Actually imo mx-tech sucks. Selections are horrible. Just so few sizes for what we need, m8 for abs. There is a link to tuning guide in this thread, it'll give u a lost of sizes to cover all options u could need/want. Revalving kit is am lbs thing lol.

http://www.racingsuspensionproducts.com/shim/shim.html

I ordered a a bunch through them fast shipping great ppl to deal with. And huge selection. Allowed me to tune damper and rebound cause I could get both sizes in any thickness I could need.

Ps: thnx guys for the trick of moving the balls around. I had 8 to start and some how after playing with shim stack I now have 9 lol. Now I have even more options to tune the abs, just what I need

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can anyone in the 130-140 lbs range post what shim stack they are using on a marvel 100mm? or what you recommend using? I weigh 137 lbs.

I've gone all the way down to 35 psi. I'd still like some plushness on the medium bumps. on the iso air chart it says 65 psi for 120 lbs. which seems insane. its too harsh for me even at 50. small bumps seem to feel ok though.

 

I've done some math, but none of this seems to be correct. At your weight, you should have about 25kg of weight on the front fork in "attack position", where you should be aiming for 20% sag to be in the optimal spring rate for an air-fork. And to support that weight, your fork should be aired to about 60psi.
Your 35psi should be giving you 50% sag. So I think something is wrong with your negative spring, shock pump, or you are measuring sag in an incorrect way.

 

Gabe3 are there platform shims in your stack? If so try taking one out and go for a ride and see how it feels

 

fsrxc, Marvel has ISO air spring that does not have coil at all.

Gabe, how much sag does this 35 psi give you?

If you remove the platform shims, it will make the fork much plusher. I'm 210lbs and I removed both platform shims (19mm) from trail stack, leaving only one speed sensitive shim (17.5mm). I like it.

Marvel might have the XC stack that does not have speed sensitive shim in the stack. You must find the replacement shim.

 

Ok here's this for u (I have same fork)

Fork negative spring is much of the reason for it not rebounding fully and guessing ur rebound is also set too tight.

Ur fork as 2 19x0.2 platform shims. This is much of ur harshness. Ur weight is only a small part of damper setting. Stock shims too harsh for me and I'm 270lbs. Until u order shims take 1 platform shim out, once that's all done properly and ur ready to ride, move ur abs lever to locked, then open 4 clicks, 5 if that's still a little harsh.

Sag counts even the bit of extra that u can "pull up". If u want softer ride set at 30%, stiffer around 20%. So 30mm to 20mm compressed.

Now ride the crap outta it, u need to break it in.
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09 Manitou Drake Super Air 80mm questions

Just bought a 2008 Specialized Stump jumper it came with Maniou Drake Super Air 80mm Forks. after reading the thread I took my forks apart and I think someone upgraded these to the ABS+

When I ride these fork I have a clicking noise when the forks are compressing
also can these be shimmed????

 

Just bought a 2008 Specialized Stump jumper it came with Maniou Drake Super Air 80mm Forks. after reading the thread I took my forks apart and I think someone upgraded these to the ABS+

When I ride these fork I have a clicking noise when the forks are compressing
also can these be shimmed????

That's not an n Abs+ damper. I'm not sure what that one is I'm guessing its a old absolute damper. Maybe someone else can chime in with better info on what damper it is. Pictures show no shims to to change.

 

You are correct, that is the 2008-2009 ABS damper (non-shimmed / not plus version), I have a bunch of them from upgrades of Minutes and R7's laying around. The clicking noise was common in 08, Manitou send out a fix kit for free, not sure if they will still do it though. If funds allow, I'd recommend the ABS+ damper, leaps and bounds better. They are fairly cheap, I bought one this past fall for under $60 at PricePoint. You do need to readjust oil level when installing.

 

Yep that's the old absolute. The ABS+ is a drop-in upgrade that will massively improve your fork.

 

I was adjusting the rebound knob on my marvel pro the other day and noticed when its turned all the way to slowest rebound. the fork gets really soggy. when I compress it, it hardly rebounds, just stays stuck. turning the knob one click or even half a click makes it rebound. and it seems to work. kinda weird.

this isn't related to the above, but does anyone lube their stanchions or around the seal?

