2023 Norco Fluid FS Short Term Update

[@MILTONATOR]

Anyone triggered by the mismatch madness 😂 Fox/DVO and kashima fork/not-kashima seat post? 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@Clownworld24seven]

Yes! It’s painful 😂

[@AlexSantos-eo9kl]

Ride what performs best. I have a Zeb Ultimate on my Altitude with the Factory X2 and think it's a better combo than stock.

[@LastAphelion]

@@AlexSantos-eo9kl But is having to service RS lower every 50, Fox at 125, then RS full service at 200 the most annoying sounding thing to maintain? I'm getting RS soon and when I saw their required service timings I instantly regretted not getting fox just because of that because that's at least a 45 min drive for me for service every 50 hours

[@AlexSantos-eo9kl]

@@LastAphelion I haven't had an issue. But I do have two big bikes so I alternate. The lower service every 50 isn't terrible if you have the patience and the space to do it.

[@LastAphelion]

@@AlexSantos-eo9kl Oh so its reasonable to do yourself?

[@dave7725]

Great update. I picked up the same bike in August this year. This was my first season of mountain biking (buddy and I started mid-July) and I love it. We've gone from riding greens to tackling blacks without much issue. Looking at purchasing a sturdier fork and have been mulling over a 150 or 160mm Fox 36, so this is helpful! Thanks dude!

[@MILTONATOR]

@@dave7725 sounds like you’re hooked! lol It’s an awesome bike and higher end fork will make it even better, you’ll see 👊

[@paulthompson6357]

Reroute your cables to under the shock. They will fit between the 2 uprights where the shock mounts.

[@3igger1]

That’s what I’m saying! Disappointed about the exposed cables. Thank you for mentioning that issues.

[@MILTONATOR]

Yea man. I wonder if they fixed it in the carbon version recently released

[@piciu256]

Dude, you just recently said that you want less travel for the sake of safety, that didn't last long 🤣

[@MILTONATOR]

I don’t consider 160/140 to be big travel. Thanks for watching

[@seblair3429]

Ive got a 23 fs a4 and i love it its not the most high end bike but i had gotten a replacement wheel and it has a dt swiss hub which i am absolutely loving. I hope to get some different upgeades gor it in the future

[@MILTONATOR]

@@seblair3429 easily one of my favorite bikes I’ve owned to date

[@Dempsey222]

That bike must ride great with the upgrades. I switched to coil recently and I am never going back to airshock. Coil rides so much better.

[@MILTONATOR]

Super happy with the setup! I stayed away from coils for fear of losing the pop, but I was wrong 😄 thanks for always chiming in. Appreciate your support

[@dougcook3174]

I ended up doing over 60 rides this season on mine, just stock. I have ended up loving this bike :)

[@MILTONATOR]

@@dougcook3174 nice! my favorite bike of all the ones I’ve owned so far

[@tylersmith-santana5633]

I've got a Fs-A1 and love it except I think I need more travel. I got it because I didn't think I would need more travel but I feel like I am going way bigger and harder than I thought I would at almost 40 years old. If I had been 20 i would have gone with a sight or something bigger but now it's time for upgrades. Thanks for the video.

[@MILTONATOR]

143/160 has been so good on this bike. But I just got a second big travel bike so I’m going back down to stock

[@maxuca74]

Do the same to my Orbea Occam Just to find out that what I need its not turn a trail into enduro bike its to go back to enduro bikes again😅

[@diegox426]

Spring rate? Love the build, im running a yari 170mm in my fluid, running perfect

[@MILTONATOR]

Nice! 500 rate, I’m 178 lbs and getting a 25% sag. Run it open all the time and it’s great

[@marksandoval5361]

The 160mm Fox 36 with the Grip 2 damper might be the best Trail fork ever made. Like butter! All Trailbikes that have at 130mm or more of rear travel should come with this fork. Skip the 130mm, 140mm, or 150mm fork and go straight to the 160mm Fox 36. Going with the 160mm travel 36mm stanchion fork adds very little weight compared to how much it improves performance. I can even imagine an very efficient pedaling and climbing 120mm rear travel Trailbike with a 160mm Fox 36.

[@MILTONATOR]

Agree. The ride feel is noticeably so much better.

[@piciu256]

It is not, not even close to what a Manitou Mezzer offers for example, or even the new Mattoc.

