Pro Suspension Tuner Tips | Neil Visits J-Tech Tuning Centre

[@gmbn]

Have you ever had issues with your suspension? Are you strict with how you look after your suspension and always faffing with your setup, or are you more of a 'set it and forget it' person?

[@frankharradence732]

Pre buying my first ever full suss bike (an Atherton AM.130) with some 30yrs of hard tails I hadn't given suspension much thought. Now a year into full suss riding with Fox Factory shock & forks I'm in danger of becoming a suspension nerd/bore ... love logging all ride settings, and aiming for the optimum set up. Have gone from the standard Fox fork sag of 15-20% to a 25% setting, much smoother on the forestry trail tracks I ride on. Love Neils presentation style and skills, more from him especially in the area of theory v actual riding feel....not just big jump offs or DH daring do but typical 'average Joe' off road riding.

[@scottyderg]

Used jim at j tech for years, no bullshit and tells you what you need at the right price! recommend 100%

[@gmbn]

He's a very knowledgeable guy that's for sure!

[@justsayin3600]

I wiil vouch that if you are a heavy rider, it would be good to get your suspension tuned for your weight. I blew out my Fox DPS and sent it to Fox. They asked my weight and tuned it accordingly. I'm here to say the shock is unbelievable for a low end shock. It feels just as good as my Fox Factory Float X2 with 10 more mm. On a side note, for you heavy riders. I switched forks from a Fox 36 to a Fox 38. BUT I bought it with an E-TUNED SUSPENSION. This specific tune from Fox is for a heavy E-bike but I don't ride an E-bike. I'm 210lbs dry and I'm saying this fork is mind blowing, as far as the amount of traction through rough fast plowing. Id say if youvare a heavy rider don't buy a regular fork if you can fit an E-TUNED fork on it!

[@tristatetrifecta]

didnt do a lower leg service on my 40 before this year.. figured ill be ok..second run of the season seals start leaking... lol

[@АлександрДорофеев-ь6р]

Да, нужно эту тему раскрыть как можно подробнее. Потому как все отталкиваются от ощущений и мало кто следует регулировке которые рекомендованы производителем. Спасибо, было очень интересно и полезно 🙏

[@robertmcfadyen9156]

What percentage of riders ensure both periodic maintenance and both pre and post ride cleaning or preparation , are done properly ? My guess is about one percent . What do others think ?

[@proteusnexus1428]

Don't be so cruel. I would say 2% ;-)

[@cycliststrainingpartner8877]

Very few! Actually none

[@rider65]

LESS. As a bike shop employee I can tell you it's definitely 1% or less

[@andyarchitect]

I do my own lower leg services but so far have neglected to service rear shocks. I should probably get around to that. So far been working on the basis that they don't get as dirty 😟

[@niclaskarlin]

The rear little service is as easy as the front lower.

[@johndef5075]

Ive done the rear shock can service but havent done fork lowers yet.

[@jeremybub]

You should mention to service your dropper post at the same time as your suspension, clean and lube after every ride and 50 and 200 hours.

[@gambitmkii]

I do lower leg service on my RockShox and then every 2 years but the new damper upgrade, pretty much the cost of 2x 200hr services.

[@elmomos]

Is any silicon spray suitable for lubing stanchions? It won't contaminate lower leg oil?

[@janprachar5066]

I would suggest using the same oil that is in the lower legs.

[@rider65]

Ditto. What I do is spray a very small amount of silicone on a clean rag to wipe off the dust seals & stanchions. Then use just a little bit of the fork oil around the dust seal stanchion for lubricating the inside of the seal

[@stevenconnor4221]

Silicon oil will just help lubricate your seal and provide less stiction.

[@EmanuelFuchs]

I mean this is an Ad right?

[@jptothetree]

Welcome to the internet.

[@holc123]

you mean the suspension service guy says to service your suspension every 50 hours and 100 hours and 150 hours? that'll be the cost of a new fork every year and half.

