Mountain Biking

[CraigN]

I have WPS piston kit in my fox 38's, my Vivid Coil, my fox 40's and my DHX2

just being tight and waiting for the zebs to need a full service before doing them also. Will have a look at smashpot.

 

[robj20]

Look into a Smashpot... Zebs are a great chassis and the Charger 3.1 is a great damper for the coil conversion. Buttery smooth and ride like a dream.

I think J-TECH recommend the WPS Podium Piston Kit as an upgrade either way.

If you fancy a better damper the MRP Lift is amazing. With the bonus it's ridiculously easy to home service so will save a small fortune over it's lifetime.

Think I'm definitely going to replace my RS Super Deluxe Ultimate with a Vivid Ultimate Coil RC2T on the Atherton 130.

I also have the MRP Noken on my Pikes which is a negative token so makes it more linear, probably one of the best value upgrades I've ever done.

 

[glitch]

I don't think the damper is the problem with the Zeb, the air spring is what holds it back. The Charger 3.1 is pretty damn good as far as dampers go, certainly better than the old GRIP2 and easily on par with the X2, but does benefit from some fettling.

I wouldn't waste your time with a Vivid Coil, they are not worth the money over something like a Kitsuma. The Vivid Air is a fantastic shock, the Vivid Coil has some serious shortcomings.

 

[glitch]

To further expand, the MRP Lift doesn't really do anything that a custom-tuned fork with potentially tweaked internals like the WPS Piston Kit wouldn't do. It's basically a drop-in tuned replacement damper, which is still a neat little product.

Horses for courses and all that. Not something I would have a particular interest for unless my suspension tuner specifically suggested it, but an interesting piece of tech nonetheless.

 

[robj20]

I don't think the damper is the problem with the Zeb, the air spring is what holds it back. The Charger 3.1 is pretty damn good as far as dampers go, certainly better than the old GRIP2 and easily on par with the X2, but does benefit from some fettling.

I wouldn't waste your time with a Vivid Coil, they are not worth the money over something like a Kitsuma. The Vivid Air is a fantastic shock, the Vivid Coil has some serious shortcomings.

Being able to service stuff at home is a must so Cane Creek is a no go.

 

[robj20]

To further expand, the MRP Lift doesn't really do anything that a custom-tuned fork with potentially tweaked internals like the WPS Piston Kit wouldn't do. It's basically a drop-in tuned replacement damper, which is still a neat little product.

Horses for courses and all that. Not something I would have a particular interest for unless my suspension tuner specifically suggested it, but an interesting piece of tech nonetheless.

The MRP Lift is tunable at home so you don't need to pay someone to do it for you, just swap the shims about, I just emailed them with what I wanted and they sent me a list of which shims and what order to fit them.
I can take it apart in less than 20 minutes to service every year so that some saves me that cost. If that means it's no better than our definitions of better are very different.
If I'm going to the bike park I can swap out the shim stacks in minutes to run more damping, much better than standard stuff that just preloads the stacks but adds harshness.
It's similar to how you don't just add tonnes of preload to a coil shock you get the correct spring.

 

[CraigN]

I don't think the damper is the problem with the Zeb, the air spring is what holds it back. The Charger 3.1 is pretty damn good as far as dampers go, certainly better than the old GRIP2 and easily on par with the X2, but does benefit from some fettling.

I wouldn't waste your time with a Vivid Coil, they are not worth the money over something like a Kitsuma. The Vivid Air is a fantastic shock, the Vivid Coil has some serious shortcomings.

What are the shortcomings of the vivid coil?

Since i had my WPS kit fitted and the touchdown stuff removed it has been good. I wanted to get another Storia for the eeb but I went with the vivid mainly so i could have a red coil

Vein i know, but i love the look of it. I think I might be able to fit a RS red coil to an EXT shock. Same diameter just a bit longer.

you are a bad influence

 

[glitch]

Being able to service stuff at home is a must so Cane Creek is a no go.

Well, that's a you thing, not a product capability thing. Doesn't make the Kitsuma any less capable for needing specialist attention.

The MRP Lift is tunable at home so you don't need to pay someone to do it for you, just swap the shims about, I just emailed them with what I wanted and they sent me a list of which shims and what order to fit them.
I can take it apart in less than 20 minutes to service every year so that some saves me that cost. If that means it's no better than our definitions of better are very different.
If I'm going to the bike park I can swap out the shim stacks in minutes to run more damping, much better than standard stuff that just preloads the stacks but adds harshness.
It's similar to how you don't just add tonnes of preload to a coil shock you get the correct spring.

I didn't say it wasn't better I said it doesn't really do anything that a custom-tuned fork wouldn't do. You clearly like to tinker, so that's why you favour something like the MRP.

I wouldn't swap out my Charger 3.1 or GRIP X2 for one, as both those dampers can be tuned to get excellent results. But if I had a base model fork and was thinking of upgrading the damper, then the MRP certainly has its appeal and that's where I think it comes into its own.

What are the shortcomings of the vivid coil?

Go ask a suspension tuner if they would recommend one...

From what I have heard from friends who work at suspension tuners, Touchdown seems to go wonky far more often in them than it does on the Air and it is tricky to get a good tune on them as there are some complications with the way the damping circuitry is designed. Ultimately it's a perfectly adequate shock with a very soft, mushy vague feeling that people often mistake for being plush, but nothing special in the grand scheme of things.

If a bike comes with one, you can get it feeling okay with some tuning and possibly replacing some internals, depending on your weight and riding style. But for anyone considering buying one new, unless the price is literally too good to turn down, you can get far better performance for the same money from a shock outside of the usual OEM world.

As an example, this is a steal for someone with a frame that fits it. But yes, you'll need to send it off every year to have it serviced. And some people won't like the colour options for the coils...

 

[SDK^]

As an example, this is a steal for someone with a frame that fits it. But yes, you'll need to send it off every year to have it serviced. And some people won't like the colour options for the coils...

I just bought a Vivid Coil Ultimate RC2T 230x60 for £400.
It reviews well with independent testers. I'm not racing, or riding every week, so don't need the pinnacle of shocks or adjustments.

 

[CraigN]

I paid £250 for mine (new bike take off), £40 for the spring plus the custom tune.

Still less than half what my storia cost me. Will leave it a bit longer see how I get on with it. Its probably still way more capable than I am.

My Fox 40's and my 26 DHX2 are with Jtech atm having WPS treatment. I have only ridden the DH bike 4/5 times but I really don't like the DHX2 compared to my Vivid or my Storia. The fox 40s also feel extremely stiff. Have been impressed with what jtech did with my Grip2 damper. If i still don't like it I will probably get an EXT Arma for the DH bike. I want it to my liking before my Morzine trip in July.

I am doing bike park days at Dirt Farm and Revolution in the next month so will see how it fairs.