[@SsmAnyfeSt]

150 z1 coil! I cannot ride air now that I've tried coil front and rear! Lol

[@djd88s]

Greatings from Italy

[@MILTONATOR]

Hey! 👋

[@rudyeignor5981]

Would love to video on servicing rear suspension greasing and torque specs thanks keep up the great work 👍

[@MILTONATOR]

Thank you. When the time comes

[@MIkegrimm2]

@MIkegrimm2 Thanks for the review, you put out a lot of good information. I was thinking an about the ibis Ripley AF, but this bike looks and it appears to be a better choice. I currently have 2005 Ellsworth moment with the 26 inch wheels, this should be a nice upgrade. My trails in Eastern Virginia are mostly twisty and Rooty with moderate climbs.

[@MILTONATOR]

Thank you. The Ripley AF is a solid bike and just as fun also. Can’t go wrong with either of them. Good luck

[@mitchdomaas304]

I have a Capra core 4 and I’m thinking about getting the 24 c1 fluid. I pedal way more than I ever expected. So I want to try less travel….

[@MILTONATOR]

@@mitchdomaas304 the Fluid has tuned out to be one the best bikes I’ve owned

[@born4flipping]

Norco made a fix for the cable issue on the lower shock. Its a new plastic peice that kicks the cables out a little bit more

[@MILTONATOR]

Is this an aftermarket part? Just saw they released the carbon version and wondering if they fixed it there

[@born4flipping]

@MILTONATOR No, it was a recall situation. My local bike shop told me about it and gave me the new piece to swap over

[@MILTONATOR]

@@born4flipping oh man, good info thanks!

[@saml8119]

I have the exact same bike and although I absolutely love it, I’ve had some major disappointments. The geo and fork I love. I tend to bottom the rear shock out sometimes and could use a little bit more. I hate those down tube cables as well. My biggest complaints though are at only 90 miles I was doing a long tech hill climb and heard a loud crack. Now the free hub easily turns freely in both directions. Now trying to deal with Jenson warranty claims and it’s very difficult to get ahold of them. The other thing is that rear vittoria tire is absolute garbage. Within 10min an entire knob ripped off and no puncture plug was big enough to fix it. Patched it and it happened on another spot lol. Any help on fixing my rear hub? In 30 some yrs of biking I’ve never actually seen this happen before. Your shock upgrade seems like a good idea

[@MILTONATOR]

Bummer man. I’ve got nothing on the hubs to help you out. Strange that you’re having difficulty getting a hold of @jensonusa as they’ve been pretty responsive in my experience. Try reaching out to them on instagram also. As for bottoming out the shock, throw some spacers in there and that should help.

[@saml8119]

@@MILTONATOR yeah I had good experiences with them in the past but the last week or so no responses. I got impatient and took the hub apart. There are three very little springs that control the paw engagement..somehow those fell out. Put everything in place and it works lol. Hoping that lasts but keeping my fingers crossed. Unfortunately for us guys that ride a little more aggressive I think new wheels are in the future..or at least new hubs but the prices seem to be about the same for the entire wheel for some reason these days.

[@MILTONATOR]

@@saml8119 aye! Glad that worked out

[@matthewnoddle9875]

Little late to this, but contact the store you bought the bike from. Norco did a recall on the cable routing and made a new plate which routes the cables further away from the shock

[@MILTONATOR]

Not late at all. Thanks. I’ll be reaching out for sure

[@signsofVtimes]

I really enjoyed the in depth review and your thoughts on the Norco. Bike looks great and reminds me of my old 2020 Neuron. I bought a Spectral 7 which is great but I would love to swap out the Fox suspension for something a little softer.

[@MILTONATOR]

Thanks for the feedback. Really appreciate it

[@diegosotosilva9453]

good video! I have a technical question if you can help me. I have a norco fluid fs a1 and I'm thinking about changing my fox 34 (140mm) for a 160mm rockshox lyrik to gain stability and some travel, is there a problem in increasing the front travel? Could the frame suffer any damage? blessings from chile 🇨🇱

[@MILTONATOR]

Thanks! I’m obviously not en engineer and therefore can only speak from my experience. I’ve been riding mine at 160 travel for nearly a year. It’s been ridden pretty hard (above average I would say) and have not experienced any issues. The head tube is actually larger than most. If you do go with 160, I would recommend also overstroking the shock and getting 143-145mm. This way you increase travel nearly evenly on both ends

[@diegosotosilva9453]

@@MILTONATOR Thank you very much for your reference based on experience and the recommendation to increase the rear travel, I had not thought about it. Likewise, I would like to be able to contact the brand so that they could give me that security/guarantees of the changes. good pedaling!

[@diegosotosilva9453]

@@MILTONATOR What shock measure are you using?

