[jpjp18]

Did you eventually get your damper end cap removed? I just tried servicing my Topaz and the seal head was stuck on so tight that my attempts to break it free torqued the eyelet so much that I can't get the hardware reinstalled into eyelet. I gave up and send it into DVO and am waiting for a reply. DVO mentioned they have seen issues with anodizing corroding and causing things to stick but I've never seen anything like this before. I was using all of my might and a wrench that was about 14" long to try and break it free but it would not budge, not even after applying a bit of heat.

This is not the first time I've had DVO parts stuck together extremely tight. The first time I serviced my DVO Onyx SC fork the OTT spring cap was totally stuck to the upper leg and I was only able to free it by using some heat, all the strength I could muster and a giant pair of 90* pliers wrapped in a piece of inner tube.

Yes, it was tough thou, have a few scratch marks on the end cap after that. Luckily that doesn't affect the shock's function. I used a longer leverage tool and the shock is clamp on vise.
No sign of corrosion at all.

 

[dwyooaj]

Any thought by others who have a Topaz on a Banshee Rune V2? Just put one on mine, previously ran a xfusion vector coil HLR and air HLR, both of which are great. There is an issue at least for me with a coil on the Rune, the leverage curve is most progressive in first half of travel, then levels out and becomes regressive at the very end, which is more designed for an air shock, to help with breakaway at beginning of stroke and lessen extreme ramp-up at the end. Because of that with the linear coil, there was occasional midstroke harshness; with the vector air's "wallowy-ness" that was about exactly cancelled out for an overall smooth stroke. However I mostly ran the vector coil because of my weight (215#) so the small bump sensitivity was still really good and the mid-stroke spiking only came up in certain situations-it would get hung up a little on chunk of a certain size. Replacing the vector air with the Topaz because of the self-serviceability . Took it for one ride on a steep chunky DH but with no big drops or g-outs. So far, Im very impressed. The huge neg spring makes beginning stroke unreal, quite comparable to coil. Its seems a little more supportive in mid stroke than the vector air, but not enough to cause the mid-stroke spiking, this thing seems to smooth out the chunk quite well. At 230 pSI, 197 in bladder, and no volume spacers anywhere, I had 30 % sag and used 78% of travel on thatt trail, which seemed to leave about the right amount for bigger hits and drops. On the climb back up, it didnt bob much, (the rune is a great climber due to high anti-squat). So I dont yet feel the need to add volume spacers to either chamber. Maaaybe one in positive... Does all this sound about right?

 

[Notthatbryan]

Anyone know if the Topaz will fit on a 2021 giant trance x 29?
I'm considering upgrading my shock, the size is available 185x55 trunnion mount.

 

[Jrp103]

Anyone know if the Topaz will fit on a 2021 giant trance x 29?
I'm considering upgrading my shock, the size is available 185x55 trunnion mount.

yip

 

[Notthatbryan]

yip

Awesome, thanks.

 

[dwyooaj]

Longer ride today on 3 chunky descents with my Topaz on Banshee Rune V2. i weigh about 215-220 geared up. Eventually settled on bumping the PSI to 235 in main and 199 in bladder. Felt fantastic. However, one trail has a drop hit with some speed to a transition, maybe 3-4' down and 7' out. Felt a bit harsh on landing, tire buzzed my butt. Didnt completely bottom out, but used 90% of its travel. Previous shock (Xfusion Vector HLR) never felt harsh there, but it has external BO control which I ran cranked up-used about 86% on that. Im wondering if i should add one band to the positive, or just not worrry about it since i dont do a lot of drops-but want it to feel good when i do. It wouldnt firm up the first half of travel at all, right? dont want to sacrifice the plushness much there. If I do do I still aim for 30%sag and how much less psi? Air shocks that are "wallowy" around 30-50% of the stroke actually work well on the Rune because its leverage curve is harshest there-with coil there was always a little mid-stroke harshness. Would adding a band make it more "wallowy" there or less? Am I making any sense?

 

[CrozCountry]

Longer ride today on 3 chunky descents with my Topaz on Banshee Rune V2. i weigh about 215-220 geared up. Eventually settled on bumping the PSI to 235 in main and 199 in bladder. Felt fantastic. However, one trail has a drop hit with some speed to a transition, maybe 3-4' down and 7' out. Felt a bit harsh on landing, tire buzzed my butt. Didnt completely bottom out, but used 90% of its travel. Previous shock (Xfusion Vector HLR) never felt harsh there, but it has external BO control which I ran cranked up-used about 86% on that. Im wondering if i should add one band to the positive, or just not worrry about it since i dont do a lot of drops-but want it to feel good when i do. It wouldnt firm up the first half of travel at all, right? dont want to sacrifice the plushness much there. If I do do I still aim for 30%sag and how much less psi? Air shocks that are "wallowy" around 30-50% of the stroke actually work well on the Rune because its leverage curve is harshest there-with coil there was always a little mid-stroke harshness. Would adding a band make it more "wallowy" there or less? Am I making any sense?

