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Cane Creek AD-8 Older Rear Shocks

4.34/5 (35 Reviews)

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Product Description

Cane Creek AD-8 Rear Shock


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Reviews 1 - 15 (35 Reviews Total) | Next 15

User Reviews

Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:4
Submitted by Donnie a Weekend Warrior from Garland, Tx.

Date Reviewed: September 7, 2001

Strengths:    Light, adjustable, does not leak down, no seal issues

Weaknesses:    Not too plush on small bumps. No Negative travel. If air pressure set to where there is no sag, the shock tops out over stutter bumps and sounds awful.

Bottom Line:   
It came with my Dakar Team frame. I like it and have tinkered with pressure, rebound dampening and compression dampening a lot to get it right. Without extra rebound dampening, I felt like it was going to rebound me right over the bars. No problems in over a year of use. A coil shock would be more responsive on small bumps, but I'll keep it until it blows up.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Purchased At:   Aardvark Cycles

Similar Products Used:   None

Bike Setup:   97 Dakar Team, Full XT 9sp except for WTB wheelset, tires and headset. Also Salsa stuff and a Trico seat
Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:4
Submitted by phishin a Cross Country Rider from Tulsa, OK

Date Reviewed: May 9, 2001

Strengths:    Price, weight, it works

Weaknesses:    Sometimes has stiction for first 5 min of ride but goes away quickly. No biggie. The 8 has been discontinued.

Bottom Line:   
This shock came on my bike. I was going to put a fox Float R on it but whats the point. It works just as well and is lighter.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   Turkey Mtn Area

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Similar Products Used:   Sid, Fox Float R

Bike Setup:   Jamis Dakar
Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:5
Submitted by scott ladue a Cross Country Rider from sandy, ut

Date Reviewed: April 30, 2001

Strengths:    its nice smooth feel and ride

Weaknesses:    no lock out

Bottom Line:   
this is a sweet shock for the hard cor rider it has a good feel and a good smooth ride

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Price Paid:    $200.00

Purchased At:   private

Similar Products Used:   fox vinlla

Bike Setup:   jamis dakar
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Jay a Cross Country Rider from Vancouver

Date Reviewed: April 3, 2001

Strengths:    Light
Easy to adjust
Easy to fix, if needed


Weaknesses:    Some stiction

Bottom Line:   
This shock has been great for me. I have ridden it probably 1500 miles with no problems. It has not lost any air and has never blown up. It is stickier than the coil over, but I like the stiction as it helps from keeping my bike from being to active. It is easy to adjust, I hear Cane Creek has great customer service, and it does what is supposed to. Great shock!

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   Ape Canyon

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Purchased At:   Supergo

Similar Products Used:   Fox Vanilla air
Fox Coil over
SID air


Bike Setup:   Jamis Dakar
Overall Rating:1
Value Rating:1
Submitted by Howie from Mendocino, CA

Date Reviewed: January 16, 2001

Strengths:    None

Weaknesses:    Lots of stiction
finicky to adjust
needs air pump
must adjust air frequently

Bottom Line:   
Save yourself some grief & buy a coilover. Mine didn't last a month before the seals went. I contacted Cane Creek who told me that this was a frequent occurrence with the AD-8 and they wanted to send me an AD-10. I rode a friends & could tell no difference at all in the -10, still lots of stiction and was tired of pumping an air shock every week to maintain pressure, so I said no thanks & bought a Fox coilover. Best thing I've ever done. While other people replace their air shocks and work on them, I'm out riding. Wise up!

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:4
Submitted by brian a Cross Country Rider from Middlesex, NJ

Date Reviewed: April 11, 2000

Strengths:    Lighter than coils, plush, very adjustable.


Weaknesses:    none

Bottom Line:   
Way plush, doesn't have the 'sproing' like the Stratos on my friends Y bike, Seems to suck up hits better than the A-bomb I have on the front after getting big air. Since it is a progressive type suspension it can suck up small modulations AND big hits without bottoming out. Now that I think of it once I set it up it has never bottomed out, unlike my old Indy SL... but thats another review.
After a year I have had no problems and no leaks. I would strongly recommend getting a Lizard skin cover to keep the seal clean. It's also nice to be able to set it up for my weight (155 lbs) right out of the box without having to get lighter springs like I've had to do with other suspension products.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   Chimney Rock

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Similar Products Used:   none, this is my first full suspension

Bike Setup:   Janis Team Dakar, Z2 A-bomb, LX/XT/XTR, King, Sun
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Robert Van den Heuvel a Weekend Warrior from Northridge, CA, USA

Date Reviewed: April 11, 2000

Strengths:    - light
- adjustable
- it works great

Weaknesses:    - none

Bottom Line:   
I broke down and cried tears of blissful joy and felt like a kid with his first bicycle on Christmas day when I saw and felt what this shock has done for my bike, and I haven't even been on offroad trails yet since I replaced my Fox Vanilla, which was clattering like it was not working at all on anything except large, slow bumps. I suffered 3 months with the Fox, thinking my bike was destined to clatter and shudder on washboards because it was only an $800 bike. Wrong. A pogo stick with one of these shocks on it would be as smooth as a Cadillac.

