[hal brain]

I have been through the archives but can’t quite come to find a solution to my problem.

The Deets…
Trail Riding w/ drops to 5 feet
I weigh 155lbs

The FR SL is bottoming out on 3 foot drops. In fact, I use up almost all the travel just putting all my body weight over the fork and bouncing up and down. The fork is new with a few rides on it. I have been experimenting with different positive and negative pressures with little effect.

I decided to take it apart and check the oil levels, thinking that they might be low and causing the fork to bottom out. I removed all the oil in the ECC leg and looks to have about 140CCs of oil.

Will an increase in the oil level reduce the bottoming? And if so, how much of an increase should I start with given my weight/riding style?

 

[MK_]

What do you mean by playing with air pressures? Positive pressure controls the spring, so pump it up until you quit bottoming out. Once you set that, set the negative so that the fork rebounds the way you want it.

_MK

 

[hal brain]

What do you mean by playing with air pressures? Positive pressure controls the spring, so pump it up until you quit bottoming out. Once you set that, set the negative so that the fork rebounds the way you want it.

_MK

I mean I experimented with positive pressure up to approx 40+ lbs. Though the guage on this pump makes it difficult to get an accurate read under 50lbs ( a low pressure pump is on it's way). Despite this level of pressure I was still bottoming out way too easily.

 

[MK_]

Yeah, a different pump might help. I have a similar pump to the one you have pictured and I couldn't get the pump to engage the air valve properly, and ended up using a different one. Maybe that's part of the problem. Just wait for your pump and experiment then, it you still have issues, then something isn't right with the fork.

_MK

 

[tscheezy]

Ok, which FR SL? The Z1 SL (130mm) or the Z150 SL (150mm)?

 

[hal brain]

Ok, which FR SL? The Z1 SL (130mm) or the Z150 SL (150mm)?

It's the Z1 130mm. I was silently hoping that you would chime in I have been through numerous posts of yours regarding this fork.

 

[XSL_WiLL]

Eh, I'm too lazy to look up the proper oil heights. But I say that you should go with a more viscuous oil, and add a little bit more. I think Marzocchi ships their forks with 7.5 wt, so try a 10 or 15 wt. If you put in more oil, it won't be using the full range of travel. If there's too little oil, then it would bottom easily. Oh, and always use a shock pump, otherwise you won't get accurate readings. Wait for the shock pump first. Mess around with the positive air spring pressures. If that doesn't work, then start changing the oil and/or springs.

 

[TNC]

My '04 Marz service CD says 150cc in the right leg and 50cc in the left leg. Oddly for my '04 Z150SL it recommends 170cc in both legs. I use very little oil in my fork's left leg. I also looked up the Marathon SL which is similar to these two forks. The CD recommends 150cc in the right leg and 50cc in the left leg. I'm thinking the 150SL recommendation for the left leg may be a typo.

 

[MK_]

I was performing service on an aged Z.2 superfly and the manual called for 77cc of oil when in fact the needed amount was 7cc. I found out the hardway, getting an oil shot at my face. Granted that putting too much oil in the left leg won't cause that, but something to be alert to in Marzocchi manuals. One thing you should keep in mind is that the less oil you use the more linear spring you will have due to increased air volume, the more oil you have the more progressive.

_MK

 

[Chris2fur]

My '04 Marz service CD says 150cc in the right leg and 50cc in the left leg. Oddly for my '04 Z150SL it recommends 170cc in both legs. I use very little oil in my fork's left leg. I also looked up the Marathon SL which is similar to these two forks. The CD recommends 150cc in the right leg and 50cc in the left leg. I'm thinking the 150SL recommendation for the left leg may be a typo.

Below is from Marz's oil level chart for 04, focusing just on the Z1s. Starting from the left, it shows model, Low level left/right for lighter riders, high level left/right for heavier riders. Seems that all the SL's have much less in the left leg (makes sense). Also, travel does not seem to make any difference in the recommended amounts:

Z1 Drop Off I QR20 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Drop Off II 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride QR20 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride SL 150/50 155/55
​

Z1 Free Ride SL QR20 150/50 155/55
​

Z1 Wedge 90/90 95/95
​

Z150 Drop Off QR20 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride QR20 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride SL QR20 150/50 155/55
​

 

[tscheezy]

Now does that really make sense that the 2004 Z1 SL and the Z150 SL take the same volume of oil??

My 03 Z1 SL takes 95cc (ml) in the right (ETA) leg and anywhere from 50 up to 70cc in the left. I guess the 04 forks may be different, but that sure seems like a huge volume...

 

[TNC]

Traditional Marz flip/flop.

Below is from Marz's oil level chart for 04, focusing just on the Z1s. Starting from the left, it shows model, Low level left/right for lighter riders, high level left/right for heavier riders. Seems that all the SL's have much less in the left leg (makes sense). Also, travel does not seem to make any difference in the recommended amounts:

Z1 Drop Off I QR20 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Drop Off II 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride QR20 155/155 160/160
​

Z1 Free Ride SL 150/50 155/55
​

Z1 Free Ride SL QR20 150/50 155/55
​

Z1 Wedge 90/90 95/95
​

Z150 Drop Off QR20 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride QR20 170/170 175/175
​

Z150 Free Ride SL QR20 150/50 155/55
​

I love Marz forks, but this oil amount/level issue has always been a struggle for them...and us too, I guess. You can even call their tech dept. sometimes within a week and get two different amounts/levels on the same fork. This '04 service CD that we just got at the shop the other day is different from the numbers you posted, Chris...and I'm not surprised...LOL!

 

[Chris2fur]

I love Marz forks, but this oil amount/level issue has always been a struggle for them...and us too, I guess. You can even call their tech dept. sometimes within a week and get two different amounts/levels on the same fork. This '04 service CD that we just got at the shop the other day is different from the numbers you posted, Chris...and I'm not surprised...LOL!

Yes, after reading Tscheezy's post I double-checked the 04 CD and it matches on the 130 but the Z150 SL its shows at 170/170. This has to be wrong, because the pos/neg air chamber side will not take the same amount of oil... I would tend to go with the chart, but you are so right about the confusion, because remember when people were getting forks only partially full out of the box? What do you do when you can't even drain one out to get an idea?

 

[TNC]

No kidding.

Yes, after reading Tscheezy's post I double-checked the 04 CD and it matches on the 130 but the Z150 SL its shows at 170/170. This has to be wrong, because the pos/neg air chamber side will not take the same amount of oil... I would tend to go with the chart, but you are so right about the confusion, because remember when people were getting forks only partially full out of the box? What do you do when you can't even drain one out to get an idea?

Personally I just start over with new oil and level when I get a Marz fork. Then I just keep adding or removing oil as needed to suit my needs. This doesn't help much for the customer, however, as most of them don't usually go through this ritual.

 

[hal brain]

Personally I just start over with new oil and level when I get a Marz fork. Then I just keep adding or removing oil as needed to suit my needs.

Based on the responses, this sounds like my best bet too. God help the poor soul that buys this fork and doesn't want to tinker with it.