only these odd sounds have had me even looking at it. The coil-over on my Sunday is quiet as a mouse.

What do you think?

If it gets loud and you start to notice a loss of damping control, you have a free bleed situation going on.

It's hard to explain the noise difference, but it's quyite easy when you know what they sound like. The regular oil through valves noise is normal. The slurping swishing bubbly noise is not.

SKYWAYBUZZ · May 31, 2006

mfzbike said:
hey guys i've been having some problems with my new sunday.....
when i first got the bike it felt great through everything fast sections with little bumps and any big drops super quiet bike .....
now about 3 weeks later......it feels like crap and its really loud(chain slap) going fast through little rough stuff like braking bumps....real "chattier" feeling....
the thing is i didn't touch athe shock....it just started feeling like that...
i talked to the fox guy at the open this past w/e.....he did some few minor tweaks with the air volume and told me to mess with the pro pedal knob.....but nothing helped....
some input would be well appreciated....
i just don't get how it went from great to crap in just a few weeks...
thanks
markz, tn

My DHX coil did the same thing "it feels like crap and its really loud(chain slap) going fast through little rough stuff like braking bumps....real "chattier" feeling...." good description of mine.I kept checking the air cause it kept felling softer. Turns out the oil was a mess. Put new heavier oil in and all good again. With the heavier oil I had to run less air 110psi compared to the stock oil at around 180psi.
The heavier oil provided more damping so I dropped the psi's to achieve the feel I was accustomed to.

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