Zeb ultimate 2023 170mm harsh ride

[Pazman]

I just upgraded my forks at the weekend to 2023 Zeb Ultimate 170mm
I used the trailhead app to get my recommened psi (120kg -99psi)
Worh refund on -6 as recommended also by the app and hs and ls compression open , the ride was harsh, really hard and unfor giving .
After reading on some us forums I'm not alone in this experience with the new zeb.
Guys are here have found dropping the lowers they are finding no oil, or grease or excessive amounts of grease on the air spring .
So I just dropped mine , lots of oil and a shit load of grease, like a bucket load on the air spring and all over the shaft .
I've clean it all out and lightly regressed it. The dust seal had no grease at all and were bone dry so o grease them.
I'm just waiting on TF tuned to send me oil for the lowers as no one has stock of the mixima plush 7wt recommended by sram.

I hope I feels more plush tomorrow when it add the oil .

Hls any one here got the 2023 zeb and find them harsh?

( I have since realised I had the HSBC and LSC full on , the runs great now with 94psi)

 

[RustyIron]

Hls any one here got the 2023 zeb and find them harsh?

Nope. Mine is great.

 

[Pazman]

Nope. Mine is great.

What weight and setting are you using pal

 

[mustclime]

Zebs are VERY presser sensitive IMO. A couple psi can make a big difference. Feel harsh? Knock off a couple psi. Also, suspension need a brake in time to get things seated up. Also try letting your bike sit upside down for an hour or two, this helps the oil move around in the fork.

 

[Pazman]

Zebs are VERY presser sensitive IMO. A couple psi can make a big difference. Feel harsh? Knock off a couple psi. Also, suspension need a brake in time to get things seated up. Also try letting your bike sit upside down for an hour or two, this helps the oil move around in the fork.

They were well oiled pal , all the way upto the foam rings which also dripping with oil .
I think a.d hope the issue was the air spring clogged up with grease cause lots of neg air , that what tf tuned told me today anyways .
Fingers crossed for tomorrow's ride

 

[Plummet]

Are you super heavy? 100psi is crazy pumped up. I'm running 57psi at 80kg soaking wet on my 190mm zeb.

Also look at tokens/volume spacers. That will get the fork ramping up nicely so you can let some pressure out and get more butter on small bump compliance.

 

[irie]

I just upgraded my forks at the weekend to 2023 Zeb Ultimate 170mm
I used the trailhead app to get my recommened psi (120kg -99psi)

I'm 77kg and have 65psi in my 160mm Zeb Ultimate A2 (2023) with all tokens/spacers removed.

Put air in until you get about 20% sag then adjust from there ...

Ignore Trailhead.

 

[Pazman]

Are you super heavy? 100psi is crazy pumped up. I'm running 57psi at 80kg soaking wet on my 190mm zeb.

Also look at tokens/volume spacers. That will get the fork ramping up nicely so you can let some pressure out and get more butter on small bump compliance.

19 stone ,100 psi is what trailhead app recommends
rockshox recommend no volume spacers ,they say the new air spring doesn’t need them .
i tried it with 2 , 1 and now none

 

[Pazman]

I'm 77kg and have 65psi in my 160mm Zeb Ultimate A2 (2023) with all tokens/spacers removed.

Put air in until you get about 20% sag then adjust from there ...

Ignore Trailhead.

20% is super hard on mine and i only get 70% of travel at max , no volume spacers installed

 

[Mcharza]

Mine works fine, 75 kg and 57 psi. Zeb Ultimate 170 2023 model.
Rebound quite fast, high speed compression open in bike park, one click closed on flow trails.
LSC in the middle.
I noticed that in the beginning I have to balance the negative and positive pressures several times.
You should not reduce the pressure too much, otherwise the action will be directly at mid stroke. And you lose small pump sensitivity again.

 

[irie]

Mine works fine, 75 kg and 57 psi. Zeb Ultimate 170 2023 model.

