[epiphreddy]

There is definately a problem with the rocker. Ellsworth is lucky no one has gotten seriously hurt. I have broken two of them now in the same place as other posters have mentioned. Right side of the front of the rocker where the bolt goes through. I will say however, my local dealer has handed me over 2 free rocker arms on the spot. I am waiting to get one of the new aluminum ones now. I hope the one I am using will last long enough for the new one to come in. I weigh 195 LBs and ride rough XC eastern single track. No big drops or anything, just hard riding. I have broken the seat tube on a 2001 Ellsworth Truth and received a warrantied frame from Ellsworth after 5 years of riding it hard (the warranty is now 2 years I think). Anyways, yes, there is a problem here and Ellsworth is standing behind their product and replacing things for free.............Well it may already be built into the HIGH retail price of $2395 but regardless they are doing the right thing. I have a friend that broke the rear end of an Ibis Mojo which is around 8 months old and they would not warranty it and charged him $250 MORE dollars. I love the Epiphany and will continue to support Ellsworth until they stop supporting me!

 

[dougjulie]

Why no full-blown recall on the rocker?

While its admirable that Ellsworth is "doing the right thing" by sending replacement rockers free-of-charge, they should be more proactive with this retrofit.

As a 15-year veteran of the quality industry, we are constantly evaluating potential retrofits for our products. In each case a thorough risk analysis is performed to determine potential failure rate, exposure, issue severity (safety / code / etc.), and cost-benefit (retrofit vs. leave alone).

In this particular situation, the safety of the rider is at risk, frequency of failure is high (some rockers have failed more than once on the same frame), and the cost to replace is rather low relative to the overall cost of the frame. A full-blown retrofit/recall should be a no-brainer.

It is interesting that the company has chosen to be relatively silent on this topic. The dealer I bought the frame from was not even made aware of the issue, the Ellsworth website has no mention of the problem, and the photos of the most current Epiphany still proudly display the Magnesuim rocker on the bike!

 

[epiphreddy]

I wanted to bump this post to let everyone know that I have received the aluminum rocker arm, free of charge. I don't think Ellsworth should continue advertising such a lightweight for the Epiphany however. This new aluminum rocker arm is easily 1/3 of a LB heavier than the Magnesium one. The weight is fine with me if it will last, but I would guess this frame is now 6 LBs.
DougJulie states, "In this particular situation, the safety of the rider is at risk, frequency of failure is high (some rockers have failed more than once on the same frame), and the cost to replace is rather low relative to the overall cost of the frame. A full-blown retrofit/recall should be a no-brainer."

I could not agree more. I guess they are crossing their fingers hoping that no one gets seriously hurt and they do not get sued.

I am glad that Ellsworth has replaced my bad Rocker Arm(s). I have broken THREE of them now. Hopefully the aluminum one will last along with the frame. I have to say however, they should have replaced the defective rocker arms to keep me from having to walk out of the woods like I have had to do. My most recent rocker arm break left me stranded miles from the car on a Mtbiking vacation. Really sucked walking for miles with an unrideable bike. Luckily I brought my single speed with me so I was able to salvage the rest of my riding vacation.
I think the Ellsworth Epiphany is the finest All mountain bike out there and will continue supporting Ellsworth as long as they support me!

 

[bakalboy]

Good to know that Ells helped you without cost on your side. I believe Ells markets the Epi as one of the lightest and not the lightest... anymore. So that should cover their side. Nevertheless, I think they should have made a more conscious effort to recall them just to appease the minds of its patrons.

I think the aluminum will last much longer than the Mag ones. The moment uses alums and I've heard no one break it yet (knock on wood).

I gota question for you though, you said you broke your rockers three times already. Why did you still get magnesium rockers when you broke it the first time, just curious.

