# Front fork noise?



## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

When I bounce the front end of my bike (2016 specialized pitch) I can hear a clanging noise sounds like a spring. My wife has the women's version of my bike basically.. the Specialized pitch and her's is very smooth when I try this same thing. This normal? Do I need to adjust the preload maybe? I know NOTHING about the suspension on these as I come from more of a BMX background. Thx for any advice as always.


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## kapusta (Jan 17, 2004)

What model fork is it?


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

It's a suntour not sure which model.. it's what comes on the 2016 Specialized Pitch 650B.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

Any fork will have some kind of noises. On a nicer one, you will probably hear the suspension fluid flowing through the damping circuits. On a more basic one, the sounds will be more harsh. Yep, you might hear the spring. It might clunk when it bottoms/tops out. There's usually not much you can do about them. If you can disassemble one, about all you can do is pack it full of more grease. And it's possible that that won't change the way it sounds. Generally, most shops won't bother with that because of the poor returns on that labor.

It just depends on the fork.


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

Harold said:


> Any fork will have some kind of noises. On a nicer one, you will probably hear the suspension fluid flowing through the damping circuits. On a more basic one, the sounds will be more harsh. Yep, you might hear the spring. It might clunk when it bottoms/tops out. There's usually not much you can do about them. If you can disassemble one, about all you can do is pack it full of more grease. And it's possible that that won't change the way it sounds. Generally, most shops won't bother with that because of the poor returns on that labor.
> 
> It just depends on the fork.


Ahh.. was curious.. my wife has the same fork on her bike.. very quiet.. mine has a noise and it's not when I bottom it out. Ill just bring it back to the bike store.


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## mack_turtle (Jan 6, 2009)

that is a very basic level fork with little or no adjustment. it is basically a pogo stick, so when it is unweighted, it just pops all the way back out with a bang. a nicer fork will have a damper to smooth that out and make it more tune-able. I think you can look into Suntour's upgrade program if you want a nicer fork, or if the bike is still relatively new, you might be able to exchange it for a model with a nicer fork.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

BG78 said:


> Ahh.. was curious.. my wife has the same fork on her bike.. very quiet.. mine has a noise and it's not when I bottom it out. Ill just bring it back to the bike store.


what's the difference in your weight and your wife's? have you ridden more than she has?

I doubt the shop will do much about it.


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## mark! (Jun 1, 2012)

I had an SR Suntour fork on my first Trek, you could hear the springs compress and decompress inside it as well. It worked fine, well as good as a Suntour fork can at least.


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

mark! said:


> I had an SR Suntour fork on my first Trek, you could hear the springs compress and decompress inside it as well. It worked fine, well as good as a Suntour fork can at least.


Thx!


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

Harold said:


> what's the difference in your weight and your wife's? have you ridden more than she has?
> 
> I doubt the shop will do much about it.


Both purchased same day.. hers has a few more miles than me.. both less than a month old. I out weigh her a good 30-40lbs.. I am only guessing her weight as she would never tell me... and I would never ask  ... because I choose life.. lol


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

mack_turtle said:


> that is a very basic level fork with little or no adjustment. it is basically a pogo stick, so when it is unweighted, it just pops all the way back out with a bang. a nicer fork will have a damper to smooth that out and make it more tune-able. I think you can look into Suntour's upgrade program if you want a nicer fork, or if the bike is still relatively new, you might be able to exchange it for a model with a nicer fork.


Man that upgrade program is tempting! They have a fork setup that is 190$ part of thier upgrae program I am sure is better than what I have. My only concern is my bike is a 27.5" with 80mm of travel because it's a small frame... I wonder if running 100mm of travel would be a problem.. or maybe they have an 80mm. It's something I would like to upgrade one day.. I am very new to riding a mountain bike so I will give it some time to grow on me.


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## 4STRING (Oct 20, 2015)

Are you pushing them down while standing over the bike and holding the front brake? If so, you might be hearing the brake move. Push down with hands off brakes. Just curious. I've seen this a lot.


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## banditpowdercoat (Aug 13, 2015)

Just upgraded my Suntour XCT to a Raidon XC Lo R and love it!! I was 100mm, but went to 120. My bike has a 70* HTA and the longer fork lessened it a little. Actually stiffened up the front too. 32mm tubes now instead of 28mm which would flex bad. I now feel much more solid and confidant in techy downhill sections than I ever did before.


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## 4STRING (Oct 20, 2015)

Have you tried what I said in post 12? Just curious.


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## BG78 (Sep 19, 2015)

4STRING said:


> Have you tried what I said in post 12? Just curious.


Yup, not the brakes. I think it's just the spring I am hearing moving. I will be looking into the Suntour upgrade later on anyways.


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## 4STRING (Oct 20, 2015)

BG78 said:


> Yup, not the brakes. I think it's just the spring I am hearing moving. I will be looking into the Suntour upgrade later on anyways.


Thanks for checking. You never know. I dont here a lot of good with Suntour, Im sure these guys can advise something affordable you can still be proud of and feel good on.


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