Kenevo Gen1 1 week old kenevo smashed

[Krisj]

I’ve purchased a S5 kenevo just over a week ago. I’m 6ft 2 inches and 16 1/2 stone kitted up. The RockShox rear shock only comes with a 600 lb spring on as standard
I rode at Fort William over the weekend on the World Cup track and blew through all the travel to point where my motor made contact with the floor and smashed the motor and battery casing. I didn’t send the large features either as I did not have confidence in the bike at all.
I find this very disappointing for a 7k bike that it supposed to be a dh orientated bike. It’s taken me months of saving to get this bike because I believed it to be the bike best suited to my riding.
I had a Levo before the kenevo with a coil shock fitted and I’ve never had any issues with the bike blowing through travel.
RockShox only go up to a 650lb spring too and I believe I would benefit from a 700lb spring for my weight but RockShox don’t even have it as an option. Surely Specialized have tested the S5 this with larger rider weights in mind.
The problem I’ve got now is I bought the bike from the internet and the shop is located at the other side of the country and my local Specialized dealer won’t have a look for me.
Ive spent over 12k with Specialized now find it very disappointing that you can’t take your bike to any Specialized dealers to get things checked out , another concern with this is when my motor fails which seems to be on the cards am I going to have to send the bike back down south to have this fixed too.
Ive always loved Specialized bikes and trusted the build quality and after care but I’m losing faith now. The bike I’ve saved my Hard earned cash for and dreamed of owning is slowly becoming a nightmare. Has anyone else who’s a larger rider had any similar problems. @Specialized Rider Care can you help and advise me please as I’m stuck on which way to turn. I’ve attached photos of the 4ft high drops that did the damage and the one with the suspension bottoming out is a screen shot of the drop off

just an update on my situation, spoken to tftuned and I’ve been advised that for my rider weight I would be better suited to an air shock to the price tag of £620 that’s great after spending 7k just over a week ago ?also the air shocks aren’t available till the end of December

 

[urastus]

Downhill isn't my scene, but I would have thought that coil shock is the more heavy duty. Your suspension is really bottomed out on that landing - and your rear tire . I'd want more air in the tire, more air in the forks, and a bigger spring for the shock (or an air shock with enough psi in it). I know with motorbikes they generally (sports type bikes) have a spring on the rear shock that is aimed at a rider weight of 75kg. It looks as though specialized may be doing the same. It's a pity they don't spell this out (motorcycle manufacturers don't either) before you buy.

 

[Krisj]

Downhill isn't my scene, but I would have thought that coil shock is the more heavy duty. Your suspension is really bottomed out on that landing - and your rear tire . I'd want more air in the tire, more air in the forks, and a bigger spring for the shock (or an air shock with enough psi in it). I know with motorbikes they generally (sports type bikes) have a spring on the rear shock that is aimed at a rider weight of 75kg. It looks as though specialized may be doing the same. It's a pity they don't spell this out (motorcycle manufacturers don't either) before you buy.

The front fork had 160psi in with 2 tokens
The rear tyre started at the top of the run with 26psi in my have got burped on the way down the World Cup track is seriously brutal to say the least.
The kenevo S5 surely should not be limited to sub 15 stone riders or if this is the case there should be a weight limit warning

 

[cozzy]

Yeah I gather there is a 3rd part metal protector you can fit. The s5 is seriously long and it easy to scrape the motor if casing a jump or dropping of steep stuff.
At 16.4 stone at the beginning of the year down to 14.13 now I run 155psi in the boxxer as per their app with 3 spacers but the stock 550lb spring suits me well.
I must say I would never run a rear type at less that 30 psi.
Hope you get it sorted, the local shop should help here if they are a specialized dealer.

 

[paquo]

Fortunatly it doesn't look like those cover parts are too expensive

 

[wepn]

Fortunatly it doesn't look like those cover parts are too expensive

Yes it doesn't look that bad. I would definitely look for a quality coil.

MRP might be a good choice. It sounds like you know how to dial it in.

Also Sheffield? Across the country England is not like across the country in Australia but any Spesh dealer should be able to fix it quick. If one Spesh dealer or another won't fix it, then maybe fixing bikes isn't their thing. I'd say a dealer who says "no problem bring it in" is a better choice & well worth the trip.

