Loose hardware can do that.

 

Its only at the very start of the stroke or when lifting the bike up



It does it when the bolts are done up to torque spec. I don't want to overtighten them

 

If it happens upon rebound, no matter where you are in the stroke, then it is a check valve. I notice it most when cold, but it does it all the time.

 

 

Does your shock have the spherical eyelet bush's, they could be worn or the alloy spacers are not the correct width for the frame ? Im just thinking out alowed but worth checking.

 

Nope, it's a V2 with the standard brass bushings. Spoken with a very good mechanic who thinks the bolt might be worn, and replacing it with one with less thread on it should sort the problem

 

Have you taken the shock off the bike, removed the spring and tried compressing the shock by hand? If a smooth resistance (damping force) is felt throughout the stroke, everything inside the damper works as intended. If not, then a closer look is needed.

 

Gonna try that tonight, but I'm 98% sure it's not the shock, it was serviced quite recently.

 

Have adjusted the spring load as As described in the manual? Becaise there's a negative spring
7. Lift your bike from the saddle and let the rear wheel fully extend the damp
8. From this position preload the spring with adjustable spring plate (max 2mm)

Negative spring
We have introduced an additional spring on e-Storia to increase rear wheel rebound control on last mm of the damper and avoid harsh top out feeling. The negative spring during our tests has shown an increased platform stability and more sensitivity on first few millimeters of damper travel.

 

Yep, have always set it like that, pretty sure it's not a preload issue.

 

I had an issue of a spring not being square on the end and it caused a knocking/clunking at the top of stroke. I got in touch with Alba Distribution (Canada ext distributor.) where I bought the shock and they sent me a new replacement spring at no cost, haven’t had any issues since. You could try adding way too much preload to see if it goes away? Atleast then you could Isolate it not being a damper issue. Could also try the second spring it comes with to see if it gets rid of the noise? Other things that I think could help is make sure your spring perch and spring are clean on the ends, when these get dusty they can make some noise for sure. I personally think that one of those delrin/plastic spacers that push or sprindex use would be really helpful too but maybe that’s just masking an issue.

 

My guess is a worn bushing at the rearward shock eyelet. I had some play on my Ripmo (with a Stora v3), and it was the bushing that was the cause of it.

Sorry, just understood that the video posted was not OP's.

 

The bushings are almost new, had maybe 20hrs riding on them at the most.

I've just cycled the damper in my hand and it's butter smooth, so that rules that out. I also swapped over the shock bolts, and one is definitely narrower than the other. One drops clean in the hole, the other takes a little effort to slide it in. Swapping them between the two bushes, you can feel more play in one than the other, so I'm more convinced that's the issue

I've also spent nearly two hours trying to find M8x40mm bolts with less thread on them (partial thread) and cannot for the life of me find any. Burgtec make some titanium Santa Cruz ones in a 40 and 43mm set, but I'd rather not spent £60 for two bolts. I've emailed Geometron to see if they can help. Nicolai don't list it as a spare either, which seems mad. Help!?

 

Ah I see, sorry, I've heard "pin" used as referring to the bolt before. There's the confusion.

It was serviced by Mojo, so I'd be surprised if they'd used the wrong size pin. How do I go about checking if it is?

 

Ok, the pin basically spins with just my fingers, that's new bushing time then?!

 

Yes thats worn out.

 

I've got some new ones on the way, along with hardware. I'm amazed how quickly I went through them though, 20 hours doesn't seem a very long time. I've ridden some pretty rough stuff, but not for a long amount of time. Anyway, hopefully that sorts it

 

Mount the shock on a vice with the hardware installed. If there's noticeable side-to-side play, it's too loose. If the interface is firm but articulates freely, you're good to go.

 

Back to square one. If anything, the knocking is worse now. I replaced the shock bushings and hardware, they were pretty worn out despite being barely ridden. I don't think it's a pivot bearing because I can't fell any sideways movement, and without the shock in they all feel smooth, however I've ordered some new ones just in case

On compression or rebound, whether with my hand on the top tube or sitting on the bike, there is a distinct knock which can be felt through the whole bike, even the handlebars. I've tried more and less preload on the spring, I've torqued the bolts up to spec. The damper feels fine cycling it in my hand, just smooth as it should be, and the rebound and compression adjusters all work as expected.

I don't think it's the check valve, you can hear that's a different noise when I put the lockout on

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hKR6SBAOow0Xzx0Xff-IoIRkS6OpHHQL/view?usp=drivesdk

 

Have checked and it makes the same noise and knocking with or without the spring, and with or without the LOK on/off

VID_20230319_134220.mp4

drive.google.com

VID_20230319_134353.mp4

drive.google.com

Presumably this is the damper then...?

 

I would once again take the shock off the bike, remove the spring, and compress the damper by hand. If the knock takes place within the damper, it should be felt clearly that way.

If the shock was serviced just a while ago, have you contacted the shop in question? That would be the obvious way to go.

 

No knock at all when compressing with my hand, just feels smooth. Yep, have been chatting with them and they've already sent me new hardware to try, they'll figure it out!

I don't have access to another shock to test, but I may try bolting some wood with holes drilled at the right eye to eye and see if I can still feel any knock.

 

Update on this; turned out to be the main piston band causing the knock. The Mojo guys honoured some service work on it and it's arrived back in perfect working condition. Top blokes, very patient with all my questions, sorted quickly and easily

 

Nice to hear that there was a happy ending.