Posts
31
Joined
6/18/2018
Location
NZ
Just wondering if people running the EXT Storia V3 are, like me, being driven nuts by the clicking noise in the rebound circuit. The only way to get rid of it is to add full rebound damping. This video is with 2 clicks added and it’s the fairly obvious constant clicking noise. Does anyone else have a similar experience with this shock? It seriously detracts from the riding experience so much as to make the shock unrideable.
It annoyed me a bit when I first got it, but I've since gotten used to it. Worth it for the performance IMO.
Both of them had the clicking sound when new. I'm in the UK and emailed Chris Porter about it. This was his response in email:
"It's nothing to worry about! It's the compression check valve in the main piston! If it is really annoying it can be gotten rid of! It would be part of a £40 revalve…
But you shouldn't notice it whilst riding! give it a go!"
I had it sorted when I next had them serviced. No difference in performance. Ext shocks are quite noisey compared to other brands. I often hear the wooshing sound even with a full facer on at speed but I kinda like the woosh sound and dont find it distracting.
I love my noisy shock, best coil I've ever had.
For me the superior performance is far above anything else.
The clack and whoosh bothers me way less than the "carbon echo" typical in frames... or the tiny seat twist we have to endure in dropper posts... or the thinner diameter in rubber grips we trade for lock-on ease.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4kcwbJv0rtE
I sent it back to Ext and they said nothing is wrong. I’m seriously concerned.
Additionally my school of thought is that on any given course, I only want to bottom out once maybe twice just to make sure I am using almost all (95%) of my suspension. Any more than that and I need to stiffen the spring rate up or slow down the movement. Even with the hydraulic bottom out feature, it is only an added amount of progression, not a place to be hitting all the time.
I would also check that there is no play in the bearings/pivots/spacers on the frame as play over time becomes more play and that introduces more flex and other deflections especially coming out of full endstroke. A rear end that is allowed to flex too much really stresses a shock over time.
The noise that's harder to track down is the bigger compression noise. Maybe a seized frame bearing? I'd try cycling the frame through its suspension with the shock removed and then potentially with shock installed without the spring on it to see if you can isolate the noise. Looks like this is on an IBIS with a clevis mount. Something going on there?
The only noise I know nothing about is the bigger compression noise. I did see a video on another thread of someone with a similar noise. He claimed to have fixed it by tightening the preload. I will have to try this when I get the shock back from EXT.
If you don't do anything, the spring will grind the plastic of guard down, and it just sort of makes its own clearance, fixes itself. But try incrementally increasing preload a quarter turn at a time if you'd rather not wait.
My mate had the same coil and it made the same loud noises and had was so dead / overdamped so he asked for them to take a look and the ext guys out here where so stubborn about accepting something was wrong or offering to help in any way. He sold it and got his old airshock back with a custom tune and is happy now
Late reply! I came here from a google search on EXT noises. Interestingly I'm having the exact same issues, even more I'm also on a POLE. The new Vikkela 190mm, not sure which one you're on but there's no denying you're on a POLE. I was actually pretty stoked about how quiet the bike was, but that was with the stock RockShox Super deluxe ultimate. Just got my new EXT storia for it and immediately noticed the clicking. I've also got a Geometron G1 with nearly the same shock (the G1 uses a modified version of the Storia) and zero click. It has all the standard noises but this noise is a very specific click at the start of compression. I've played a bunch with this and found that I will get the click only when the shock starts a compression movement. Without the spring installed I can compress the shock slowly and it will click when the compression starts but not at all if I speed up the compression slightly. The moment I reach zero shaft speed it sounds like the check valve others referenced is reseting and then the moment I compress again it clicks. Verified all of this off the bike an compared to the Storia from my geometron which does not have the compression click at all. I think that the POLE has a lot to do with amplifying the noise because I see there are many people experiencing this noise but they say they don't notice at all while riding. I'm going to contact EXT-usa next week to see if they have some suggestions.
I know from experience certain frames will amplify shock noises. No experience with pole bikes or ext shocks though…
Glad your rock shox was quiet.
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