 

[TheBikePilot]

Is the motor damaged at all? You could ship it down to Chris @ Berkshire Cycles I am sure he will sort it for you..

 

[Dirtnvert]

Well im going to give you a hi5 for a proper job. Wouldve been nice to have the side shot on bottom out pic.
You may want to look at cane creek valt springs. They have a 550-670lb progressive spring that could suit you. I think the guy on the forums that has the extender batteries also does guards for fpecialized too. He may even have some parts or a connection. Good luck. Glad its only the guards. Should be a good bike when you get it properly suspended

 

[CA320]

The front fork had 160psi in with 2 tokens
The rear tyre started at the top of the run with 26psi in my have got burped on the way down the World Cup track is seriously brutal to say the least.
The kenevo S5 surely should not be limited to sub 15 stone riders or if this is the case there should be a weight limit warning

I have purchased the exact same bike 2 weeks ago in an S5 and I’m the same weight as you. I went straight to 4 tokens in the fork but I’m at 150psi. I wound the preload to get 30% and I’m happy with it so far riding my local trails and smaller jumps of 8-12ft at my bike park. I’m downsiding the jumps pretty clean and have yet to bottom the shock or at least not a harsh bottom out that I have felt but I’m being pretty sensible as I’m aware the shock is undersprung but there aren’t any 650 or 700lbs springs available anywhere.

A bit of tweaking will get the bike running well and try the guys at RaceCo if you are looking for advice on what can be done with your issue and good friendly service.

 

[wepn]

Well im going to give you a hi5 for a proper job. Wouldve been nice to have the side shot on bottom out pic.
You may want to look at cane creek valt springs. They have a 550-670lb progressive spring that could suit you. I think the guy on the forums that has the extender batteries also does guards for fpecialized too. He may even have some parts or a connection. Good luck. Glad its only the guards. Should be a good bike when you get it properly suspended

Definitely. He obviously knows how to get the most of a Kenevo and the Kenevo survived. The CC VALT Springs are like everything else Cane Creek are quality. I have the Black VALT on my Kenevo X. The Progressive is white. My first question would be what's the best way to make it black?

Another problem:

Our springs have an inner diameter of 36.3mm. Please consult your shock's manufacturer for their official clearance. We do not fit any Rock Shox dampers.

from Will your rear shock coil springs work on any other brands?

 

[Krisj]

Is the motor damaged at all? You could ship it down to Chris @ Berkshire Cycles I am sure he will sort it for you..

No matey thank god it’s just the plastic casings which I’m sure I could fit them myself if needed. I wish I lived closer to Berkshire cycles because they seem like the only spesh dealer in the Uk to give a sh#t about the customer and genuinely wants to help.

 

[apac]

I would phone up TFtuned.... here's a list of compatible springs with shock brands they keep in stock though Rockshox are pants for for swapability... Rear Shock Springs for Mountain Bikes, Cycles and MTB - TF Tuned

 

[Krisj]

Well im going to give you a hi5 for a proper job. Wouldve been nice to have the side shot on bottom out pic.
You may want to look at cane creek valt springs. They have a 550-670lb progressive spring that could suit you. I think the guy on the forums that has the extender batteries also does guards for fpecialized too. He may even have some parts or a connection. Good luck. Glad its only the guards. Should be a good bike when you get it properly suspended

I’m under the impression only RockShox springs work with RockShox shocks
If the cane creek vault works that would be a real bonus cheers dude

 

[apac]

Have a look here also.... they do adaptors J-TECH Shock Spring Adaptors

 

[#lazy]

A mate has a cane creek white progressive spring on his marzocchi , worth a call to tftuned !
Was it really a good idea to ride fort William on a new bike without testing your suspension?

 

[TheBikePilot]

I'd send Chris a photo with the damage he can no doubt order the parts in for you: [email protected]

 

[Salespunk]

I understand your frustration, but you went straight to a WC track without spending a lot of time setting up your suspension. The bikes are shipped with settings for an "average" rider. If you fall outside that "average" there will be some changes required whether it be a heavier spring, tokens in the fork, compression tuning, etc.

