[Barman1]

May need an oil change but mine is close to that loud. I have noticed that the shock does make more noise as it has broken in.

@barman1 - how do you like the Minute and McLeod combo? Post picks of your bike.

I'm completely impressed.
It's 120mm travel front 100mm rear.
With the old Reba 120 and Fox Float combo the bike was very finicky about picking the right rocky/rooty downhill line. Now it just floats through the same lines. Great improvement!
Unfortunately though I think I've reached the limit of the Superlight 29 XC capabilities even though I've adapted it as well as I'm comfortable with for my local AM type trails. I'm swapping it for a Heckler next season.

 

[mullen119]

Nice bike, here is my 2014 bantam with 10mm minute expert and newly installed McLeod. Had a 2015 rt3 debonair on it before the McLeod.

 

[Kiwiplague]

Does anybody (although most like dougal will) know what the two tiny hex head screws on the top of the shock are for? I thought I'd seen something somewhere that mentioned that they did something to the ipa and rebound dials, but I'm not sure if I'm remembering it correctly.

 

[Dougal]

Does anybody (although most like dougal will) know what the two tiny hex head screws on the top of the shock are for? I thought I'd seen something somewhere that mentioned that they did something to the ipa and rebound dials, but I'm not sure if I'm remembering it correctly.

The one in the back sets the open limit of the rebound knob.

The one in the top is the detent ball and spring.

The one in the side locates the ipa knob spool and also sets the fully open knob position.

 

[Kiwiplague]

Cool, thanks for that dougal.

 

[Kiwiplague]

Had my first real ride on the McLeod today, a XC/trail ride for the local MTB club. Very rooty in places with a couple of steep hills and descents, not to mention it rained heavily the night before, so was quite tricky in some sections.
The shock performed very well, considering it still won't have broken in yet. Made the Fox it replaced feel very average, small bump compliance was very good, even with me only running 25% sag. Rebound seemed to well controlled as well (ran 1/4 of a turn on the rebound dial). Mostly rode with the IPA lever in the 2nd position, and fully open on the descents.
Definitely made the Fox RP2 it replaced feel decidedly average in comparison!

 

[mullen119]

So I did a couple laps yesterday at a local trail. Trail has some jumps, drops, some decent climbs, and decents, as well as rocks and roots. I did one lap with the McLeod(second ride on it) and one lap with my 2015 Monarch rt3 debonair. To be fair, I have been working on a custom tune for the monarch all summer long and it is probably the best shock I have used in years (since I had a revox).

The McLeod really shined on small stuff. Anything under 3 inches was erased and the tire was stuck to the ground. Traction all around was very good in most situations but it did make the wheel feel like it was deflecting off medium sized square edge hits at high spèeds. Nothing terrible, but noticeable that the rear wheel was not connected with the ground when compared to my monarch in the same section. Big hit performance was very good damper wise, very controlled, never kicking back while always being ready for the next hit. Same goes with long rocky/root sections. Never felt it pack up and one only get out of sorts when hitting a larger square edge object like I stated earlier.

For my bike, I find the spring spring rate to be a little to linear. I would have never guessed that considering they are said to be making a higher volume can. I am an aggressive rider and bike has a slightly regressive leverage curve so that didn't help, but I see no reason why a larger volume can would be needed. If anything, I would like to see some volume spacers.

Overall I would say it's a very good shock that would blow away any Fox ctd or RP series shocks, as well as some of the monarch series shocks. Cant comment on the newest fox stuff, haven't had a chance to ride it yet. For me, I will likely spend most of my time with the RT3 on my bike. It out shines the McLeod in almost every way, with the McLeod getting to nod in small bump sensitivity and the monarch having a small advantage everywhere else.

Hard pressed to find a stock tuned shock that out performs a customer tuned shock, though the McLeod is fairly close and a great pick up for the price.

 

[mechsc1]

So I did a couple laps yesterday at a local trail. Trail has some jumps, drops, some decent climbs, and decents, as well as rocks and roots. I did one lap with the McLeod(second ride on it) and one lap with my 2015 Monarch rt3 debonair. To be fair, I have been working on a custom tune for the monarch all summer long and it is probably the best shock I have used in years (since I had a revox).