[@45graham45]

J- tech tuned a new shock to suit my weight, riding style etc. But they refused to give me any idea of what they'd done to it which I though was crap. I'd like some idea how it'd been "improved".That shock failed 6 months later so I got warrantied a new shock from the manufacturer - with standard tune. The standard tune felt much better than the J-tech custom tune. I wouldn't use J-tech for a custom tune again - mainly because they will not tell you what they did. This means any future mechanic will have no idea what's been done to it too.

[@j-techsuspension]

Hi Graham, really sorry to hear you've had a bad experience with us. With regards to the refusal to give information, I think there may have been a misunderstanding or a miscommunication there. We're more than happy to share info for someone else to service the shock after our tuning, so oil specs, IFP specs, etc. We're just not willing to share shim stack configurations, as that's something we've spent many many hours developing and so is our intellectual property. Again, sorry if this was miscommunicated in any way. With regards to you not liking the custom tune, I'm really surprised to hear this, as we get lots of positive feedback from our tuning, which is based on many years of data collection from real-world testing, which is correlated with many hours of dyno work in the workshop. Not saying we never get it wrong, but if a rider is struggling, we do everything we can to help get the tune to work the best for their needs. It sounds like maybe something went wrong in the process, so we'd love to hear from you so we can look into the details of this. We obviously can't help now with that specific shock, as you've moved on to a replacement, but if you could spare some time to give us more detail on a phone call or email, we'd be very grateful to find out what went wrong and try to make it up to you somehow. Our email is [e-mail] and our phone number is 01743464486. Many thanks.

[@45graham45]

@@j-techsuspension No, there was no confusion or misunderstanding. I didn't want to know about specific oils or shims etc. Just an idea of what was done - eg, increased or decreased the range of compression or rebound damping etc, or increasing the number of volume reducers. Basic stuff but I was told quite bluntly that I could have no information.

[@j-techsuspension]

@@45graham45 My apologies then, we should have been more open on that. I'll be taking this up with our staff to make sure this does not happen again. Sorry again for the bad service.

[@justsayin3600]

I can understand the frustration and dissatisfaction. Hopefully you can get with them to sort it out just so it doesn't happen to anyone else.

[@j-techsuspension]

@@justsayin3600 Thanks very much for understanding.

[@slowduro_pl]

Basically no suspension tune tips in this video :D Apart from everything that has been already said 999+ times over the Internet. Let me share my suspension tips from a noob, that just recently found out how to properly set the suspension: - SAG is just a starting point. Just set it somewhere in the area of 20-25% and you're good to go (30% for damper). If you bottom out - add volume spacers. If you feel the fork is too soft - add compression. Try not to go lower than 20% of sag. - Set your rebound as fast as possible!!! I've ran too slow rebound for over 2 years and was struggling from arm and hand fatigue. I thought Im getting thrown of the bike. I was, but because I had no travel left, not because the rebound was set too fast. Just make sure its balanced between front and rear (a tad slower on the rear is fine). But generally you want that fork moving fast. - Compression - use manufacturers recommended settings (for Chargers - just open it all up). Add low speed compression for more support in berms and pedalling, add high speed compression if you're blowing through travel on rough stuff. Thats it, enjoy and ride.

[@stevenconnor4221]

As a Mech Tech, everything he is saying is correct, but as a car driver, I have never had to clean my shocks just replace them when theyre weeping oil and failing in thier purpose. And as a mtber clean and change oil every 5 years.

[@andymoss4285]

What is a suspension tune? Is it more than just chucking as spacer in?

[@MightyFireL]

Valves layout in the damper according to your weight and riding style. And for rear shocks, also depending on the frame kinematics, and what personality the bike manufacturer wants to give to the bike.

[@JS-up8ff]

I think the 50 and 200 hour service interval are really pushing the wallet for the customer and filling it for folks like Jim. Of course he says to follow the manufacters recommendations. When you buy a shock for lets say 400 euro, I'm not going to service it each year at almost ±180 euro. I will just run it for 2 years minimum and just throw it away and buy a new one (and maybe they even made a new version, win win). With the forks, it's a bit different as a new one is mostly 700-1200 euro and service is ±150 euro. But that's also easier done yourself. Just seals and oil/grease. Rear shock is way too complicated imo.

