Revelation Fork on the Turbo Levo

[junglie69]

Hi a question for you guys. Rockshox tech info lists the Revelation fork as Debonair spring only, no mention anywhere on their site,that I can find of Solo air. Yet the fork on my bike, a 2018 Comp states quite clearly Solo air. I put the serial number into the Rockshox tech do da and the spec came back as Debonair?



Does anyone know which it is or if you take the top cap off is there an obvious way to tell. I’ve been considering having a Charger 2 damper fitted and effectively converting the Revelation to a Pike. Knowing which air spring is in it would be very helpful, thanks.

 

[junglie69]

Hi I’m looking to improve the small bump compliance have played with pressure/token/damper settings and not made any real progress. I am aware the damper is separate from the air spring, I’m just trying to establish whether it is Solo air or Debonair in there at the moment. At least then I know where I’m starting from if that makes sense.

 

[Gary]

As I understand it Debonair is simply a slightly more linear air spring rate. (and then loads of folk go and stick a bunch of tokens in making them progressive)
RS have been messing around trying to refine air spring rates for years. thing is. if you want ultimate small bump compliance a coil spring is what you/RS should be looking at.
How often do you lower leg service your fork?

There are a lot of porducts on the market claiming to "improve" RS damping and spring rates. Personally midstroke support is massively more important to me than small bump compliance. I haven't really had a lot of time riding modern Revs so don't know how they fair as stock spec.

 

[junglie69]

Hi the mid stroke is good and as a fork I have no real issues with build or how it works save the small stuff chatter. My previous bikes have all been Fox stuff and although this fork is only a couple of months old it is noticeable how much chatter is present on the cross country trail stuff that is 60% of my ride. Having heard nothing but good about Pike forks I was looking at a fairly easy upgrade by changing the damper on one side and possibly the air spring on the other. TF tuned are 15 mins from me and I know they prefer the Luftkappe piston which is said to give good results. If it is a Debonair spring already there I have a baseline to work from. It’s just Specialized/ Rockshox information is a little fuzzy. At the end of the day if I take it in to TF tuned they will know what’s there I guess?

 

[ccrdave]

I had the new revs on my 2018 bike and mine were deffo solo air cos i took them apart to change travel and put a charger damper in, worked very well but got lyrics now

 

[junglie69]

That’s what I needed to know, thanks.

 

[WheelsandBoards]

I had the new revs on my 2018 bike and mine were deffo solo air cos i took them apart to change travel and put a charger damper in, worked very well but got lyrics now

Hiya, want to buy the debonair to move the travel up to 160 on my 18 Levo.....I have part number 00.4019.931.000....can you confirm please ??? N

 

[Troutwrestler]

Yep. This one 160mm travel.

 

[Barryjm]

Hi the mid stroke is good and as a fork I have no real issues with build or how it works save the small stuff chatter. My previous bikes have all been Fox stuff and although this fork is only a couple of months old it is noticeable how much chatter is present on the cross country trail stuff that is 60% of my ride. Having heard nothing but good about Pike forks I was looking at a fairly easy upgrade by changing the damper on one side and possibly the air spring on the other. TF tuned are 15 mins from me and I know they prefer the Luftkappe piston which is said to give good results. If it is a Debonair spring already there I have a baseline to work from. It’s just Specialized/ Rockshox information is a little fuzzy. At the end of the day if I take it in to TF tuned they will know what’s there I guess?

Junglie69, did you make the upgrade in the end, if so how did it go, was there a big improvement? I am thinking about doing the same as I thoroughly agree with your description of small bump chatter, cheers Barry

 

[junglie69]

Hi Barry, yes I did get it upgraded, by TF tuned. Charger 2 damper and a Vorsprung Luftkappe on the other side. It made a big difference and similar or slightly better spec than a 2108 Pike. Funny you should bring this up now as I was recently offered a Fox 36 at a really good price which I will keep. If you are interested I’m putting the upgraded Revelation on eBay on Sunday. You could fit that one for say £350 and sell your Revelation for £250-300 and make quite a saving. Let me know what you think. Price for TF tuned to convert is approx £350 they do it as a service and fit the new parts as they build it back up. Let me know your thoughts.

Simon.

 

[Barryjm]

Hi Simon, I was going to start much smaller and conservatively, money wise, by just changing the Air Spring for £40 to see what changes, however, thanks for the offer and good luck on eBay.

 

[junglie69]

Hi Barry fair enough however your total spend could be as little as £100 if you sell your forks on. Whichever way you choose it’s worth upgrading, the revelation chassis is decent starting point.

 

[steve_sordy]

My last two bikes had Pikes and I was very happy with them (still am with the Whyte T130 that I have). My Focus Jam2 came with Revelation forks and I was fully prepared to add the charger 2 damper to convert them to Pikes, but after six weeks of riding I see no reason to make the change just yet. Will wait until I've done some rougher trails and some more miles before I decide. But right now I'm very happy with the Revs.

