Do the Norleen Front Air shocks suck?

[Kyle]

Because after taking it out on some decent trails for the first time, it blew!  The threads on the right side pump are stripped out!  And I'm pretty sure I didnt do it when tightening the cap after checking the air pressure.....I made a conscience effort not to over tighten the caps.  So are these just a crap shock?

What kinda shock can I get as a replacement that WILL NOT BREAK!  I get kinda anal about things like this....I dont like to break down because of equipment failure!

Its on a Disco Monkey.

Thanks.

[dmc]

I had a couple of sets and they worked ok but changed to a Fox Vanilla when they where released and they are in a completely different league, They are set and forget so if you want reliable shocks that are well made and work really well I'd say get some Fox forks. dmc

[Carbon_Angus]

no i don't think they suck but are good for xc use only. i'm having an on going problem with losing air in the 100mm setting only, even after rebuilds.

you can easily cross threasd the top valves, but the nut in the cap should pop out before it gets too tight

[numbnuts]

I don't know much about Noleen stuff but it doesn't have a good rep. A disco monkey can handle a good 5" fork, marzochi, manitou, fox, psylo, lots of good choices depending on the type of riding you like, just do a little research before buying. I'm using a 2001 zokie Z1 that I got cheap off a friend 130mm travel but i can also lock the shock lower with the ecc for climbs , and i love it!

[bikendan]

if you are asking about the noleen mega-air fork, then it's a decent air fork. it's made by rst and is designed for xc and light trailriding. it's not a big jump/drop fork. for what it sold for, it was a good fork.
i've had my '01 for 2 yrs and have had no problems. if it's an older mega-air, '99 or '00, they had some problems with those.
it's easy to cross-thread the valve threads with the metal caps.

[Kyle]

Thanks for the replies.  

I was kinda upset yesterday, so it probably wasnt the most coherant post!

Yep, its a Mega Air shock, and I was prob at fault.  Before I went out riding, I aired up the shock and screwed the caps back on.  I then went out for a couple of hrs.  Didnt have any problems with the shock and never noticed it being mushy, losing air.  I put new tubes on yesterday and immediatly noticed the front shock was loose as a goose.  I popped the left cover off no problem....took the right cover off and the schrador came out.....those goes all the air!

Put the valve back in and turned...never tightened up.  Just spun and spun, bad threads.  

Now looking at the pdf file on the mega air, I see the part is called "Air stanchion cap".  Can I get replacements?  I emailed k2, but no response.  I'll call if I get a chance tomorrow, but does anyone know where I could find a replacement?  I would rather try and fix it first I guess, instead of spending $300 on a new one (I tend to go a little over board when it comes to replacement parts even though I prob dont need a $300+ shock, but I dont like to break!)

Thanks for the tips fellows.

[Kyle]

Thanks for the replies.  



I was kinda upset yesterday, so it probably wasnt the most coherant post!



Yep, its a Mega Air shock, and I was prob at fault.  Before I went out riding, I aired up the shock and screwed the caps back on.  I then went out for a couple of hrs.  Didnt have any problems with the shock and never noticed it being mushy, losing air.  I put new tubes on yesterday and immediatly noticed the front shock was loose as a goose.  I popped the left cover off no problem....took the right cover off and the schrador came out.....those goes all the air!



Put the valve back in and turned...never tightened up.  Just spun and spun, bad threads.  



Now looking at the pdf file on the mega air, I see the part is called "Air stanchion cap".  Can I get replacements?  I emailed k2, but no response.  I'll call if I get a chance tomorrow, but does anyone know where I could find a replacement?  I would rather try and fix it first I guess, instead of spending $300 on a new one (I tend to go a little over board when it comes to replacement parts even though I prob dont need a $300+ shock, but I dont like to break!)



Thanks for the tips fellows.

[Kyle d]

Thanks for the replies.  



I was kinda upset yesterday, so it probably wasnt the most coherant post!



Yep, its a Mega Air shock, and I was prob at fault.  Before I went out riding, I aired up the shock and screwed the caps back on.  I then went out for a couple of hrs.  Didnt have any problems with the shock and never noticed it being mushy, losing air.  I put new tubes on yesterday and immediatly noticed the front shock was loose as a goose.  I popped the left cover off no problem....took the right cover off and the schrador came out.....those goes all the air!



Put the valve back in and turned...never tightened up.  Just spun and spun, bad threads.  



Now looking at the pdf file on the mega air, I see the part is called "Air stanchion cap".  Can I get replacements?  I emailed k2, but no response.  I'll call if I get a chance tomorrow, but does anyone know where I could find a replacement?  I would rather try and fix it first I guess, instead of spending $300 on a new one (I tend to go a little over board when it comes to replacement parts even though I prob dont need a $300+ shock, but I dont like to break!)



Thanks for the tips fellows.

[Kyle]

sorry about the triple posting, it kept coming up as an error....but I guess it really did post.



And I believe its a 2001 Disco as its the Black and White....not green.

[bikendan]

you can call k2's customer service # and see if they have them in stock. have your lbs or if you're near a REI store, order the part. you could also give noleen shock service a call. they might have parts.
by the way, tell them it's a mega-air fork, not shock. they might confuse it with the rear shock.

[Carbon_Angus]

http://k2bikes.com/tech_library/pdfs/00_AirForkManual.pdf

go to page 7 and your parts and part numbers will be there

the numbers to call k2 are here

http://idriders.com/proflex/links.htm

you may need to order the parts thru your LBS. It is an easy fork to service, but can be messed up easy because there are plastic parts threading into metal and crossthreading will butcher the plastic part before you know it, so take your time

if you are ordering a cap (knurled plastic piece) be sure they include a wrench for it, you can use a pair of wide mouth pliers and a rag, too, but the wrench is desinged to fit like a glove. i have an extra wrench to give, too if you need...gratis

stay on top of the part order, k2 is very good at getting parts out....if your LBS actually orders them

good luck

[Kyle]

thanks for the help.  I havent tried the lbs, but tried calling k2....always got the voice mail.  sent an email but no reply   [smiley=coolfrown.gif]
so I did what any self respecting 'fix-it' would do....mixed a little jb insta-weld and put it around the threads of the shrador valve and the stanchion cap (where the valve goes, not the threads for the fork).  Seems to have worked, rode it around a little today.  I'll try it out this weekend and give it ago.  

Better than having it just sit in the garage another weekend.  And if it doesnt work, guess I'm out a shrader valve, since I was already out the stanchion cap....I'm a risk taker!

but there goes my "will not break" mantra!  

[Carbon_Angus]

if the fork was under warranty, you just blew the warranty by using JB on it. unless you have a rapport with the bike shop you bought the bike from

contact a k2 dealer or an LBS that will order the replacement parts you need through k2 (they all can unless they are on a shi*t list from k2)

[Kyle]

if the fork was under warranty, you just blew the warranty by using JB on it. unless you have a rapport with the bike shop you bought the bike from

contact a k2 dealer or an LBS that will order the replacement parts you need through k2 (they all can unless they are on a shi*t list from k2)

i doubt the fork is still under warrenty as I bought the bike used and I believe the previous owner bought the bike 2+ years ago.

Oh yeah, went out today, it worked!