EXT Vecta Rear Shock

We’ve been testing EXT products for quite a few years by now, and we’ve always been impressed by their performance and “trail feel”. There were of course teething problems with some of the early versions, like the overly harsh tunes and air spring setups of the first ERA forks or noisy, clunky rebounds on the first generations of the Storia shocks. EXT has learned a lot since those days, and the current crop of products is nothing short of excellent. When the company launched the Vecta, they stated that it was built by “recycling” some aspects of previous designs, so we initially worried that it might represent a step backwards in the name of producing a more affordable model in the range – our fears soon proved to be entirely unfounded though. Keep reading to learn more about our experience with the Vecta – you can watch it in action under our tester Nils first if you want to:

EXT Vecta Highlights

• 3 way adjustable: monotube design with high and low speed compression and rebound
• Wide range of adjustments to easily fit most of the rider and bike needs. Tuning specifications for different rider needs will still be available as for V4
• Same valve as V4: riders can now adjust high and low speed compression with a common multi-tool, needing only 5 mm and 4 mm allen keys
• No risk of cavitation: high turbulent flow valves keep damping forces independent from viscosity and temperature changes to perfect pressure balance, eliminate aeration and cavitation, all with very low hysteresis to improve dynamic response
• The HBC is factory-set to meet the needs of riders seeking maximum performance without the complexity of extensive tuning
• Lok 2.0 technology: separate circuit that is tunable by its own shim stack for further customization
• Ø14 mm hard chrome-moly shaft (e-MTB approved)
• Negative spring: harder negative spring to avoid any harsh top-out knocking sound
• Improved durability thanks to a new main tube coating, assuring very high wear resistance
• EV2S fluid, a high viscosity index fluid, and phenomenal viscosity ratio
• Spring thrust bearings ensure alignment, prevent spring rub and minimize spring noise
• Reservoir with large volume bladder design, inflated to 55 psi only
• Weight: 520 gr in 250×75 mm (without spring, verified)
• Covered by EXT’s 5-year extended warranty (subject to yearly shock maintenance)
• MSRP: $815,00 USD / 749,00 € (VAT included), excluding spring

Initial Impressions

The heritage of the Vecta is hiding in plain sight – it looks just like a Storia at first glance. It has inherited some of the latest form-factor evolutions of the flagship shock, notably the slightly shorter, bladder-equipped piggyback reservoir introduced on the Storia V4, while the main head shape and tubing look very close to the Storia V3. Just like big brother it also uses a set of thrust bearings on the coil spring to alleviate any spring binding or alignment issues as the shock compresses.

Diving deeper into the comparisons with the Storia, the Vecta is about 80-90 grams heavier and costs about $300 less. To understand where the differences come from, we have to lift the hood and have a peek inside. The basic architecture is shared between the 2 shocks, but the Storia goes the whole nine yards with features like adjustable hydraulic bottom-out (where HBO is factory-set on the Vecta) and “position sensitive rebound” where the Vecta makes do with a mechanical top-out spring to control the extension of the shock. The Storia also uses a lighter, DLC-treated shaft while the Vecta gets a regular chrome steel version. The tubing is also slightly thicker on the Vecta, which together with the heavier-duty chrome steel shaft means that the Vecta is fully approved for e-MTB use (whereas with the Storia V4, you need to opt for the e-Storia version for your electric sled).

In terms of similarities, both shocks feature EXT’s Lok 2.0 climb switch architecture, basically a separate oil path that increases damping to control pedal bob while climbing. There is a blow-off valve to ensure you don’t damage your shock if you should forget to open the lockout before descending. The mono-tube layout and the main compression and rebound architecture valves are also shared between the two shocks, and they can both be tuned specifically to your requirements if you should find the stock tunes lacking (via authorized EXT service centers or directly by the company, depending on how and where you buy). Incidentally, the Vecta falls under EXT’s 5-year extended warranty program, which prolongs the EU-standard 2-year warranty by an extra 3 years as long as you keep to a yearly service schedule.

On The Trail

We installed the Vecta on a bike that was previously running a Storia V3, which gave us a good way to compare these slightly different types of apples. Right off the bat, we noticed that the Vecta was more sophisticated in its behavior. The shock is quieter than the V3 Storia, and the transition between compression and rebound is much smoother. The Storia V3 used a loose, hard plastic bottom-out bump stop which rattles a fair bit (unless you superglue it to the foam ring under it, like some riders do) – this is no longer present on the Vecta (nor the Storia V4 we should point out). There remains just a minor “whoosh” sound as the oil flows through the rebound circuit, other than that, the Vecta makes itself forgotten. Adjusting the high- and low-speed compression settings is done using 5 and 4 mm allen keys respectively, while the single rebound setting can be adjusted without any tools.