 

Thanks everyone . I founds the ABS+ on Amazon for like 39$ and if I wanted the lock out kit it was like 55$. So do I want the lock out or not

 

Personally, I like having all the clicks in the middle and have no reason. To have a remote lock out. But if you need to use the lock out often then i may be worth it for you.

 

if you are talking about the MILO i say it's def not worth the $55. it's a PITA to set up and get dialed to where you would like it. you lose a lot of adjustment when using the MILO. if you really want it PM me as i have one sitting here that has minimal hours

 

I modified my Milo cause it didn't open far enough, took dremel to the red cap and cut the groove deeper. Measured and marked where the normal knob was for each click then ground away the groove till the Milo knob would go from full lock to where I usually have it set open.

All that said, I'm doing this soon and been done plenty with perfect results. Buy a rockshox poploc lever and use it instead. You can't go full open to full lock out but full open is scary anyway, horrible brake dive.

 

Marvel 100mm fork on a Kona Unit SS.
90kg rider, riding everywhere.

It'll be used for playing in the hills, XC racing, back country epics.

As it's a single speed, I'll be using the locked out platform most of the time and the stock XC stack is a little too rock solid.
Maybe a platform breakaway around 400Nm instead of the stock 500?
Tried with one 19x0.2 removed, but not enough platform.
Replace one of the 19x0.2's with a 19x0.15?

 

You can also place one or more 12mm shims under the stack. These shims don't have to flex, but just reduce the 0.6mm preload that is normally placed on the XC stack.
If you use a shim of about 17mm diameter it will also add to the overal speed sensitivity, which might be a good thing, or a bad one if you prefer a digressive (blowoff) feel.

80kg rider now
The ABS+ damper has been transplanted from the Marvel to the Machete and from the Kona Unit to the Giant Anthem - still single speed.
It looks like I've ended up with 19x.2, 19x.15, 17x.15 which is giving a good platform and support at the speeds I ride/race at.
Played with 80psi and a RockShox token (machined down to press-fit in the topcap) and liked the progressiveness, but never got past 90% travel.
Back to 85psi and no token.
I'm finding myself adjusting the LSC often enough that a Milo might be the ticket.

 

That's something you'll have to play with. Your wanting to do something most of us dont, which is 0 small bump compliance, harsh ride. Remember you can't have a strong platform in full lock and not practically be riding rigid fork.

Rider weight means little for abs+ damper. Spring controls rider, damper controls spring. Get a few different shims and try a few variations to see what you like.

 

That's something you'll have to play with. Your wanting to do something most of us dont, which is 0 small bump compliance, harsh ride.

I'd just like it to be closer to how the Motion Control on my Stumpy 26" hard tail handles.
Not as strong a platform as the ABS+ XC stack when climbing locked out and flick it open a click or 2 for bumpy/descent.

 

2.5w oil?

The rebound is slightly... frisky.
You can get the wheel to "hop" on any setting other than locked out.

 

After a few rides and a good long (40km) race, I think the stock XC shims are about right for single speeding so I've ordered the MILO adjuster.
It's going to be mated up to an X0 9spd or Zee 10spd shifter depending on which is more compatible for adjustment duties.
On my RS SID Race forks the X0 gives 5 clicks from locked out to fully open.
The poplock was fine when it had gears and I was seated climbing but not SS...

 

1ax

 

ok I called and talked to Manitou and for my fork it only came with a medium spring

09 Manitou Drake Super Air

I bought the ABS+ damper but it makes the ride way too soft.
my question is can I use some shims and a combination of fork oil to make the fork a little stiffer

I am going to do a fork o ring kit and add a thicker OIL like maybe a 7.5w or 10w oil
can someone tell me the amount of oil I need to add in the right scantion and how much I need to add the rebound area
thanks in advance

 

first get the correct spring for your weight and style of riding. http://www.manitoumtb.com/assets/Service Manuals/2009 Fork Service Manual.pdf pg 23. http://www.manitoumtb.com/assets/Service Manuals/2012 Service Manual.pdf pg 23 here will show you how to set and measure height for oil.