I would doble check that the two shocks have the exact lengths open and closed (with a ruler).

Other than that, a single band will probably solve it. You should not feel the initial stroke harsher. Most likely also keep the same PSI for sag.
It's also easy to test, adding band on this shock is pretty easy. I think I did it with the shock on the bike, but it's been a while so not 100%. Go for a test ride, that's the only way to really tell.

At your weight I would also consider revalving.

 

[dwyooaj]

I would doble check that the two shocks have the exact lengths open and closed (with a ruler).

Other than that, a single band will probably solve it. You should not feel the initial stroke harsher. Most likely also keep the same PSI for sag.
It's also easy to test, adding band on this shock is pretty easy. I think I did it with the shock on the bike, but it's been a while so not 100%. Go for a test ride, that's the only way to really tell.

At your wait I would also consider revalving.

Thanks! just checked they are same length. Wonder if slightly thicker oil would have the same effect as revalving. Though i also have no problem tearing the shock apart to add shims if necessary.

 

[HollyBoni]

What does the compression switch adjust exactly on this shock? Both high and low speed compression? If I want to ride a trail with bigger jumps and drops, instead of adjusting air pressure and/or the bladder pressure, could I just flick the switch to the middle setting for example so I don't blow through the travel that fast? Is it possible to tune the middle mode for example without affecting the open mode? I don't really need/want a climb switch, I basically never use it on my current RS shock.

 

[alex.k]

Expansion of the positive canister-to-sleeve port to four adjacent slits from the tiny hole that massive pressure had to flow through in both directions.

View attachment 1951903

Now the stroke is more springy as expected. If you compress the uninflated shock as stock mounted on the bike with your finger over the port and then with the sleeve on you can notice the difference.

To those few that stated that the rear wheel seems to skip over dips that come after bumps as if the HSR isn't fast enough, this mod mostly fixes the issue.
If you are to do this then use a thin angle grinder or dremmel and don't go below the lip that the hole sits on as that's the piston seal limit(don't use a drill bit). Afterwards sand the inside where the slits are. You then might want to add positive spacers as the effective positive volume has been increased.

 

[Impetus]

Seeking tuning advice from those familiar with the DVO Topaz shock:
I bought a gently used Ripmo AF frame and shock last week, built it with my own parts, and got some real trail time today.

I'm 165# ride weight.
I set it up per the DVO and Ibis Ripmo set up guide-
14mm (27.5% per ibis) sag- 175 psi in the shock, 180 in the IFP bladder.
4 clicks of rebound.
Compression lever to "open"
There is 2 bands on the positive side, one on the negative side.
The shock feels really great; like full on amaze-balls on general trail riding with the wheels on the ground and hits that are like shoe-box size or less.

So, here's the issue- I launched some waist-high hucks to flat and smashed some pretty big hits- enough to use probably 160 of my 170mm Fox 36, and STILL only used like 60% of the shock travel. It feels great- but ramps too quickly to get into the deep end of the stroke.
The DVO guide says to add 1-2 bands to the negative chamber. The frame/shock didn't come with any extras, and I don't have a problem buying some of these from DVO, but before I do, is there any other tuning that I need to do before I spend the $15 on something I might not need?

 

[CrozCountry]

To those few that stated that the rear wheel seems to skip over dips that come after bumps as if the HSR isn't fast enough, this mod mostly fixes the issue. [We created a defined stroke transition where as before the force of the pressure at rebound after a hit would not act immediately as pressure would ooze to the sleeve]
If you are to do this then use a thin angle grinder or dremmel and don't go below the lip that the hole sits on as that's the piston seal limit(don't use a drill bit). Sand the inside where the slits are afterwards. You then might want to add positive spacers as the effective positive volume has been increased.

Are you from DVO? Is this something I can ask for when I send the shock to service at DVO?

 

[jpjp18]

Seeking tuning advice from those familiar with the DVO Topaz shock:
I bought a gently used Ripmo AF frame and shock last week, built it with my own parts, and got some real trail time today.

I'm 165# ride weight.
I set it up per the DVO and Ibis Ripmo set up guide-
14mm (27.5% per ibis) sag- 175 psi in the shock, 180 in the IFP bladder.
4 clicks of rebound.
Compression lever to "open"
There is 2 bands on the positive side, one on the negative side.
The shock feels really great; like full on amaze-balls on general trail riding with the wheels on the ground and hits that are like shoe-box size or less.