[@cornishcactus]

yup, my forks get a lower service when i feel they aren't smooth, so 9-12 months and full seal swap every couple of years. Haven't touched the damper because it sits in it's own sealed up little world away from dirt and should be sweet for years. Shock I'm doing only it's 2nd ever service at some point soon in 5 years, and that's only because I feel guilty, and want to see if the 10mm damper rod is still unscored.

[@gemshiddenhistories6575]

This is the first I've heard of "lubing your stanchions" after each ride. I clean the stanchions to get rid of dirt and grit after each ride, but what do your lube them with? The manufacturer's fork oil? WD-40, Silicone Spray?

[@tommyking207]

Suspension lube spray. There are a few makes. Spray your stantions once you've cleaned your bike an cycle the Suspension to lube the seals an also it brings up crap from the seal which can then be wiped off. 👍

[@TivonSanders]

I use RockShox 15wt oil to lube my stanchions. I just apply some to a folded up towel and apply the lube on the entire circumference of it right above the seal.

[@HUSKY7-1]

The tears of hardtail riders

[@rider65]

What?! 😂 dude are you serious? You should at least clean off the stanchion seals after every ride. You could Lube the seals and the stanchions every other ride but don't use too much silicone type of lubrication that will dilute the fork oil. The best lubrication is the same type of hydraulic oil inside the forks. You don't need much just a little bit on your finger after the stanchion and seal are clean work the stanchions up and down wipe off the excess and you're good to go. Same goes for the dropper. 👍

[@rider65]

​@@tommyking207forget sprays overspray will get on your brake rotors no matter how careful you are unless you completely cover them. 🙄

[@robertmcfadyen9156]

Cheaper to buy the telemetry data recorder .

[@andyarchitect]

All this talk of servicing makes me want to stick with my Suntour Aion 35 forks... as far as i remember its only the lower legs that are actually serviceable, and the damper is a sealed unit. It feels as good as a few Fox forks that I have ridden (maybe they could have been dialled in better?) but I'm happy 😀.

[@rider65]

Unless a fork does not have a cartridge with shim stacks and seals then yes they need service. 🙄 They just may be easier to service the cartridge

[@markcosens1]

Seeing as jtech didn't respond to a message for some work I wanted doing to my fox40, they are now firmly on my 'do not use in the future list.'

[@Justkeepshredding]

Nice, 😂 I’m the same

[@robertmcfadyen9156]

​@@JustkeepshreddingReport this to fair trading .

[@ashleynicholls9526]

Strange I always get a reply the day after at the latest. Used them for years.

[@brucehamilton6019]

Come to find out that the deal on my 160m Fox 36 Perf. bc it's a thicker ebike build, using 34 spacers, less volume, and a given tune. Still good for my usage, tune it to my weight. Lockout good for street. Allows for the 220mm SRAM rotor for XTR brakes im running, 203mm out back. Niner Air 9 hardtail. Wait for the real bomb, tho. Wait for it...

[@Jonathan-q7n2m]

Wait for what

[@matiasmere77]

ok, now do it for the mortals

[@Jonathan-q7n2m]

True

[@loris-sk4wx]

What kind of generation is it? Lack of knowledge can be dangerous 😘🍭

[@Tomzzzzzz]

Click baity thumbnail on this vid. Sad to see how much GMBN has deteriorated over the years. Doddy content is the only worthwhile thing on this channel.

[@wonderwatch2239]

🙄

[@TivonSanders]

*was ...Doddy left.

[@YavorM-Yash]

Doddy is not with them for over an year or so.

[@dtheopha]

how many times do you need to repeat the same info? Maybe keep it to once every 5 years from now on before the internet breaks

[@esa4141]

Custom tune your fork… upgrade fork may not lead to any improvement… fox has so thick lube inside that it just doesnt work elsewhere smoothly than very hot climate

[@MartinTeerly]

Cheap Amazon silicone spray £5.35 with be ok for your stanchions and shocks and dropper. You don't need peatys expensive fancy crap

[@MyPavelf]

Useless video.

[@zcmx]

Where are the pro tips!? Everyone knows about sag and servicing! 🤦‍♂️

[@joshuaallswang8016]

Second