Edit 1: added weeks later: I should add that the fork is the Debonair version, which is smoother I'm told. I have nothing to compare it with.

Edit 2: Added even later. I finally removed the single token from the fork and it made a significant difference, I was a bit concerned that despite feeling smooth, the fork was reluctant to use more of its travel. Removing the single token was all good news.

Edit 3: Added later still. I depressurised the fork and set it up again, this time following closely the recco on the Rockshox website. This was: (I have vastly abbreviated the Rockshox instructions).

1. Set compression dial to fully open.
2. Pressurise to 1psi per kg of rider weight (inc all kit, full bladder etc).
3. Compress five times to at least 50% to equalise pressure.
4. Repeat step 2.
5. Repeat step 3.
6. Don riding gear, step on bike and compress the fork 3x.
7. Set %sag, return the compression dial to required setting.
8. Go ride and adjust %sag as required.

I ended up with the same psi to get the %sag I was looking for. But this time I got about 5-8% more travel used on the fork. This was a good result for me.

 

[Vilt]

Just for the sake of the argument, which part exactly would I need to upgrade the Revelation Charger RC on the Turbo Levo 2019 to a pike?

There seem to be 5 different versions:

RockShox Charger 2 RCT3 Upgrade Kit f.Pike/Pike Boost/Revelation ab Modell 2014

 

[steve_sordy]

Just for the sake of the argument, which part exactly would I need to upgrade the Revelation Charger RC on the Turbo Levo 2019 to a pike?

There seem to be 5 different versions:

RockShox Charger 2 RCT3 Upgrade Kit f.Pike/Pike Boost/Revelation ab Modell 2014

Page down on the link and it tells you exactly what each type is for.

 

[Vilt]

I found the exact part numbers, here is the list of possible upgrade kits:

RockShox Setup Guide | SRAM

 

[Xeretic]

My last two bikes had Pikes and I was very happy with them (still am with the Whyte T130 that I have). My Focus Jam2 came with Revelation forks and I was fully prepared to add the charger 2 damper to convert them to Pikes, but after six weeks of riding I see no reason to make the change just yet. Will wait until I've done some rougher trails and some more miles before I decide. But right now I'm very happy with the Revs.

Did a few rides on my 2018 Levo and I can say that I'm not happy with the Rev fork - even in full open position I get so much chatter and vibration on the washboard-icy roads. I was riding in full open damper, no tokens, 20% sag, 10 clicks of rebound. The temp was -11 Celsius. I guess I need to seriously consider upgrading to FOX Factory. Or would damper upgrade do the trick and have a massive effect on swallowing all that vibration/chatter?

 

[R120]

RockShox Lyrik RC2 is the king when it comes to killing chatter IMO. I have both Fox Factory 36's and Lyrik on my bikes, and the Lyrik is noticeably better if you are looking for the smoothest ride.

 

[Xeretic]

RockShox Lyrik RC2 is the king when it comes to killing chatter IMO. I have both Fox Factory 36's and Lyrik on my bikes, and the Lyrik is noticeably better if you are looking for the smoothest ride.

So all i need is to upgrade to Charger 2 damper to transform my Rev to Lyric?
Can you advice which one should i choose:
RockShox Pike/Revelation Charger 2 Upgrade Kit | Fork Accessories Shop
RockShox Pike/Revelation Charger2 RCT3 Upgrade Kit | Fork Accessories Shop

Do i also need to upgrade the air spring to this?
RockShox Pike/Revelation Debon Air Upgrade Kit | Fork Accessories Shop

 

[R120]

You cant change the Rev to a Lyric, I just meant if looking at a new fork.

Personally if you want to upgrade the fork, I would speak to the likes of TF Tuned or similar depending on where you are based, and get them to do it and set the fork up for you.

 

[Xeretic]

You cant change the Rev to a Lyric, I just meant if looking at a new fork.

Sad to hear this ( I was hoping that changing the damper would do the trick... I have an option to buy brand new FOX Factory 36 FIT4, wonder if I should buy it or still look for a Lyrik...
What about upgrading the shock? Does upgrading the can make a lot of difference? I found two options but don't know if any of them would fit the stock levo Monarch
RockShox Debon Air Upgrade-Kit Monarch 216 x 63mm | Rear Shocks Accessories - RockShox Shop
RockShox Debon Air Upgrade-Kit Monarch 184 x 44mm | Rear Shocks Accessories - RockShox Shop

 

[R120]

The Fox Factory is a great fork, I just think people forget how good the Lyric is too. Ultimately both are awesome and whichever one you can get a deal on would steer my decision.

 

[steve_sordy]

Did a few rides on my 2018 Levo and I can say that I'm not happy with the Rev fork - even in full open position I get so much chatter and vibration on the washboard-icy roads. I was riding in full open damper, no tokens, 20% sag, 10 clicks of rebound. The temp was -11 Celsius. I guess I need to seriously consider upgrading to FOX Factory. Or would damper upgrade do the trick and have a massive effect on swallowing all that vibration/chatter?