I also have a 170 air shaft which when I installed it my 2023 Ultimate forks required about 60psi. Staying with 160mm for now, the 170 is for a future upgrade with 160mm rear (2022 Trek Rail alloy) Ohlins TTXm.2 currently 57.5mm/150mm.

 

[Plummet]

19 stone ,100 psi is what trailhead app recommends
rockshox recommend no volume spacers ,they say the new air spring doesn’t need them .
i tried it with 2 , 1 and now none

I think you need to go back to basics.

Pump pressure in, measure the sag.
Set sag at 25%
Find a datum sections of tracks. one for small bump compliance one for bottom out testing.

Ride at 25%sag is it compliant over small bumps? if not let more air out. If yes good.
Go to your bottom out test. This should be the biggest feature you are prepared to jump off. Jump off it.
did you bottom out? if no,the suspension is too hard. Let more out. If yes, did you feel the bottom out? if yes then suspension is too soft. Add a volume spacer and undergo the process again.

Keep testing until you find a plush small bump compliance and just bottom out on your biggest hit.
After you have tries all volume spacer and pressure combo's and its still hard and bottoming its time for aftermarket tuning.

PS, each time you adjust pressure you also have to adjust compression and rebound settings. Do the same testing process every time you adjust compression and rebound. Hit your small bump track and bottom out drop.

It generally takes a few weeks of testing like this to find the setting that works.

 

[Pazman]

I think you need to go back to basics.

Pump pressure in, measure the sag.
Set sag at 25%
Find a datum sections of tracks. one for small bump compliance one for bottom out testing.

Ride at 25%sag is it compliant over small bumps? if not let more air out. If yes good.
Go to your bottom out test. This should be the biggest feature you are prepared to jump off. Jump off it.
did you bottom out? if no,the suspension is too hard. Let more out. If yes, did you feel the bottom out? if yes then suspension is too soft. Add a volume spacer and undergo the process again.

Keep testing until you find a plush small bump compliance and just bottom out on your biggest hit.
After you have tries all volume spacer and pressure combo's and its still hard and bottoming its time for aftermarket tuning.

PS, each time you adjust pressure you also have to adjust compression and rebound settings. Do the same testing process every time you adjust compression and rebound. Hit your small bump track and bottom out drop.

It generally takes a few weeks of testing like this to find the setting that works.

From what just read on a us mtb thread , this fork should not be setup like a normal forks or even last year's zeb.
They say it' need to be setup with a slightly lower pressure and then use lsc to keep it riding high in its travel and not diving under braking , and hsc to stop it bottoming out .

 

[Plummet]

From what just read on a us mtb thread , this fork should not be setup like a normal forks or even last year's zeb.
They say it' need to be setup with a slightly lower pressure and then use lsc to keep it riding high in its travel and not diving under braking , and hsc to stop it bottoming out .

IMO hsc assists reduction in bottom out but you need the correct air spring rate for your weight for that biggest drop that you do. LSC reduces fork dive on things like jump faces but to not hold the fork high if the air spring pressure is too low.

First step. Set the air spring correctly. Micro adjust with lsc and hsc.
Personally I wind lsc and hsc way the hell out. I dont like it at all. Makes for a dull harsh fork. set it wind open and tweak it up until you get to a setting you dont like. I think im running wide open lsc and 2 clicks of hsc. But i am a lot lighter than you. You will need more dapending to counter act the additional pressure compared to what i run.

 

[Plummet]

PS I followed the above proceedure to set up my zeb ultimate recently. It worked.....
super plush and handles biggest hits. I

 

[JP-NZ]

Zeb are notorious for being better at lower pressures than recommended. I'm nearly 20 psi lower than the Trailhead recommended and its mint.

 

[Dax]

Mine is great, I just threw it on, set the sag approximately right, wound the hsc all the way open and lsc a couple of clicks off open, then threw it down some chunky tech blind. Fork isn’t as buttery off the top as a 38 or ohlins, but it’s mega supportive and very easy to tune, just gets it done downhill. Tuning the zeb took me about 2 mins, ohlins took about 8 hours to get right.