For $90-150 on the internet (used) and $200-250 new, this shock just cannot be beat. Has adjustments, rides sweet and smooth, makes the back end perform like a Marzocchi on the front. Plush, plush plush...

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   chesebro - agoura

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Similar Products Used:   - fox vanilla "x" coil-over shock (junk)

Bike Setup:   - DBR X2 '99 Marz Z3LT, XT/LX, etc.
Overall Rating:4
Submitted by tom a Cross-Country Rider from canberra, australia

Date Reviewed: September 19, 1999

Strengths:    
light, affordable, very sensitive compression stroke. my fox pump fits straight on and works.

Weaknesses:    
boingy rebound on bigger hits, the rebound damping takes a lot of experimentation to dial in. blew it up once but cane creek warranteed it and it seems okay now.

Bottom Line:   
Good value on a cross country bike with an active linkage system because it's light and sensitive (for an air spring). The compression/rebound dials are hard to get at (on my bike design). I don't think that this shock would be good for downhilling.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   
1 Year

Similar Products Used:   
fox alps 4R (had two and they both exploded).

Bike Setup:   
Ventana el habanero
Overall Rating:5
Submitted by James a Cross-Country Rider from Elkhart In

Date Reviewed: September 2, 1999

Strengths:    
Easy to adjust. Works wonderful

Weaknesses:    
Still looking. Give me some time.

Bottom Line:   
Just got the shock with the new bike. I was flying down a familiar trail, but it has changed recently. I went air-borne over a lip and landed a bit down the trail.It sucked it up. No return bounce, no complaint, no funny noises. Much better than the RS on the other bike.Best way to say it. Had it two days and it's already saved my ass once. Watch for a follow up.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   
Still Looking

Duration Product Used:   
less than 1 month

Similar Products Used:   
Rock Shock Delux
Fast Trax

Bike Setup:   
Jamis Dakar Team
Overall Rating:5
Submitted by Frederik a Weekend Warrior from Stockholm, Sweden

Date Reviewed: September 1, 1999

Strengths:    
Light, responsive, easy setup and maintanence

Weaknesses:    
Leaking air when seals dry up

Bottom Line:   
Great shock. Had problems with leaking seals, due to age, but after contacting Cane Creek on the net, I've got an answer from Gregg at the European service center in Spain. After 1 week I had a new set of seals, instructions how to change and even a specific tool to dismantle the shock. No more leaking seals.
Best aftermarket service I ever experienced. That on top of a great product is a wonderful combination. Five stars to Cane Creek.....

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   
1 Year

Similar Products Used:   
Fox

Bike Setup:   
Jamis 98 Dakar team
Marzocchi Z2 BAM
Overall Rating:3
Submitted by Mike Fleming a Cross-Country Rider from Emerald Hills CA

Date Reviewed: July 25, 1999

Strengths:    
Very good dampening and easy to set up for different weight of riders.

Weaknesses:    
My shock leaked very bad I had to fill the shock every time I wanted to ride.

Bottom Line:   
The Cane Creek AD-8 provides very plush dampening however does not rebound as well as a coil over.MY shock ended up completely breaking in half after about 8 months so i would say that it is not the most sturdy shock on the market.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   
Manzanita@Skegg point

Duration Product Used:   
6 months

Similar Products Used:   
tried the stratos coil over oil and absolutely loved it.

Bike Setup:   
I have a 98 jamis Dakar Team.
Overall Rating:5
Submitted by Tom a Cross-Country Rider from Laramie WY

Date Reviewed: April 24, 1999

Bottom Line:   
I have used the AD-8 for a couple years now on my Jamis Dakar Team with no problems at all. It does lose a little air every couple of weeks, but it works very well. My next rear shock will definatly be a cane creek. I have tried a rock shox and a fox, but I really like my shock better. I will give it five burning horses.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   
2 Years

Overall Rating:5
Submitted by Dave Morin a cross-country rider from Springvale, Me

Date Reviewed: February 26, 1999

Bottom Line:   


Another happy 1997 Jamis Dakar owner. Stock AD-8 still working great after 2 years under 200 pounder. Quickly found the damping adjustments I liked and haven't touched them since. I love the fact that by adding or subtracting a few psi's I've got the perfect set up for Sunday morning hang overs or after work road races(did I just say road out loud??). Overall I'm very pleased with performance. My only concern is what I've read about blown seals, a 10 mile walk home will take the enjoyment out of any ride. Because of this I'm subtracting 1/2 a star from perfect....
Overall Rating:5
Submitted by David Mosier a weekend warrior from Sparks, MD

Date Reviewed: February 15, 1999

Bottom Line:   


Came stock on my 1997 Jamis Dakar. Have had no problems and the shock has worked great for 2 seasons. This is the lightest shock I have used and weighing 185 lbs., I am impressed with the response and durability.
Overall Rating:5
Submitted by Brian a cross-country rider from Gallup, New Mexico

Date Reviewed: January 6, 1999

Bottom Line:   


The cane creek AD-4 shock came as original equipment on my Schwinn URT. I love it!! I can't say enough good things about the response and plushness of this shock. Techno geeks talk about stiction in air shock, but I don't know where mine is! Highly recommend this shock. Replace your Fox or Rock Shox!!
Reviews 1 - 15 (35 Reviews Total) | Next 15

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