So, here's the issue- I launched some waist-high hucks to flat and smashed some pretty big hits- enough to use probably 160 of my 170mm Fox 36, and STILL only used like 60% of the shock travel. It feels great- but ramps too quickly to get into the deep end of the stroke.
The DVO guide says to add 1-2 bands to the negative chamber. The frame/shock didn't come with any extras, and I don't have a problem buying some of these from DVO, but before I do, is there any other tuning that I need to do before I spend the $15 on something I might not need?

From my understanding of topaz
*having more sag - will use more travel, can try to increase bladder psi by 1-3 psi to bring it but take note bladder changes the overall curve range

*reducing positive band - probably will retain the riding feel of the trail but changes on the ramp up on big compression

Strangely, i have a friend who have the same bike with 2 spacer around the same sag as you, he have no problem using full travel on huck to flat thou.
Maybe can try check is there any grease blocking the negative hole in the can.

 

[WhatsUpcountry]

Seeking tuning advice from those familiar with the DVO Topaz shock:
I bought a gently used Ripmo AF frame and shock last week, built it with my own parts, and got some real trail time today.

I'm 165# ride weight.
I set it up per the DVO and Ibis Ripmo set up guide-
14mm (27.5% per ibis) sag- 175 psi in the shock, 180 in the IFP bladder.
4 clicks of rebound.
Compression lever to "open"
There is 2 bands on the positive side, one on the negative side.
The shock feels really great; like full on amaze-balls on general trail riding with the wheels on the ground and hits that are like shoe-box size or less.

So, here's the issue- I launched some waist-high hucks to flat and smashed some pretty big hits- enough to use probably 160 of my 170mm Fox 36, and STILL only used like 60% of the shock travel. It feels great- but ramps too quickly to get into the deep end of the stroke.
The DVO guide says to add 1-2 bands to the negative chamber. The frame/shock didn't come with any extras, and I don't have a problem buying some of these from DVO, but before I do, is there any other tuning that I need to do before I spend the $15 on something I might not need?

It's possible that the fork is just softer than it needs to be. If you follow the ibis setup guide for the fork they suggest 28-32% sag which I think is way too much, I usually start around 20% sag on the fork and adjust pressure from there.
If your fork setup is good I'd recommend adjusting pressure first before playing with spacers, and adding or removing negative spacers won't make a big difference for what you're experiencing.
Remember it's always possible you just landed nose heavy, and also sag isn't a had and fast rule since it's not repeatable between different riders, so your setup could already be fine. Your shock settings seem reasonable to me other than the rebound being a bit slow but that wouldn't affect your specific problem.

 

[bullit43]

Seeking tuning advice from those familiar with the DVO Topaz shock:
I bought a gently used Ripmo AF frame and shock last week, built it with my own parts, and got some real trail time today.

I'm 165# ride weight.
I set it up per the DVO and Ibis Ripmo set up guide-
14mm (27.5% per ibis) sag- 175 psi in the shock, 180 in the IFP bladder.
4 clicks of rebound.
Compression lever to "open"
There is 2 bands on the positive side, one on the negative side.
The shock feels really great; like full on amaze-balls on general trail riding with the wheels on the ground and hits that are like shoe-box size or less.

So, here's the issue- I launched some waist-high hucks to flat and smashed some pretty big hits- enough to use probably 160 of my 170mm Fox 36, and STILL only used like 60% of the shock travel. It feels great- but ramps too quickly to get into the deep end of the stroke.
The DVO guide says to add 1-2 bands to the negative chamber. The frame/shock didn't come with any extras, and I don't have a problem buying some of these from DVO, but before I do, is there any other tuning that I need to do before I spend the $15 on something I might not need?

You should measure the part of the shock shaft exposed until the green or-ing and not all the exposed shock shaft,it should be 55mm,and btw put the spacer on the negative chamber on the positive and give it a gowith the same pressure,I think it's more plusher and more bottomless,better traction too.

 

[Impetus]

This whole tuning method that DVO uses is new to me, I've been riding FOX suspension for years.
Im as much trying to learn what changing one variable does to the shock as much as trying to tune it.
What does the 'bladder' pressure do, exactly; analgous to the standard terms of high-speed and low speed rebound and compression, or spring rate curves?

I kinda get that the volume bands change the effective spring curve by changing volume inside their respective chambers.
Maybe I'm looking for a too-easy fix hoping someone will tell me "yeah you need to <do this> and it'll change <this behavior>, which is kinda how I got my head around Fox suspension tuning.