[@MILTONATOR]

@@diegosotosilva9453 210x55

[@philfort7886]

I am thinking about getting a norco fluid A4 and put upgrade a lot of it. I ve got a marzocchi bomber Z1 160mm and i though it would be great. Does the 160mm affect a lot on the climbing??

[@MILTONATOR]

The 160 does not affect it much. Not in my opinion. I would suggest that if you go 160, you also overtroke the shock to make it 143-145. This way you increase travel evenly front and rear

[@philfort7886]

@@MILTONATOR goood. thank for the answer man 👊👊

[@Hotitalianman]

What is your travel for your rear shock?

[@MILTONATOR]

@@Hotitalianman 130 stock, but over stoked is ~143

[@S_Mendez_28]

You know, when the light hits that frame from a certain angle, it looks like it's white...which would look sweet. Matte white frame. Irrelevant, but it was on my mind while watching. 😊

[@MILTONATOR]

Haha! 👌

[@trailpimp6369]

Very nice brother. I think this bike is perfect for you.🙌🤘

[@MILTONATOR]

Thanks my dude! The fluid turned out to be a dream bike

[@trailpimp6369]

@@MILTONATOR 🔥

[@tttass]

What's the HTA with the 160mm fork, 64 degrees? Do you feel like that made any difference when climbing? Guessing it's all positive but just curious

[@MILTONATOR]

It is approx 64 and the difference is climbing (for my climbs, which aren’t very steep not techy) is minimal. I gladly trade that for how much better it rides on the way down

[@stepan.furman]

If you have the same eye to eye length of the shock - id doesn't give you a higher BB. Wise versa actually. Since you have more stroke your BB is lower in sag and lower in full compression. Still kinda strange that you have a second bike with longer travel but you still turn Fluid into travel that closer to Capra. I have a Megatower as enduro bike and I have no desire to make my trail bike longer travel.

[@MILTONATOR]

You are correct

[@SsmAnyfeSt]

He said higher bb because of the 160mm fork, not because of the over stroked shock. ;)

[@peterhaworth6859]

Hey man great video! I’m just enquiring what length stem and bar width you running? I’m the same height as you on a large optic currently with a 35mm length stem and I’m not sure if it suits me

[@MILTONATOR]

Thanks man. I’m running a 780 with a 40mm stem. Not sure if the reach is the same between your optic.

[@peterhaworth6859]

⁠@@MILTONATORyep I think the reach is the same at 480mm, 35 feels a bit nervous with 760 bars, burgtec do a 42.5 which could be the Goldilocks option. Anyway thanks for the rapid reply man👌

[@MILTONATOR]

@@peterhaworth6859 gotchu. I was thinking of trying a 35 but thinking that it might make it twitchy. Glad you mentioned that it feels “nervous” Sticking with the 40 👊

[@peterhaworth6859]

Yep 40/45 sounds like the sweet spot,and what ride aligned recommend 👌

[@svssvs9848]

Hello, your opinion about the tires? How the perform?

[@MILTONATOR]

I have no complaints, honestly. They roll fast, they’re holding up pretty good in terms of wear and the grip is good. In short, I don’t see a need to change them for anything else

[@brassmnky33]

+10mm on the fork isn’t going to do much to your bb height. I’m not saying you couldn’t tell a difference in your bb raising around 3mm but it’s not going to be substantial.

[@MILTONATOR]

It’s actually 20mm (was 140) and the other thing to consider is axle to crown length. My 36 is longer than the bomber z2

[@brassmnky33]

@@MILTONATOR I would say it’s not going to make a tremendous amount of difference even at +20mm but that bike has a bit of a high bb to begin with. You aren’t going to be slaying the flat turns or sharp berms but my guess is that’s not what this bike is for anyways.

[@thegriff9425]

So what is the rear travel now?

[@MILTONATOR]

143 - 145

[@ericcontreras8863]

So SRAM chainrings work on Praxis cranks???

[@MILTONATOR]

The sram chain ring works with praxis cranks just fine. But my drivetrain is Shimano and the chain doesn’t work as smoothly with the sram chain ring

[@ericcontreras8863]

@@MILTONATOR I understood that part, you explain yourself well in your videos. I was just glad to see SRAM chainrings work on that crankset. I know a lot of more budget entry bikes use that crank. It’s good to know they have the same design.

[@cliffordrichardc]

dvo coil 50mm long

[@MILTONATOR]

55

[@JohnRyan007]

Buy some new grips jeeeeeezzzze

[@topchoice1621]

You should of just bought the A1 it would of been better for you

[@MILTONATOR]

Not in my opinion. Didn’t want the 34, I wanted the 36 which I now have. No regrets 😁

[@topchoice1621]

@@MILTONATOR I get it