As I have several Fox Alps shocks (check blogs’s title picture) and need a backup shock for my daily Verlicchi/Sintesi Bromont Bike I’m going to do my own very best Spare Parts Kits for Fox Alps Shocks now.🙏🤙
If you read here you know about Fox Alps v4 & v5 and you know the ‘R’ versions have cool adjustable dials. so Foc Alps Shocks have lots of version and details. We need to become specialists now in this – business as usual if you do ‘Retro Parts Reproduction‘⚡🖐🧩👊.
When you scan the market and offers or you ask for a service in detail, this will probably result into the knowledge, that none is doing a correct Full Service because of missing parts!! WTF!!😱😵
Even well known B2B (only) spare supplier like Dämpfer-Klinik only provide some very simple ‘base’ kits including only parts you can find online if you know about the technical & dimensions, but in detail not the money & price worth.
As you probably know lota of this Fox Alp’s have cracked shafts, not sure what the real problem is. This shafts are 38mm diameter.
I think this is the most serious problem, so I started here. But lucky me by thinking about it one can use 38mm stanchions from suspensions forks. This can be very nice solved using Kashima or golden coated stanchions from Marzocchi/Fox from 888’s or 380’s.
All you need to do is to cut it to the correct lengthead an edge and a thread M36x1 on each side. Easy.✨🤣👊
Lucky my I solved this, because a very good friend’s bike shop sold me 12 pcs from their spares boxes. Cost me some $$$, but it is a good start for this project to do replacement shafts very simple on a lathe.🙏⚡
Afaik there have been Fox Alps shafts with different lengths available : some of them I own myself, some data is from Risse website & some other from the net.
Fox Alps 4/5 (R) Shafts lengths (I think this has to be checked later in detail) from what I know :
57,65mm – 2.270″- 65,40mm
- 66,04mm – 2,600″
- 66,68mm
- 72,90mm – 2.870″
- 85,70mm
- 86,36mm – 3,400″
- 86,40mm
This are shaft lengths only, I don’t now the corresponding eye-to-eye shaft length in the moment – will also do later.
Yes I know : Risse has done some spare part shafts also, but that are simple ones using cheap black eloxal, shafts are very expensive and getting parcel from Risse will take >1/2 year.
And sure, you can ask Dougal from Shockcraft Suspension from NZ to lathe another stainless steel, from my point this works better than the anodized black ones. The ones from Shockcraft are very special, they do customs hard-chromed hydraulic shafting with CNC threads in each end and a honed centre! WTF. Wouh!👍🙃
Other HARDWARE problems : Screws, Valves, Bushings & rebound-end Spring & Tools.
The Deflating Screw does unfortunataly not have a DIN/Metrix inbus, but it’s ‘zöllig’.
Using such screw formats in Europe results in damaged screw & rounded inbus most of the time. The valve has the same problem, the allen hex key it getting round and afaik it is glued sometimes and will be ’rounded’ by user action 🤔.
So both this parts are easy cheap ones, I like to have that new in the service kit. There is a rebound spring inside the shock (not all Fox Alp’s), which has broken in a lot of cases and the very serious problem about this is : when this happens, it will shredder & destroy your shock from the inside. OMG!😵
And in the end you need a 38mm round Clamp for you wise or a key to be able to handle disassembling and re-assemble the shaft from it’s parts without damaging the parts. On top you need a Tool to strip the bigger dustseal on top over the shaft.
In the end Bushings, Eye-Screws and Kits will make it round. But this depends on the frame’s dimensions and user can buy it himself – so not sure what this will be in the end.
Other missing ‘SOFTWARE‘ – means several Seals & Rings are missing!
Big outer Dust Seal (2 versions 4 vs. 5), the green Teflon Gliding Ring on the inner piston and the important white Rebound Polyurethan Ring!! WTF!!?
As I have best connections in seals of all kind of sorts I will go to replacements 1st to create a fkg good sealkit. Simply the best.👊🖐🤙
You see the problem? You are paying for a full service and all one can do is cleaning a little and do new oil in + take the old parts, but in detail the shock can not be repaired and important parts will not be replaced!??😪😱
Something else missing?
Sure, a technical drawing & most important a parts list. How do you want to communicate if you don’t know parts numbers and it’s names?? wtf!
Sources
There are some cool sources on the net, but such a cool Service Manual like Marzocchi did for older suspensions forks is unfortunately not available. But check this :
YT vids from Risse and other
Gebla
Fox Alps * Animation @ Insta
Known Manuals from Internet
…
-tobedo-