The McLeod really shined on small stuff. Anything under 3 inches was erased and the tire was stuck to the ground. Traction all around was very good in most situations but it did make the wheel feel like it was deflecting off medium sized square edge hits at high spèeds. Nothing terrible, but noticeable that the rear wheel was not connected with the ground when compared to my monarch in the same section. Big hit performance was very good damper wise, very controlled, never kicking back while always being ready for the next hit. Same goes with long rocky/root sections. Never felt it pack up and one only get out of sorts when hitting a larger square edge object like I stated earlier.

For my bike, I find the spring spring rate to be a little to linear. I would have never guessed that considering they are said to be making a higher volume can. I am an aggressive rider and bike has a slightly regressive leverage curve so that didn't help, but I see no reason why a larger volume can would be needed. If anything, I would like to see some volume spacers.

Overall I would say it's a very good shock that would blow away any Fox ctd or RP series shocks, as well as some of the monarch series shocks. Cant comment on the newest fox stuff, haven't had a chance to ride it yet. For me, I will likely spend most of my time with the RT3 on my bike. It out shines the McLeod in almost every way, with the McLeod getting to nod in small bump sensitivity and the monarch having a small advantage everywhere else.

Hard pressed to find a stock tuned shock that out performs a customer tuned shock, though the McLeod is fairly close and a great pick up for the price.

Thank you for the informative post I was beginning to feel like this thread was an advertisement for the Mcleod rear shock.

 

[Dougal]

So I did a couple laps yesterday at a local trail. Trail has some jumps, drops, some decent climbs, and decents, as well as rocks and roots. I did one lap with the McLeod(second ride on it) and one lap with my 2015 Monarch rt3 debonair. To be fair, I have been working on a custom tune for the monarch all summer long and it is probably the best shock I have used in years (since I had a revox).

The McLeod really shined on small stuff. Anything under 3 inches was erased and the tire was stuck to the ground. Traction all around was very good in most situations but it did make the wheel feel like it was deflecting off medium sized square edge hits at high spèeds. Nothing terrible, but noticeable that the rear wheel was not connected with the ground when compared to my monarch in the same section. Big hit performance was very good damper wise, very controlled, never kicking back while always being ready for the next hit. Same goes with long rocky/root sections. Never felt it pack up and one only get out of sorts when hitting a larger square edge object like I stated earlier.

For my bike, I find the spring spring rate to be a little to linear. I would have never guessed that considering they are said to be making a higher volume can. I am an aggressive rider and bike has a slightly regressive leverage curve so that didn't help, but I see no reason why a larger volume can would be needed. If anything, I would like to see some volume spacers.

Overall I would say it's a very good shock that would blow away any Fox ctd or RP series shocks, as well as some of the monarch series shocks. Cant comment on the newest fox stuff, haven't had a chance to ride it yet. For me, I will likely spend most of my time with the RT3 on my bike. It out shines the McLeod in almost every way, with the McLeod getting to nod in small bump sensitivity and the monarch having a small advantage everywhere else.

Hard pressed to find a stock tuned shock that out performs a customer tuned shock, though the McLeod is fairly close and a great pick up for the price.

Good run-down. Your regressive bike is a rare thing these days, most (like me) are looking for less progression and the upcoming products will do just that.

I'll bet volume spacers are in the works for the McLeod but I know they haven't been released yet. Because it's a sealed positive chamber you can use fluids as well as solids for volume reduction.

What tweaks have you made to your Monarch?

 

[mullen119]

Good run-down. Your regressive bike is a rare thing these days, most (like me) are looking for less progression and the upcoming products will do just that.

I'll bet volume spacers are in the works for the McLeod but I know they haven't been released yet. Because it's a sealed positive chamber you can use fluids as well as solids for volume reduction.

What tweaks have you made to your Monarch?

Removed all preload from the rebound and compression stacks as well as the check plates to get linear damping. Took a few trys to get in the ball park and a few more to get dialed in. Still a little room for improvement on it but I think I need to find a stiffer cv spring to fully utilize linear compression stacks. Ktm520 and I have been working on this for a while and will post some info for others to get a good base tune with linear stacks in the future for those interested in doing the same.