The Lok 2.0 is a great climb switch implementation. It provides enough support to both hold you up higher in the travel and reduce bobbing, while retaining just enough suppleness to be useful also for technical climbs. Thanks to the blow-off valve, you can ride the bike even if you forget to open the switch for descending, but it is noticeably harsher of course.

As soon the trail gets rougher, the Vecta really starts to shine. It remains quiet and composed no matter what you throw at it, but it is also noticeably livelier than the Storia V3 it replaced on this bike. We never felt like it was going to buck us unexpectedly, but it still provided more “pop” and made for a bike that was more fun to pump and jump. Both the compression and rebound tunes feel lighter than the older shock, but as we just stated, this did not lead to any kind of lack of control – on the contrary, we found that the Vecta gave us MORE confidence than before. Definitely one of the most controlled shock we’ve tested recently. In terms of settings, we added a couple of clicks of rebound compared to the Storia V3 that we took off the bike, while the compression settings stayed pretty similar (just a few clicks from open on the high-speed, with the low-speed set in the middle of the range). The clicks are distinct and it’s pretty easy to feel the difference they make on the trail.

We’re big fans of hydraulic bottom-out features, and EXT’s version works really well. We don’t know how the Vecta’s factory-set version compares to the externally adjustable one found on the Storia in terms of settings, but we do know that it does a great job even on bigger landings. There is still a thin foam ring bumper present to deal with the last millimeter of compression, but we never felt the transition and never detected any harsh bottom-out events during our time testing. The bike we tested on here is fairly progressive in and of itself, which makes life easier for the bottom-out features of the shock, but we’ve also tested EXT’s HBO on more linear bikes and we know it gets the job done there too (note that the HBO feature can be modified by EXT if you need something outside of the factory tune).

As we mentioned in the intro, earlier EXT shocks suffered from a bit of top-out clunkiness, but those days are long gone now. The Vecta uses a simpler, mechanical spring to control top-out, whereas the Storia employs a position-sensitive rebound circuit to manage this aspect, but in both cases the result is the same: no more annoying little top-out clunks. The Vecta is as well-behaved when extending as it is when compressing.

Things That Could Be Improved

Uhm, actually…nothing. We can’t fault the Vecta, especially not at this price point.

Long Term Durability

We’ve been testing the Vecta for 3 months now, with absolutely no issues to report. More importantly, the Storia V3 it replaced has been on that bike for a couple of years, and with NO service done to it whatsoever, it’s still going strong. We’ve also had similarly good results with the Storia V4 we tested a while back – all in all, we feel confident that EXT products have what it takes to provide you with years of loyal service.

What’s The Bottom Line?

When EXT decided to make a more budget-friendly coil shock, they started from a good place and looked at what they could do without. But far from just reducing specs and removing features to hit a price point, they have managed to maintain all the performance of the flagship shock with just a bit of a weight penalty. The Vecta benefits from all the accumulated experience that EXT has gained with other shocks over the years, and the factory tune is frankly speaking quite spectacular by now. It offers incredible control without killing the bike’s party vibe - it’s so good that we really struggle to come up with a convincing reason why you should part with your hard-earned for the more expensive version.

For more information head on over to extremeshox.com.

About The Reviewers

Johan Hjord - Age: 52 // Years Riding MTB: 20 // Weight: 190-pounds (87 kg) // Height: 6'0" (1.84m)

Johan loves bikes, which strangely doesn’t make him any better at riding them. After many years spent practicing falling off cliffs with his snowboard, he took up mountain biking in 2005. Ever since, he’s mostly been riding bikes with too much suspension travel to cover up his many flaws as a rider. His 200-pound body weight coupled with unique skill for poor line choice and clumsy landings make him an expert on durability - if parts survive Johan, they’re pretty much okay for anybody. Johan rides flat pedals with a riding style that he describes as "none" (when in actuality he rips!). Having found most trail features to be not to his liking, Johan uses much of his spare time building his own. Johan’s other accomplishments include surviving this far and helping keep the Vital Media Machine’s stoke dial firmly on 11.

Nils Hjord – Age: 22 // Years Riding MTB: 14 // Height: 5’9” (1m80) // Weight: 185-pounds (84-kg)

Always committed to having fun on his bike, Nils likes to keep his wheels in the air almost as much as on the ground. Although he enjoys going fast and is no stranger to burping his tires off the rim, he has dedicated most of his riding time to mastering manuals and making his tabletops flatter – but that doesn’t mean he can’t put the hurt on his wheels through a high-speed rockgarden too, when needed. Good thing his dad is a full-time Vital staffer with access to lots of bike parts that need testing!

Photos/video by Johan Hjord