To address the replies, and hoping to keep learning how the Topaz works:

From my understanding of topaz
*having more sag - will use more travel, can try to increase bladder psi by 1-3 psi to bring it but take note bladder changes the overall curve range

*reducing positive band - probably will retain the riding feel of the trail but changes on the ramp up on big compression

Strangely, i have a friend who have the same bike with 2 spacer around the same sag as you, he have no problem using full travel on huck to flat thou.
Maybe can try check is there any grease blocking the negative hole in the can.

I don't want more sag, really for any reason. It messes with the geometry (especially bb height- low is NOT GOOD in AZ rocks), and isn't how ibis recommends the bike being set up. They were pretty specific that the shock should be set at 14mm of sag on a 55mm stroke.

You say "2 spacer around the same sag"... is that spacers in the positive, or negative side? How many are in the other chamber?

It's possible that the fork is just softer than it needs to be. If you follow the ibis setup guide for the fork they suggest 28-32% sag which I think is way too much, I usually start around 20% sag on the fork and adjust pressure from there.
If your fork setup is good I'd recommend adjusting pressure first before playing with spacers, and adding or removing negative spacers won't make a big difference for what you're experiencing.
Remember it's always possible you just landed nose heavy, and also sag isn't a had and fast rule since it's not repeatable between different riders, so your setup could already be fine. Your shock settings seem reasonable to me other than the rebound being a bit slow but that wouldn't affect your specific problem.

I suppose anything is possible, but It's the same Fox 36 I've been riding and racing enduro for 2 years, with a DSD RUNT, and has felt pretty dialed. The bikes are very similar in HTA and such, so I don't think the fork setup needs to be really fiddled with.

I agree one instance of imbalanced travel is not much of a data point, but they are trails that i ride at least once weekly, and it was a 20 mile ride in total, and I selected that combo of trails because it had some big chunk (suitcase size rocks, as well as some knee-to-waist-high drops. Both the guys I was riding with used the near full travel on their bikes, as was expected, we ride these trails a lot. I mean, the shock felt good, but if I'm using only 60% of the travel I have on some pretty big compression events, there's room for improvement.

You should measure the part of the shock shaft exposed until the green or-ing and not all the exposed shock shaft,it should be 55mm,and btw put the spacer on the negative chamber on the positive and give it a gowith the same pressure,I think it's more plusher and more bottomless,better traction too.

I actually measured the "used" part of the stanchion- I pushed the o-ring 41mm away from the seal (bike non weighted)
Your recommendation of moving a band from negative to positive is opposite from the setup guide from DVO- they actually say if you cant use full travel, to not touch the positive, and ADD a band or two to the negative side.
I guess I'm maybe misunderstanding how these bands work?

 

[bullit43]

This whole tuning method that DVO uses is new to me, I've been riding FOX suspension for years.
Im as much trying to learn what changing one variable does to the shock as much as trying to tune it.
What does the 'bladder' pressure do, exactly; analgous to the standard terms of high-speed and low speed rebound and compression, or spring rate curves?

I kinda get that the volume bands change the effective spring curve by changing volume inside their respective chambers.
Maybe I'm looking for a too-easy fix hoping someone will tell me "yeah you need to <do this> and it'll change <this behavior>, which is kinda how I got my head around Fox suspension tuning.

To address the replies, and hoping to keep learning how the Topaz works:

I don't want more sag, really for any reason. It messes with the geometry (especially bb height- low is NOT GOOD in AZ rocks), and isn't how ibis recommends the bike being set up. They were pretty specific that the shock should be set at 14mm of sag on a 55mm stroke.

You say "2 spacer around the same sag"... is that spacers in the positive, or negative side? How many are in the other chamber?


I suppose anything is possible, but It's the same Fox 36 I've been riding and racing enduro for 2 years, with a DSD RUNT, and has felt pretty dialed. The bikes are very similar in HTA and such, so I don't think the fork setup needs to be really fiddled with.

I agree one instance of imbalanced travel is not much of a data point, but they are trails that i ride at least once weekly, and it was a 20 mile ride in total, and I selected that combo of trails because it had some big chunk (suitcase size rocks, as well as some knee-to-waist-high drops. Both the guys I was riding with used the near full travel on their bikes, as was expected, we ride these trails a lot. I mean, the shock felt good, but if I'm using only 60% of the travel I have on some pretty big compression events, there's room for improvement.