 

[Prophet Julio]

Two rides on the McLeod so far. Very pleased with the ride. It is mounted to a Prophet, 650b converted. It replaced a Manitou Swinger Air 3-way with SPV. I have lowered the pressure to 140 psi. Not using as much travel as I did with the Swinger which I ran at 150 psi. I weigh 175 geared up. The adjustable low speed compression is much nicer than the old SPV technology. No harsh small bump compliance issues. I am riding on the second position all the time. I am still dialing things in. The rebound dial works well. The shock is quiet as far as I can tell. No noise issues as mentioned earlier. The rear tire stays connected through rocky, rooty New England single track. I have been doing some drops of 3' with speed and the shock has not bottomed out. I am not sure of the difference between the Swinger and the McLeod as far as the progression of the spring, but it seems to be more suitable to my Prophet. The old Swinger would use all of it's travel.

I'll post pics and more thoughts after Tuesday night's ride.

 

[mullen119]

Was talking to manitou over the last few days. Sent them the video I posted here and they decided to send me a new shock. Hey said it did not sound normal and they wanted to bring it in. We talked about the spring rate and a few other technical spots as well. They are sending the shock to me with a few volume spacers to play with that will soon be available to the public. Also made mention that a few high volume air cans are being tested and should be available in the near future as well. I got the feeling that if my bike was progressive and needed a higher volume can they may have sent me one to test.

I have had many dealings and tech conversations with shanan over the years. The fact they are sending me a new shock (that i did not ask for and actually said was not needed) is great customer service. add in the volume spacers and the other info he helped me with and you have a winner. I have always been a huge fan of manitou, but today takes the cake.

Go buy manitou products. Businesses like this deserve our patronage. I think it's time for me to upgrade my minute to a mattoc.

Will update my review with the new shock in the coming days

 

[Vespasianus]

Was talking to man it out over the last few days. Sent them the video I posted here and they decided to send me a new shock. Hey said it did not sound normal and they wanted to bring it in. We talked about the spring rate and a few other technical spots as well. They are sending the shock to me with a few volume spacers to play with that will soon be available to the public. Also made mention that a few high volume air cans are being tested and should be available in the near future as well. I got the feeling that if my bike was progressive and needed a higher volume can they may have sent me one to test.

I have had many dealings and tech conversations with shanan over the years. The fact they are sending me a new shock (that i did not ask for and actually said was not needed) is great customer service. add in the volume spacers and the other info he helped me with and you have a winner. I have always been a huge fan of manitou, but today takes the cake.

Go buy manitou products. Businesses like this deserve our patronage. I think it's time for me to upgrade my minute to a mattoc.

Will update my review with the new shock in the coming days

Man, that is great. I am actually waiting on the HV can to get the Mcleod.

Also, I thought you had a 29er? Do you know something else?

edit. OK, I saw you had a bantam, which is a 27.5 bike. Yes, I would get the Mattoc. Very nice fork.

 

[gregnash]

Great to see all the positives for Manitou and the McLeod. Still holding out hope for a 29er version of the Mattoc.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[alphajaguars]

Question for those with a lot more knowledge than I have.

I have a 2002 Specialized FSR, 90mm travel. I currently run my McLeod in the 3rd setting to get the platform I am looking for. Would I benefit from the larger air volume can?

 

[Trajan]

Question for those with a lot more knowledge than I have.

I have a 2002 Specialized FSR, 90mm travel. I currently run my McLeod in the 3rd setting to get the platform I am looking for. Would I benefit from the larger air volume can?

No, the can won't alter the platform.

 

[alphajaguars]

Thanks!

 

[gregnash]

Question for those with a lot more knowledge than I have.

I have a 2002 Specialized FSR, 90mm travel. I currently run my McLeod in the 3rd setting to get the platform I am looking for. Would I benefit from the larger air volume can?

Which setting are you talking about? The Aggressive Climb or Aggressive Trail? Where are you looking for more platform? When you are climbing or at other times. You can try adding more air to decrease the sag but this will have other affects on how your suspension rides.

 

[mullen119]

Larger air can is for people who can not get full travel with a standard air can.

 

[mullen119]

Man, that is great. I am actually waiting on the HV can to get the Mcleod.

Also, I thought you had a 29er? Do you know something else?

edit. OK, I saw you had a bantam, which is a 27.5 bike. Yes, I would get the Mattoc. Very nice fork.

Your wait for a hv can should be ending soon. Sounds like they including a feature for tuning the volume of the second sleeve that is similar to rockshox tuning bands, but better. (Nothing to purchase, just move the position of an oring.)