 

[megabobra]

Check you don’t have the lsc wound all the way up, the adjuster goes the wrong way, clockwise for less.

Mine is great, I just threw it on, set the sag approximately right, wound the hsc all the way open and lsc a couple of clicks off open, then threw it down some chunky tech blind. Fork isn’t as buttery off the top as a 38 or ohlins, but it’s mega supportive and very easy to tune, just gets it done downhill. Tuning the zeb took me about 2 mins, ohlins took about 8 hours to get right.

LSC clockwise for less? Don't think that's the case? Below snip is taken from here: Charger 3 Setup - SRAM

Anticlockwise gives less damping on both LSC and HSC:

 

[mustclime]

They were well oiled pal , all the way upto the foam rings which also dripping with oil .
I think a.d hope the issue was the air spring clogged up with grease cause lots of neg air , that what tf tuned told me today anyways .
Fingers crossed for tomorrow's ride

Hey pal, the issue is how long the fork sat on a shelf in its box. Oil will all settle on the front or rear of the fork depending on how the fork was stored because oil follows gravity. I like to flip my bike over and leave it sitting on its bars once a week to allow the oil to move around in the fork and the rear shock….I have seen less wear on the dust seals by doing this. BTW, I am 110kg and I run my 180mm Zeb at 64 psi for trail and 67 psi for park.

 

[ebikerider]

I just upgraded my forks at the weekend to 2023 Zeb Ultimate 170mm
I used the trailhead app to get my recommened psi (120kg -99psi)
Worh refund on -6 as recommended also by the app and hs and ls compression open , the ride was harsh, really hard and unfor giving .
After reading on some us forums I'm not alone in this experience with the new zeb.
Guys are here have found dropping the lowers they are finding no oil, or grease or excessive amounts of grease on the air spring .
So I just dropped mine , lots of oil and a shit load of grease, like a bucket load on the air spring and all over the shaft .
I've clean it all out and lightly regressed it. The dust seal had no grease at all and were bone dry so o grease them.
I'm just waiting on TF tuned to send me oil for the lowers as no one has stock of the mixima plush 7wt recommended by sram.

I hope I feels more plush tomorrow when it add the oil .

Hls any one here got the 2023 zeb and find them harsh?

Is the terrain that you ride rocky and chunky? The charger 3 damper can contribute to harshness if it is.

 

[Pazman]

Is the terrain that you ride rocky and chunky? The charger 3 damper can contribute to harshness if it is.

It’s a mix bag , but yes the chunky stuff is harsh

 

[RoJo]

Smashpot coil conversion... my Zeb now feels plusher than my Boxxer (which is also coil).

 

[Dax]

LSC clockwise for less? Don't think that's the case? Below snip is taken from here:

Thanks! I’ve edited my post to remove the incorrect information. Now to go ride my zeb and experiment with the LSC

 

[Pazman]

TF Tune fork oil arrived today , lightly re-greased air spring with SRAM butter , greased dust seals with SRAM butter as they were bone dry .
Re-installed the one volume spacer that came installed from new .
re-filled lowers with oil 30 ml damper side 15 ml air spring side .
re filled air spring to 30 psi then pumped the forks 5 time , filled to 60 pis pumped them again 5 time , then filled to trailhead app recommended psi 120kg = 99 psi .
forks feel hard and harsh still.
dropped to 80 psi they feel super plush with a sag of 35% , pumped up to 85 psi and feel plush still with a sag of 27% .
Went for quick spin down up and down the road , head on in to kerbs was nice and smooth , no big drop offs nears by but jumped it off the path on to the road as high and hard as i could i had 30mm of travel left .
im off to cannock chase bike park Friday it test them out and see if i can bottom it out , ill have a play with lsc , hsc rebound .
I don’t think there was much if anything up with the forks from new , greasing the dust seals has made a difference when checking sag as it was noticeably sticking .
feeling much happier with my purchase now , thanks for the input boys

oh and it has been confirmed rockshox do not laser etch the sanction on 2023 zebs anymore , step backwards imo but ha ho