I actually measured the "used" part of the stanchion- I pushed the o-ring 41mm away from the seal (bike non weighted)
Your recommendation of moving a band from negative to positive is opposite from the setup guide from DVO- they actually say if you cant use full travel, to not touch the positive, and ADD a band or two to the negative side.
I guess I'm maybe misunderstanding how these bands work?

The only setting I can use from Ibis is the sag,if I use the air pressure they say the bike bottoms everywhere ,so I figure the sag and air pressure for that sag and played with the spacers so it wouldn't bottom out (3 spacer on the positive chamber)

 

[miles of pain]

Remove a positive chamber volume spacer.

Seeking tuning advice from those familiar with the DVO Topaz shock:
I bought a gently used Ripmo AF frame and shock last week, built it with my own parts, and got some real trail time today.

I'm 165# ride weight.
I set it up per the DVO and Ibis Ripmo set up guide-
14mm (27.5% per ibis) sag- 175 psi in the shock, 180 in the IFP bladder.
4 clicks of rebound.
Compression lever to "open"
There is 2 bands on the positive side, one on the negative side.
The shock feels really great; like full on amaze-balls on general trail riding with the wheels on the ground and hits that are like shoe-box size or less.

So, here's the issue- I launched some waist-high hucks to flat and smashed some pretty big hits- enough to use probably 160 of my 170mm Fox 36, and STILL only used like 60% of the shock travel. It feels great- but ramps too quickly to get into the deep end of the stroke.
The DVO guide says to add 1-2 bands to the negative chamber. The frame/shock didn't come with any extras, and I don't have a problem buying some of these from DVO, but before I do, is there any other tuning that I need to do before I spend the $15 on something I might not need?

 

[jpjp18]

he's running 3 positive band and 170psi.
in that case of not changing sag, does the normal trail riding feel bit harsh? if it does can drop bit on bladder.
if you like the overall feel now, guess you can remove 1 more positive spacer as that's more for the ramp up.
I do think 2 positive band is quite common, some even go up to 3. I myself use 4 positive band and none on negative but I'm on different bike.

Ya DVO is somewhat more simplify in terms of tuning to Fox, I also came from Fox X2.
I use Positive band control bottom out and negative for LSC. Frankly I use bladder to control more on my LSC which also changes a little bit of the bottom out that's fine for me.

Another note, even 1-2psi changes on bladder can be felt on the overall feel of the shock. This is where a digital shock pump comes into play.

 

[EatsDirt]

This whole tuning method that DVO uses is new to me, I've been riding FOX suspension for years.
Im as much trying to learn what changing one variable does to the shock as much as trying to tune it.
What does the 'bladder' pressure do, exactly; analgous to the standard terms of high-speed and low speed rebound and compression, or spring rate curves?

I kinda get that the volume bands change the effective spring curve by changing volume inside their respective chambers.
Maybe I'm looking for a too-easy fix hoping someone will tell me "yeah you need to <do this> and it'll change <this behavior>, which is kinda how I got my head around Fox suspension tuning.

To address the replies, and hoping to keep learning how the Topaz works:

I don't want more sag, really for any reason. It messes with the geometry (especially bb height- low is NOT GOOD in AZ rocks), and isn't how ibis recommends the bike being set up. They were pretty specific that the shock should be set at 14mm of sag on a 55mm stroke.

You say "2 spacer around the same sag"... is that spacers in the positive, or negative side? How many are in the other chamber?


I suppose anything is possible, but It's the same Fox 36 I've been riding and racing enduro for 2 years, with a DSD RUNT, and has felt pretty dialed. The bikes are very similar in HTA and such, so I don't think the fork setup needs to be really fiddled with.

I agree one instance of imbalanced travel is not much of a data point, but they are trails that i ride at least once weekly, and it was a 20 mile ride in total, and I selected that combo of trails because it had some big chunk (suitcase size rocks, as well as some knee-to-waist-high drops. Both the guys I was riding with used the near full travel on their bikes, as was expected, we ride these trails a lot. I mean, the shock felt good, but if I'm using only 60% of the travel I have on some pretty big compression events, there's room for improvement.



I actually measured the "used" part of the stanchion- I pushed the o-ring 41mm away from the seal (bike non weighted)
Your recommendation of moving a band from negative to positive is opposite from the setup guide from DVO- they actually say if you cant use full travel, to not touch the positive, and ADD a band or two to the negative side.
I guess I'm maybe misunderstanding how these bands work?

I could be wrong here, but if you want a higher ride height and use more travel you should probably take all the spacers out and run higher pressure. You’ll probably get good mid stroke support, should be supple off the top, and you won’t hit a hard ramp deeper in travel.

If you do need spacers for whatever reason, shoot me a PM and I’ll send some over.