Wow! minus 11degC. That is seriously cold, way too cold for me to want to ride. But I guess you are used to it. It occurred to me that temperatures that low must have an affect on the oil viscosity, ie making it thicker and consequently the ride harsher. I suspect that operation of the fork will warm up the oil a bit through friction, but that happens anyway, no matter what the ambient temperature. Have you experimented with different suspension settings? What do suspension tuning experts say about the impact of those temperatures on your fork and shock? Can you get low temperature oils for the suspension? My apologies if I'm asking newbie questions, but I have never ridden in those temperatures.

Edit: I have changed my original post to add that the Revelation I was reporting upon is the Debonair version. Others have reported that the Debonair version is much smoother. I certainly have no complaints.

 

[khorn]

Did a few rides on my 2018 Levo and I can say that I'm not happy with the Rev fork - even in full open position I get so much chatter and vibration on the washboard-icy roads. I was riding in full open damper, no tokens, 20% sag, 10 clicks of rebound. The temp was -11 Celsius. I guess I need to seriously consider upgrading to FOX Factory. Or would damper upgrade do the trick and have a massive effect on swallowing all that vibration/chatter?

First of all if you set the fork to 20% sag that is a rather firm setting as the recommend sag is between 25% and 30%. that will also have a severe impact on the small bump sensitivity as well as chatter. Running without tokens have absolutely no influence on the first part of the travel and will only give you a more linear feel in the last part of the travel - Bottoms out more easily.

When that is said the Revelation without the DEBON air upgrade, is known for being a bit harsh in the initial part of the travel but as the 2018 Revelation shares the same chassis as the PIKE you can easily upgrade to that. By upgrading the hydraulic unit together with a new DEBON air spring you will get a complete different fork. At the same time you could upgrade to a 160 mm travel and thus gain a bit travel or run even more sag to cope with small bumps.

I have done this upgrade to my Revelation and the difference is night and day, So much more sensitive in the first part of the travel and a joy to ride.

Karsten

 

[steve_sordy]

My Rev is the Debonair version, which is probably why I am happy with it.

 

[Vilt]

I actually bought the debon upgrade, disassembled the fork just to find the exact same part already installed. ?

The 2019 Levos come with the debonair version.

After running it through shockwiz, I'm very happy with it.

 

[Xeretic]

Have you experimented with different suspension settings? What do suspension tuning experts say about the impact of those temperatures on your fork and shock? Can you get low temperature oils for the suspension?

-11 degC is actually not that cold. Been riding in -25 to -30 on my fatbike )
I don't have suspension tuning experts in my town, but I guess a different winter oil would do the trick, gotta try this next winter. My fatbike fork also gets crazy firm in lower temps although it's marketed to have winter-ready oil in the damper.

First of all if you set the fork to 20% sag that is a rather firm setting as the recommend sag is between 25% and 30%.

I tried riding with 30% sag today and it had a good impact on how small chatter was handled, my hands don't hurt from vibration now, thx for the advice.
I'm currently torn between doing the Debonair+Damper upgrade or buying a new Lyrik. Wonder which would be wiser in terms of bang for the buck )

 

[khorn]

-11 degC is actually not that cold. Been riding in -25 to -30 on my fatbike )
I don't have suspension tuning experts in my town, but I guess a different winter oil would do the trick, gotta try this next winter. My fatbike fork also gets crazy firm in lower temps although it's marketed to have winter-ready oil in the damper.


I tried riding with 30% sag today and it had a good impact on how small chatter was handled, my hands don't hurt from vibration now, thx for the advice.
I'm currently torn between doing the Debonair+Damper upgrade or buying a new Lyrik. Wonder which would be wiser in terms of bang for the buck )

Many experts consider the 2018/19 Pike the absolute best all-round Rockshox fork unless you need more than 160 mm travel. Upgrading to Pike only cost a fraction compared to a Lyrik and honestly it is not that much better but a bit heavier.

 

[steve_sordy]

..............

I'm currently torn between doing the Debonair+Damper upgrade or buying a new Lyrik. Wonder which would be wiser in terms of bang for the buck )

I'm sure I read that Rockshox have designed the Revelation to be upgraded to a Pike by adding the Charger 2 damper, and the Yari to be upgraded to the Lyrik by a very similar means. That implies to me that upgrading from a Revelation to a Lyrik may not be as simple. I'm not saying its impossible.

 

[outerlimits]

Used to have to add air to both positive and negative air chambers seperatly (like the old Reba’s). Then came along solo air. Only have to put air in the positive chamber (solo air)
The pos and neg air chambers equalise via a small port near full extension.
Debonair is just a larger negative air chamber, that’s all. And you still have all the other basic operations of the solo air fork.