[The_Granny_Gear]

as y'all know riding gets your bike muddy up here in the upper left, how do y'all keep your stantions clean and free of dirt? another buddy of mine told me to use DISH SOAP but that seems like it would screw up your suspension.. any insight? my fork is the suntour xct one commonly found on mid end bikes.

whatever happens.. just put soap on it, it may not improve the situation but it'll end the suspense

 

[PhillipJ]

The word is stanchion


"Mid" is not an end unless your scale is a triangle maybe? Low end -> Mid Range -> High End.



Just use a clean, soft cloth to wipe down your stanchions. IMO dish soap is fine for cleaning wheels and frame but should be unnecessary on suspension.

 

[The_Granny_Gear]

The word is stanchion

"Mid" is not an end unless your scale is a triangle maybe? Low end -> Mid Range -> High End.

Just use a clean, soft cloth to wipe down your stanchions. IMO dish soap is fine for cleaning wheels and frame but should be unnecessary on suspension.

Thanks!

 

[Schulze]

I found that a good mud guard keeps most of it from reaching the stanchions in the first place.

 

[JaxMustang50]

Would not recommend soap on the stanchions as it would remove oil which is filling microscopic spaces in the surface finish. If you do wash them with soap or degrease them in any way, remember to give them a good rub with silicone spray or lower leg lube.

I just wipe them down with a microfiber towel sprayed with silicone lube. It cleans them and leaves a protective coat of silicone as well. No need for anything else. Has been successfully working for me for many years.

 

[Forest Rider]

Dish soap will remove any oily residue.

If you have outdoor washing available to you, you can simply hose down the stanchions to get the big stuff off if they are muddied up. Once rinsed with clean water, wipe them down with a soft cloth. If you see any contaminants that can scratch, use caution and clean it vertically. Should you scratch the stanchion, a vertical scratch is better than a horizontal scratch. It will take more than just cleaning it to scratch it though, unless you're aggressive.

After a good thorough bike cleaning I generally spray the dropper post and the fork stanchions with WD-40 Silicone spray. Very cautiously, don't allow over spray on the brake rotors. I will spray just a little bit on the stanchion so it sort of drips down towards the seal and gently wipe it with a towel to spread it around. Cycle the suspension a few times then wipe again and you're done.

 

[PhillipJ]

Suspension sprays are snake oil IME. Fork and shock lube should come from inside the component. If your gear feels sticky it's time for a service. Spray lube is a temporary fix at best.

 

[scottzg]

suntour xct one

Just so you know... the XCT is a bottom-of-the-bottom fork. I dunno what the 'one' is, but most of them are undamped, and the few that are don't really benefit much from it. They're usually grease lubed, often with sloppy tolerances. It might work-ish now, but there's no promise of longevity.

Given that, i think washing the stanchions is a low priority. Wipe the dirt off. If stanchion lube is a miracle cure it's a sign that the lubrication system isn't working properly.

No dawn, mud guard, towel, lube... sure.

For me, a 'mid-end' bike is pretty dramatically improved by a quality fork on clearance.

 

[JaxMustang50]

Suspension sprays are snake oil IME.

Truth. Don't get me wrong. The silicone spray is just for cleaning / protecting purposes.
It won't lube the stanchions for proper operation. That is the job of the leg lube.

 

[Mr Pig]

I spray mine with silicone. I do think it helps them stay clean.

 

[sturge]

Ride in the mud a lot...I usually wait until it dries, then gently clean stanchions using a soft rag. I also clean dust seals to get any grit away from that area (sometimes a soft toothbrush is helpful). I give it a squirt of silicone spray every now and then to keep things from drying out. I think it helps prolong life of the rubber dust seal and the coating on the stanchions.

 

[Guy.Ford]

...

 

[beer_coffee_water]

If it's just dust I will use baby wipes because they are convenient. Anything more and I use a sopping wet mircp fiber cloth. I also service my own forks so I know the lowers are getting lubed

 

[MikeDee]

Suspension sprays are snake oil IME. Fork and shock lube should come from inside the component. If your gear feels sticky it's time for a service. Spray lube is a temporary fix at best.

Not for Rockshox forks. There's an oil seal inside the fork that keeps the oil inside. The manual says to lube the stanchions. I use Finish Line stanchion lube.

 

[Lone Rager]

^^^ not for quite a while now.

 

[scottzg]

^^^ not for quite a while now.

like a decade, lol.

...and the old RS forks that had the lip seals have all surely had them replaced with their modern equivalents.

 

[Forest Rider]

Are are the dust seals lubricated from the inside? What is the purpose of the foam ring? I guess the foam ring doesn't prevent seal lubrication?

I think it will be good to have a basic understanding of the lubrication process.

Thanks

 

[Millennial29erGuy]

Yes, the foam ring is intended to hold oil against the inside of the seal. Thats why some people flip their bikes upside down for a few minutes before riding if the bike hasn’t seen use in a while. The bath oil (in the fork lowers) lubricates the bushings and the seals as they contact the stanchions. It is only a lubricant and does not affect damping or spring rate.

 

[127.0.0.1]

I use a rag with the same oil as the seal wiper/bath oil and wipe the stanchion, work the fork to pull up dirt rings, wipe those off, buff off the remaining oil. done.

a) it breaks up dirt

b) captures dirt from around the seal edge when fork is cycled

c) leaves behind a tiny amount of the correct oil that the seal is holding back. buff it off there is still a microscopic film of oil left behind.

d) no soap or solvents

win win win. just makes oily rags afterward and no worries of some harsh solvent or soap getting down the seal.

 

[JaxMustang50]

The foam ring gets saturated with bath oil and deposit a small amount on the stanchion as it slides through it. It helps seal lubrication also. It is good practice to invert the fork once in a while to "reload" the foam rings with oil.