Also considering that WC teams mount new wheels on every run, some damage is not unexpected even though it is a bummer on a new bike. I have also damaged the skid plate on my S4 Kenevo heavily, but it has not affected my motor at all. Also there are plenty of less expensive air shocks available on Pinkbike if you look. I have an X2 mounted on mine that has been excellent and the more progressive nature has been really helpful to reduce/eliminate bottoming. The Kenevo is not a great application for a coil since the design is not very progressive.

To answer your question on spring compatibility, yes you can use just about any spring on any shock since they all use the same diameters. You just need to know the length and spring rate that you want.

 

[Al Boneta]

Proper suspension set up is crucial to getting the most out of your bike.
It will also prevent damage like this from happening and prevent crashes.
I am very glad you weren’t seriously injured.

We have offered a suspension tuning class for our customers on a local trail as well as a dynamic suspension tuning service.

About half of the riders I encounter on the trail do not have their suspension setup properly while they tell me how awesome the X2 shock and 38 fork they installed on their Levo SL are.
Of course none them are riding on a World Cup Downhill course, but they could get injured just the same.

 

[Mikerb]

So I am curious. If you let all the air out the fork and unbolt the rear shock, is the motor then on the ground??

 

[Dirtnvert]

Several times in fort bill id guess

 

[Stompweaver]

The rear suspension on the Kenevo is pretty linear. It can, and will, as you've found out blow through the travel pretty easily. I have damaged my battery cover cover in the same way on my S5 although not in such spectacular style. I've made a metal skid plate which I've then attached with glass fibre the original cover. It's not pretty but it works.

The material choice for the battery rock guard and motor covers is poor as it's too brittle. Ideally it would be thicker and more durable and there'd be a proper skid metal plate like Orange do on their ebikes.

I had an Amygos bashguard on my old Kenevo due to damaging the motor cover on that and it was ugly but worked. Never had an issue smacking that into anything after it was fitted.

Amygos Bashguard

A progressive spring would definitely help however the Cane Creek Progressive Valt spring will not fit the Rock Shox shock as the internal diameter of the spring is too small. MRP do a progressive spring but the stiffest is 600 rising by 20% at the end of the stroke. Even this may not be stiff enough for you.

MRP progressive spring

A shock rebuild with more high speed compression damping would help too. The EXT Storia has a hydraulic bottom out bumper if you want the best shock out there at the moment.

Hopefully Cascade Components will bring out a more progressive linkage for the Kenevo like they have for the Levo.

Cascade Components

If you ride these bikes as full on DH bikes there are some changes that have to be made and it’s annoying that you have to spend more money on top of the cost of the bike.

I would speak to Berkshire Cycles or RaceCo. I’m sure they’d help out with the warranty issue.

 

[Stompweaver]

Oh and good effort banging out runs at Fort Bill without destroying a rim. I have been there a few times and never managed to come back without a few dings in the back wheel! ?

 

[Krisj]

In hindsight I probably should not have done the World Cup track on the kenevo without setting up and testing my suspension before. But the trip had been booked for a while and I got the bike at last minute and I’ve rode the track before so (a kid in a candy shop ) happened here I just had to ride.
also I did try to set up the suspension the best I could and this was the first run down after this run I set the forks up with tokens and more air but the shock spring was out of my control until I returned home. I did manage another 5 runs with the forks tuned and with caution on the bigger features.
The point of my post was I’m disappointed at an extra large bike not having the biggest spring available on it , or at least having an option to upgrade so the bike you purchase is fit for its intended use after all this bike is the price of a small car.

 

[Krisj]

Oh and good effort banging out runs at Fort Bill without destroying a rim. I have been there a few times and never managed to come back without a few dings in the back wheel! ?

To be honest matey I was well impressed with the rims which to my surprise came out unscathed ????

 

[Krisj]

I'd send Chris a photo with the damage he can no doubt order the parts in for you: [email protected]

Cheers matey I’m defo going to do that And Hope they can help ??

 

[TheBikePilot]

Cheers matey I’m defo going to do that And Hope they can help ??

He will for sure.