 

[Pazman]

Hey pal, the issue is how long the fork sat on a shelf in its box. Oil will all settle on the front or rear of the fork depending on how the fork was stored because oil follows gravity. I like to flip my bike over and leave it sitting on its bars once a week to allow the oil to move around in the fork and the rear shock….I have seen less wear on the dust seals by doing this. BTW, I am 110kg and I run my 180mm Zeb at 64 psi for trail and 67 psi for park.

Do have any volume spacers in pal ?

 

[Mikerb]

not sure without re reading the entire thread but I just wonder if the OP set up sag with all LSC/HSC/LSR/HSR controls fully open/fast?
Regardless of RS or Fox I set up forks the same way ( and ignore Trailhead etc !!) . I ride rough rooty trails a lot with drop and jumps but nothing more than a bout 1 metre ramps and maybe up to 1.5 metre drops. So I want compliant plush suspension with enough ramp up to cope with my biggest jumps/drops. I weigh 73kg........probably 77kg fully kitted.
So step one.........all controls fully open/fast.......set sag to 25% whilst in the "ready" position on the bike. Test run the bike on a lumpy trail but no jumps or drops ............adjust PSI up or down and re test. Then set LSC and LSR to mid settings.........test again....try less..test....try more test......pick the best. Usually with HSR and HSC I set HSR a couple of steps from open and leave HSC fully open. I then adjust HSC up a couple of steps only when I know the trail has jumps or drops...or if it is an unknown trail. The only fork I have used that is not over damped for my weight and use is the EMTB tuned Fox Factory 38. My settings on that fork are very close to Fox recommendations for LSC/HSC etc but less air pressure than they recommend.

 

[Pazman]

not sure without re reading the entire thread but I just wonder if the OP set up sag with all LSC/HSC/LSR/HSR controls fully open/fast?
Regardless of RS or Fox I set up forks the same way ( and ignore Trailhead etc !!) . I ride rough rooty trails a lot with drop and jumps but nothing more than a bout 1 metre ramps and maybe up to 1.5 metre drops. So I want compliant plush suspension with enough ramp up to cope with my biggest jumps/drops. I weigh 73kg........probably 77kg fully kitted.
So step one.........all controls fully open/fast.......set sag to 25% whilst in the "ready" position on the bike. Test run the bike on a lumpy trail but no jumps or drops ............adjust PSI up or down and re test. Then set LSC and LSR to mid settings.........test again....try less..test....try more test......pick the best. Usually with HSR and HSC I set HSR a couple of steps from open and leave HSC fully open. I then adjust HSC up a couple of steps only when I know the trail has jumps or drops...or if it is an unknown trail. The only fork I have used that is not over damped for my weight and use is the EMTB tuned Fox Factory 38. My settings on that fork are very close to Fox recommendations for LSC/HSC etc but less air pressure than they recommend.

Thanks pal ,that's what I'm doing at the min.

 

[irie]

Zeb are notorious for being better at lower pressures than recommended. I'm nearly 20 psi lower than the Trailhead recommended and its mint.

Trailhead E-MTB says 80psi, I use 65psi which is just right for me.

Out of curiosity I did try 80psi but it was ridiculously hard.

 

[irie]

... dropped to 80 psi they feel super plush with a sag of 35% , pumped up to 85 psi and feel plush still with a sag of 27% ...

 

[Pazman]

Trailhead E-MTB says 80psi for me, I use 65psi which is just right.

Out of curiosity I did try 80psi but it was ridiculously hard.

Yeah the app is clearly tosh, clicking mtb or emtb makes no difference to the recommended psi which would set alarm bells ringing ha ,my ebike 28 kg