Bakalboy

I wanted to bump this post to let everyone know that I have received the aluminum rocker arm, free of charge. I don't think Ellsworth should continue advertising such a lightweight for the Epiphany however. This new aluminum rocker arm is easily 1/3 of a LB heavier than the Magnesium one. The weight is fine with me if it will last, but I would guess this frame is now 6 LBs.
DougJulie states, "In this particular situation, the safety of the rider is at risk, frequency of failure is high (some rockers have failed more than once on the same frame), and the cost to replace is rather low relative to the overall cost of the frame. A full-blown retrofit/recall should be a no-brainer."

I could not agree more. I guess they are crossing their fingers hoping that no one gets seriously hurt and they do not get sued.

I am glad that Ellsworth has replaced my bad Rocker Arm(s). I have broken THREE of them now. Hopefully the aluminum one will last along with the frame. I have to say however, they should have replaced the defective rocker arms to keep me from having to walk out of the woods like I have had to do. My most recent rocker arm break left me stranded miles from the car on a Mtbiking vacation. Really sucked walking for miles with an unrideable bike. Luckily I brought my single speed with me so I was able to salvage the rest of my riding vacation.
I think the Ellsworth Epiphany is the finest All mountain bike out there and will continue supporting Ellsworth as long as they support me!

 

[epiphreddy]

Bakalboy stated "I gota question for you though, you said you broke your rockers three times already. Why did you still get magnesium rockers when you broke it the first time, just curious."

The reason that I have broken three of them is because apparently there were "bad" magnesium rocker arms that did not have serial numbers or something on them when my bike, a friends, and the local shop owners were purchased (3 Epiphany's total). Ellsworth replaced them with replacement magnesium rockers (leaving the three original magnesium rockers at the shop for future destruct by me). As someone in this thread mentioned earlier, Ellsworth is NOT being proactive regarding this issue at all. They are not getting the word out to their shops telling customers to trade in the magnesium arms for aluminum ones. My local shop owner did not know anything about the aluminum replacement rockers. He too has broken a magnesium rocker arm and had it replaced with another magnesium arm. Through an internet search using "broken rocker arm Ellsworth" I discovered this thread along with several other broken rocker arm issues. Somewhere along the line (probably in the last 6 months I guess?) Ellsworth switched over to aluminum for the rocker arms. Apparantly these magnesium rocker arms have a limited life (2-3 years maybe) whether they are used or not. They corrode easily and obviously snap pretty easily as well. The first one I broke was on my bike for around 2 years. The second one was used for several months, shelved, and then broken by me within a couple of months after I started using it. The third one was broken within around a month.
I must say that I discovered the first broken rocker arm while inspecting my bike sitting in the garage. When the rocker arm breaks around the shock top mount the bike will flop downward until the seat tube hits the rear wheel. The ride I completed ended up with a 40 mph decent off of the mountain on a two lane paved road. When only one side of the rocker arm breaks the other side takes all of the load. When I discovered the broken arm and flipped it up the bolt came loose and the bike's seat tube flopped downward into the tire. Had this occurred while I was descending at 43 mph it could have been disastrous. I am surprised there have not been any reports of serious injuries yet. I don't know why Ellsworth is not getting the word out and replacing every single one of them. I notice that the retail price on this bike has gone up another $200 to a whopping $2,595!!!!!!! Perhaps Ellsworth is planning to recoup some of their lost profit margin's (due to the warranted replacement rocker arms) with this price increase. When I first saw this bike at a retail price of $2,395 I thought OUCH! It can't be that good. It is an awesome bike, but I don't see anyway I would buy another one at $2,595 with a two year warranty. Especially since you can buy the close runner up (see MTBR reviewer ratings) Ibis Carbon for $595 less, with a THREE year warranty. I am glad that Ellsworth has replaced my rocker arm for "free", but let's be realistic, these replacements are built into the price of the bikes even more so now than ever. I mentioned earlier in the thread that IBIS charged my friend $250 to replace his broken rear triangle on his carbon Mojo. IBIS said it was misused basically and did not warranty his frame. Truth be told, he was riding some free riding type jumps (which he did not tell IBIS) and they stated they were not going to warranty his frame and charged him $250. I think they should have warranted the frame, but he was doing some 3 to 4 ft jumps. Personally I think a 5.5" travel bike should be able to do this, especially with a rider weight of 160 LBs (and 43 years old) but who knows. These are some lightweight incredible machines.
I found elsewhere in my searches where the seat tube will break on the Epiphany, see: http://www.socaltrailriders.org/for...jra-snap-crackle-pop-there-goes-epiphany.html
I am starting to wonder since my bike is now out of warranty if it is time to let her go and start looking for something new with a warranty. I think I will contact Ellsworth and find out what sort of a replacement they offer when a bike breaks out of warranty. Once I find out I will post what they tell me.
I want to say once again, The Ellsworth Epiphany is an awesome bike (others think so too check out the number one rated all mountain bike on this site!) and I will support Ellsworth as long as they support me!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bakalboy]