They just fit a standard spring for an Average rider weight. I'm 105kg so any bike I ride always have to put loads of air in a shock and am always wary of Coil springs, but a lot of shops don't tell you that it is set for about 75kg you when you pick up the bike..! I've never been a huge fan of coils TBH at my weight. A Fox X2 would be my choice, but as you say you've dropped a tonne on the bike..

FW is basically the ultimate test of a bike and rider, hence it's a World Cup track.

Let us know how you get on..

 

[Stompweaver]

@Krisj That’s the problem with coil springs, they’re not as easy to set the spring weight up as an air shock where you can just add a few more psi as needed. When I bought my S5 I had to come down in spring weight and my friend who’s a lot heavier than me had to go up. I checked the standard spring and used J-Tech’s spring calculator to work out what I needed before I got the bike. I’ve been riding so long that I have done this plenty of times before.

The manufacturers have to set the bikes up for an average riders weight for each size. It’s not possible, well cost effective, to have every spring option sat on the shelf.

The standard rear linkage is very linear so with exactly the right weight spring I still get through the travel more than I would expect. Shock tune and progressive spring will sort it though and it’s not so bad that it’s something that needs to be done immediately.

I would recommend the Amygos bashguard if you’re going to be riding rocky tracks a lot. As others have said it’s a long bike with a low BB so some ground/bike interfaces are inevitable.

When you’ve got a new bike you just have to ride it! Get it fixed and setup right and you’ll be more than happy with it and all this will be a distant memory.

The standard rims are pretty tough. Much stronger than I expected given the ones on the old Kenevo were very soft and easily damaged.

 

[Cavi]

fox make both a 700lbs and even a 800lbs and they will work on your shock as long as you get the right size and they are only $30

 

[Stompweaver]

fox make both a 700lbs and even a 800lbs and they will work on your shock as long as you get the right size and they are only $30

Unfortunately not. The internal diameter of a Fox spring is 35mm and RockShox is 38mm.
The heaviest weigh spring that RockShox do is a 650.
@Krisj might get away with that. My friend who’s 18 stone has a 700 on a Kenevo Comp with the standard Marzocchi (Fox) shock and it works fine.

 

[bbred]

I’ve purchased a S5 kenevo just over a week ago. I’m 6ft 2 inches and 16 1/2 stone kitted up. The RockShox rear shock only comes with a 600 lb spring on as standard
I rode at Fort William over the weekend on the World Cup track and blew through all the travel to point where my motor made contact with the floor and smashed the motor and battery casing. I didn’t send the large features either as I did not have confidence in the bike at all.
I find this very disappointing for a 7k bike that it supposed to be a dh orientated bike. It’s taken me months of saving to get this bike because I believed it to be the bike best suited to my riding.
I had a Levo before the kenevo with a coil shock fitted and I’ve never had any issues with the bike blowing through travel.
RockShox only go up to a 650lb spring too and I believe I would benefit from a 700lb spring for my weight but RockShox don’t even have it as an option. Surely Specialized have tested the S5 this with larger rider weights in mind.
The problem I’ve got now is I bought the bike from the internet and the shop is located at the other side of the country and my local Specialized dealer won’t have a look for me.
Ive spent over 12k with Specialized now find it very disappointing that you can’t take your bike to any Specialized dealers to get things checked out , another concern with this is when my motor fails which seems to be on the cards am I going to have to send the bike back down south to have this fixed too.
Ive always loved Specialized bikes and trusted the build quality and after care but I’m losing faith now. The bike I’ve saved my Hard earned cash for and dreamed of owning is slowly becoming a nightmare. Has anyone else who’s a larger rider had any similar problems. @Specialized Rider Care can you help and advise me please as I’m stuck on which way to turn. I’ve attached photos of the 4ft high drops that did the damage and the one with the suspension bottoming out is a screen shot of the drop off

View attachment 39406

View attachment 39407

View attachment 39408

View attachment 39409
just an update on my situation, spoken to tftuned and I’ve been advised that for my rider weight I would be better suited to an air shock to the price tag of £620 that’s great after spending 7k just over a week ago ?also the air shocks aren’t available till the end of December

If its any help I know a fox 800lb spring will slip onto the crane creek inline dbcoil. TF Tuned said it would not fit but it did. There is about a 1mm difference but it just clicks in place no problem and the shock is super smooth and at a great price. Good luck with the repairs.