[Boozzz]

Hi guys,
Went for a ride yesterday and noticed my Monarch RC3 Plus has a very noticeable knocking feel, like a small hesitation in its travel, at the beginning of its stroke, at around the 10% mark on the shaft. It happens in the compression stage only, rebound feels fine. It's there whether there's air in it or not, and it only happens in its lowest compression setting. When I move the lever to to the middle setting, all is fine.

I'm ready to give the shock a tear-down, any advice on what to look for? Thanks!

 

[half_man_half_scab]

Sounds like a classic case of air in the damper fluid. Those shocks are pretty dang easy to work on, but you will need to buy an IFP adapter for your shock pump. I think they're $10 last time I checked.

Instructions for MY2013 and earlier:
http://cdn.sram.com/cdn/farfuture/r...us_service_manual_gen_0000000004158_rev_a.pdf

Instructions for MY2014 and later:
http://cdn.sram.com/cdn/farfuture/s...n0000000004416_rev_a_2014_monarch_plus_sm.pdf

 

[Boozzz]

Thanks, I figured it had to be something like that. Will get the IFP adapter and give it a go!

 

[MMoe]

Since a few days ago I have exactly the same problem. Did you find out what caused the knocking? Any suggestions on what to look for?
Thanks!

 

[Boozzz]

It was probably air that leaked into the shock oil (likely from the IFP). I did a tear down of the IFP and main chamber, and rebuilt the shock with fresh oil, as indicated in the Rockshox docs. Didn't replace any seals. Worked like a charm after. Be careful with screwing the IFP chamber back on, mine had a tendency to squish the o-ring seal.

 

[MMoe]

Thanks for the info!
It didn't unscrew the IFP chamber. Just went through the bleeding process in the manual. As far as I can tell that did the job. I can tell more after the first few rides.

 

[griffsterb]

Thanks for the info!
It didn't unscrew the IFP chamber. Just went through the bleeding process in the manual. As far as I can tell that did the job. I can tell more after the first few rides.

Did the knocking ever come back?

 

[MMoe]

Not until now. It's been close to 10 month and I did everything from local trails to rounds in the park. Even when its coming back, its a quick fix.