I feel you epihpreddy. If you're going to pay top dollar for something, you should get top customer support as well. I'm one of the lucky ones, the dealer of Ellsworth here in the Philippines really addresses these issues really well so even when the guy who bought my Epi broke the rocker, the dealer helped him out really well. I guess you being happy with your ride is all that counts.

BB

Bakalboy stated "I gota question for you though, you said you broke your rockers three times already. Why did you still get magnesium rockers when you broke it the first time, just curious."

The reason that I have broken three of them is because apparently there were "bad" magnesium rocker arms that did not have serial numbers or something on them when my bike, a friends, and the local shop owners were purchased (3 Epiphany's total). Ellsworth replaced them with replacement magnesium rockers (leaving the three original magnesium rockers at the shop for future destruct by me). As someone in this thread mentioned earlier, Ellsworth is NOT being proactive regarding this issue at all. They are not getting the word out to their shops telling customers to trade in the magnesium arms for aluminum ones. My local shop owner did not know anything about the aluminum replacement rockers. He too has broken a magnesium rocker arm and had it replaced with another magnesium arm. Through an internet search using "broken rocker arm Ellsworth" I discovered this thread along with several other broken rocker arm issues. Somewhere along the line (probably in the last 6 months I guess?) Ellsworth switched over to aluminum for the rocker arms. Apparantly these magnesium rocker arms have a limited life (2-3 years maybe) whether they are used or not. They corrode easily and obviously snap pretty easily as well. The first one I broke was on my bike for around 2 years. The second one was used for several months, shelved, and then broken by me within a couple of months after I started using it. The third one was broken within around a month.
I must say that I discovered the first broken rocker arm while inspecting my bike sitting in the garage. When the rocker arm breaks around the shock top mount the bike will flop downward until the seat tube hits the rear wheel. The ride I completed ended up with a 40 mph decent off of the mountain on a two lane paved road. When only one side of the rocker arm breaks the other side takes all of the load. When I discovered the broken arm and flipped it up the bolt came loose and the bike's seat tube flopped downward into the tire. Had this occurred while I was descending at 43 mph it could have been disastrous. I am surprised there have not been any reports of serious injuries yet. I don't know why Ellsworth is not getting the word out and replacing every single one of them. I notice that the retail price on this bike has gone up another $200 to a whopping $2,595!!!!!!! Perhaps Ellsworth is planning to recoup some of their lost profit margin's (due to the warranted replacement rocker arms) with this price increase. When I first saw this bike at a retail price of $2,395 I thought OUCH! It can't be that good. It is an awesome bike, but I don't see anyway I would buy another one at $2,595 with a two year warranty. Especially since you can buy the close runner up (see MTBR reviewer ratings) Ibis Carbon for $595 less, with a THREE year warranty. I am glad that Ellsworth has replaced my rocker arm for "free", but let's be realistic, these replacements are built into the price of the bikes even more so now than ever. I mentioned earlier in the thread that IBIS charged my friend $250 to replace his broken rear triangle on his carbon Mojo. IBIS said it was misused basically and did not warranty his frame. Truth be told, he was riding some free riding type jumps (which he did not tell IBIS) and they stated they were not going to warranty his frame and charged him $250. I think they should have warranted the frame, but he was doing some 3 to 4 ft jumps. Personally I think a 5.5" travel bike should be able to do this, especially with a rider weight of 160 LBs (and 43 years old) but who knows. These are some lightweight incredible machines.
I found elsewhere in my searches where the seat tube will break on the Epiphany, see: http://www.socaltrailriders.org/for...jra-snap-crackle-pop-there-goes-epiphany.html
I am starting to wonder since my bike is now out of warranty if it is time to let her go and start looking for something new with a warranty. I think I will contact Ellsworth and find out what sort of a replacement they offer when a bike breaks out of warranty. Once I find out I will post what they tell me.
I want to say once again, The Ellsworth Epiphany is an awesome bike (others think so too check out the number one rated all mountain bike on this site!) and I will support Ellsworth as long as they support me!!!!!!!!!!

