How important is a shock service / rebuild?

One-Hander
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One-Hander
Edited Date/Time 7/30/2018 5:19am
This may be a dumb question to some, but I'm asking it anyway.

I'm having my forks serviced, revalved and rebuilt and am thinking of sending in my shock too. No visible leaks on the shock and all parts look okay from the outside, it also seems to perform fine (although I have nothing to judge against).

It's a 2016 125sx and it's never been serviced as far as I know as I do not know the bike history.

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navalseabee
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navalseabee 7/30/2018 5:53am
7/30/2018 5:53am
Most shops will tell you after the 40 hour mark the actual fluid begins to break down and seriously affect performance. Most places recommend 20 hour services but that's a bit extreme IMHO, i usually do fluid changes at 30 hours and replace seals and bushings when they're needed. I also do the service myself which makes it significantly easier and cheaper.
sgrimmxdad
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sgrimmxdad 7/30/2018 6:56am
7/30/2018 6:56am
40hrs is general rule. Riding style, ability, and conditions will make that vary... I'd suggest 15 on the forks and 30 on the shock if you are a fast rider, but I understand that gets expensive! I would always replace bushings and seals by 40hrs.... If you can change the fork and shock oil yourself once in between a full service by a professional it would be the ideal situation!
lumpy790
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lumpy790 7/30/2018 7:03am
7/30/2018 7:03am
Fluid / oil breaks down thinning viscosity and affecting lubrication and dampening greatly suffers.

How often do you change the oil in your motor because it breaks down?
slipdog
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slipdog 7/30/2018 9:17am
7/30/2018 9:17am
You need to be aware that the main piston band and O-ring need to be replaced often in the '16+ 50mm WP shock. It uses a single O-ring instead of the dual O-ring set up of the Japanese shocks and that O-ring deforms from the heat cycles faster than it should. I often find them at or under service limit and have had to replace shock bodies from wear because they were not properly serviced.

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dmm698
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dmm698 7/30/2018 12:06pm
7/30/2018 12:06pm
In my opinion, if you had to choose to have just your forks or just your shock done, you should choose the shock. I do my own every 30-40 hours, and yes, the oil breaks down considerably from the heat.
Flipsid33
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Flipsid33 7/30/2018 4:26pm
7/30/2018 4:26pm
One-Hander wrote:
This may be a dumb question to some, but I'm asking it anyway. I'm having my forks serviced, revalved and rebuilt and am thinking of sending...
This may be a dumb question to some, but I'm asking it anyway.

I'm having my forks serviced, revalved and rebuilt and am thinking of sending in my shock too. No visible leaks on the shock and all parts look okay from the outside, it also seems to perform fine (although I have nothing to judge against).

It's a 2016 125sx and it's never been serviced as far as I know as I do not know the bike history.

How important is the most important part of the motorcycle?

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