Rear Shocks

Italian suspension specialist EXT has been on a roll recently, introducing new products and updating existing models regularly. The Storia (enduro) and Arma (DH) coil shocks have now been given a complete overhaul, with plenty of new features added and further construction improvements implemented. We’ve had the Storia V4 on a test bike for a few weeks now, keep reading to learn all about the changes and find out what we think of it on the trail. EXT Storia V4 Highlights PSR (Position Sensitive Rebound) - hydraulic top-out system that eliminates harsh top out and improves sensitivity High and...

Among the rolling hills surrounding the tiny town of Plestan in Brittany, France, you’ll find a small manufacturer of mountain bike suspension called Fast Suspension. Born out of one man’s passion for making things work better, Fast started out in motorsports but has been focusing on mountain bike suspension since 2015 when they released their very first rear shock, called the Holy Grail. Jumping ahead to 2023, Fast dropped their latest product, a simplified yet sophisticated coil shock called the Ride. It comes in either a DH or an enduro version – we’ve been testing the latter for six months...

Extreme Racing Shox or EXT is an Italian suspension supplier with roots in motorsports, where the brand found success working with legendary racers like Sebastien Loeb who dominated the World Rally Championship for years aboard his Citroens. In 2014, EXT decided to try their hand at making products for mountain bikes as well, and brought over many of the technologies and the expertise they have been developing over the years. We have previously tested their excellent coil shocks with good results (links: Storia review and e-Storia review), so when the company introduced their first air shock...

EXT has had its fair share of the spotlight over the last year, courtesy of their Storia V3 Lok and ERA V1 and V2 forks. With the inevitable and relentless rise of really good E-bikes, it was natural for EXT to look at providing purpose-built shocks for this segment, and for us bike nerds - to test it. Strengths Weaknesses Great rear wheel grip Very tunable Real difference from every click of the adjusters External and tunable bottom out control Looks Not available in every size Sucking noise from rebound circuit, especially at higher rebound speeds (open) Price On the fly adjustments require...