 

[yangpei]

I have an 07 Epi with the mag rockers. I am thinking about getting the replacement aluminum rockers. But, I wasn't sure how to proceed. None of the bike shops in my immediate area carry Ells. Can I get the rockers directly from Ellsworth, or do I have to have a dealer get them for me? Thanks in advance.

 

[epiphreddy]

It has been my experience that they will either make you get the replacement part (in this case the Rocker Arm) from the shop you bought the bike from or from the nearest dealer. Whichever it may be, the manufacturers generally will make it as much of a nuisance as possible. Why they can't just deal directly with the customer one on one is beyond me.

 

[yangpei]

I called Ellsworth directly yesterday. I asked about getting the mag rockers switched out for the aluminum ones. They helped me set up a RA number, gave me specific instructions on how to remove the rockers, and where to ship them. Once they receive the rockers, they will ship out a set of aluminum rockers free of charge. He even gave me pretty specific tips on how to install the new rockers, where to put lock-tite, and torque specs. Unfortunately, I didn't write all the instructions down (was in the car at the time) and will probably have to call them again when the rockers arrive. But, the overall process was easy. Another thumbs up for Ells CS!

 

[epiphreddy]

Yes, it is easy to replace them. The hardest part is getting the middle bolt/sleeve out. You unscrew one side of it and then have to tap out the other side. When you get the specific instructions and recommendations (locktite, etc.) please post what Ellsworth says. It only takes around 10-15 minutes to do the replacement. I am glad Ellsworth has made this easy for you. Ellsworth is fully backing their customers on this issue and I am happy with this and will continue on with Ellsworth. I think the Epiphany is by far the best bike on the market and am glad Ellsworth is doing the right thing for everyone.

 

[yangpei]

Replacement rockers in

I sent the mag rockers from my Epi to Ellsworth last Thurs. Today, I received the replacement rockers! Pretty fast service, indeed. I haven't looked closely at pics of the replacement rockers, so I was expecting them to be aluminum with a finish similar to the rockers on my Tiruth or Moment. These rockers, however, are greyish in color and look really solid (apparently some type of alloy). The rockers weighed 510 grams (1.12lbs) for the set including carbon cross bar and bearings pre-installed. Unfortunately, I did not think to weigh the mag rockers before sending them in.

I spoke to Kevin at Ellsworth today. He was very helpful with installation instructions. He recommended to slide the rockers in place and put the bolts back in. The rear bolts on the rocker arms as well as the upper shock bolt get some blue Lock-Tite. He then recommended basically tightening the bolts from back to front. The back bolts should be hand tightened (not overtightened). The center bolts should be tightened to 20 ft-lbs. He was less specific on the front bolts (upper shock mount), but recommended a range from 15-17 ft-lbs.

I've attached a pic of the new rockers.