 

ya I bought this bike used and I got in contact with Manitou and they said that model only came with the MED spring and they never made a firm spring for it
im a 240lb novice XC/AM rider and when I installed the ABS+ the spring was too soft
and Manitou recommended a firm but when I sent them the model number they told me they don't make it for the DRAKE SUPER AIR model

so that why I was asking about added more shims and thicker oil to see if that would help adding to the compression
but I am looking at doing a FORK exchange to the Manitou Circus expert in about 6 month

 

The abs+ has nothing to do with the spring firmness, if you upgraded to abs+ and ride became to soft vs before, you need to change the high speed shims and turn the knob closer to "locked"

 

Hi, I'm new to this thread; I just finished installing a 2013 minute pro on my trek fuel EX9. I'm stoked to have such a user friendly fork but now after reading through some of this thread I'm a little overwhelmed. My plan was to ride it for a while and see what I think. I weigh approx. 190-195, 6'2" and a fairly decent rider that likes to push hard. We have some long grinds on our rides to I'm glad to have a fork with some lockout. When I'm ready to start delving into reshim the fork where do I begin? Thanks for the help

 

Hi, I'm new too, although I've been reading quite alot in this topic and related documents, just created an account to ask questions and participate. You've created quite a resource here, well done.

Last week I got my hands on an as good as new 2012 Minute Pro 140, installed it immediately ofcourse, set the sag and went for a quick ride (bounce) in the street.
Sadly it suffers from massive brake dive. I was under the impression that the 2012 140mm came stock with a firm ride kit, I am about 187 lbs (84kg), 200 lbs with full kit. Looking at the air pressure chart that should equate to less than 50 psi. But that results in mahoosive brake dive. Should it have a standard ride kit, 100 psi would probably suffice, but even then and at maximum pressure it still dives to much for my liking.

I was very interested in this fork and the ABS+ damper and ofcourse to posibilities of tuning it (becoming somewhat of a suspension enthousiast), but as I read on multiple occasions spring rate trumps damping, so thats something that should be taken care of beforehand. I

But to get to the real question, I was wondering what ride kit it was fitted out with and if I should get a firmer option (I read that the springs are generally not that firm and that heavier riders prefer a extra, or even xx firm ride kit).

Checked the service manual, remove casting, quite simple and straight forward, but hit a snag almost immediately. The bolt which threads into the compression rod (spring side) a 12mm hex bolt in my case, doesn't want to come out, it spins and spins (with quite some drag) so it appears the rod or internals are slipping. How can this be solved, I would really like to get going with this fork and experiment with the features (and ditch the Fox 32 Talas its replacing). Otherwise I am going to have to dish out quite a bit more on a Mattoc.

In this video at about 1:14:

its suggests pressing down on the arch to remedy this problem, mentions the spinning. Tried it, but that doesnt work sadly. Ant thoughts? Thanks.

Send an email to Manitou support aswell.

Any idea where you can get firm or extra firm ride kits still?

 

not sure what coil the 12 minute 140 comes with but I am 200lbs geared up and run xfirm coil with 90 psi with the trail shim pack that came stock in the tower pro.

 

I used a ratchet strap from crown to arch and an impact. Your LBS should be able to get the coil kit, if not call shockspital. They're real helpful.

 

I emailed Manitou (Hayes) and just got a reply from the distributor over here. They said to try a LBS for the ride kits (I dont think there are any shops here that deal in Manitou, but they can always contact the distributor I guess), they can be ordered via them.

Regarding the technical question they advised to send it to them for examination (via a shop) to see what's not coming undone. But seeing as I got it for a real good deal second-hand, the question is, if thats viable option, cost wise.

Just tried compressing it with a strap, the bolt has come out 1-2mm and is now pretty loose, but still wont extract. Could it have something to do with the mysterious 'air shelf' that is mentioned in the service manual?