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Enduro seals vs 2012 SKF seals for 2011 fox

Wa-Aw

Wa-Aw

Monkey
Jul 30, 2010
354
0
Philippines
Since this forum has the most gear whores, I was wondering if anyone on a 2012 fox fork has had experience with enduro seals.

I have a 2011 36 180 float and the seals just seam really dry and sticky, they squeak when I compress the fork and I've heard this has just been a general weakness of pre-2012 fox forks, especially air. I have a friend who has enduro seals readily available and I could probably order 2012 SKF seals from the distributor with a little bit of hussling.

So the question is, one or the other? Or are either of them pretty damn good and I should just take what I get easier (enduro)?
 
C

climbingbubba

Monkey
May 24, 2007
354
0
If you thought that the stock seals were dry and sticky then stay away from enduro seals. I put them on an 09 fox talas and hated them. Sure they last longer and keep stuff out better but at the cost of small bump sensitivity. I rode mine for 10 or so rides and they never seemed to break in.

From what I have heard the new fox seals are supposed to be amazing. I may have to pick some up for my wife's 180 talas when her seals finally die.
 
T

tuumbaq

Monkey
Jul 5, 2006
725
0
Squamish BC
boy, there's actually quite a bit of misinformation in your post my friend.If your fork squeak and you find it sticky, chances are, it needs a rebuild more than anything...Seals have very little to do with that.

Pre 2012 where "stickier" because of the tighter seals.The general weakness you are refereeing to was the friction and the durability of them seals...If its squeaks and feels dry, you need to rebuild and of course, grease the seals. I guess they could squeak if you never serviced the fork but to say it was an issue with the old seals is a long shot I'd say ...Poor maintenance and service intervals would be more appropriate.

Im no suspension expert but from my understanding the "weakness" of air forks arent the dust seals BTW. With air forks you have more "seals" ( to keep the air trap ) than a coil but the dust seals are ALL the same across the board no matter how the fork is sprung.Air by nature gets harder and harder when you compress it therefore, air fork tends to ramps up more than coil forks...Combine extra seals ( more friction ) and steeper ramp up and you get a fork that isnt as smooth as its coil counterpart.

Now to answer your question , enduro seals have always and will always = CRAP

The new SKF = GOLD . . . they arent so new BTW , I've been able to buy them in shops for months already so I dont you'll have a hard time getting them now )

The difference between the old "stock" FOX seals and the new SKF is NIGHT AND DAY. You will literally need to run more pressure in your fork to get the same sag.They truly have ZERO friction thus giving MOAR grip ( better small bumps )

Learn how to service your fork, its SOOOOO easy and will make a difference on your riding...:thumb:
 
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D

drastic.

Monkey
May 16, 2011
145
0
pleasanton, ca
climbingbubba said:
If you thought that the stock seals were dry and sticky then stay away from enduro seals. I put them on an 09 fox talas and hated them. Sure they last longer and keep stuff out better but at the cost of small bump sensitivity. I rode mine for 10 or so rides and they never seemed to break in.

From what I have heard the new fox seals are supposed to be amazing. I may have to pick some up for my wife's 180 talas when her seals finally die.
Click to expand...
i guess it's because i dont have the oil seals in, but the enduro wiper seals are sweet. no stichion at all. smooth as butter.

i've read nothing but A+ things about the new skf seals for fox tho.
 
Wa-Aw

Wa-Aw

Monkey
Jul 30, 2010
354
0
Philippines
Do fox forks also have a habit of coming a bit dry brand new? I thought this squeaking thing was just 2011 thing, tighter seals or kashima stuff. A majority of new or relatively unused 2011 fox forks of friends of mine squeak on sudden compressions during parking lot tests. I picked up one of these said barely used 2nd hand and wasn't surprised when it felt "dry".
I thought fox was better in the factory-greased-and-oiled department. Is this a common thing and has getting it opened up and oiled buttered the fork up?

Could it also be it's just not broken in yet?

Coming from rock shox, I know tight seals aren't necessarily a bad thing! Are the 2012's just looser or over all better?
 
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mtg

mtg

Green with Envy
Sep 21, 2009
1,862
1,604
Denver, CO
tuumbaq said:
If your fork squeak and you find it sticky, chances are, it needs a rebuild more than anything...Seals have very little to do with that.
Click to expand...
My experience agrees with this. It sounds like the OP needs to rebuild the fork with the correct oil level.

Wa-Aw: About half of the new Fox forks that I have dealt with came from the factory with low oil levels.
 
S

staike

Monkey
May 19, 2011
247
0
Norway
A friends 2011 Fox 40 came with 10 ml of oil in the right leg and empty in the left leg. It was supposed to be 50 ml in both the left and the right leg!
 
atrokz

atrokz

Turbo Monkey
Mar 14, 2002
1,552
77
teedotohdot
SKF vs Enduro? That's like Mastercraft vs Lista for toolboxes.

Enduro is essentially a catalogue company (using outside vendors) that markets itself to the mtb market. Their bearings are mostly Chinese made, sub-par, lowest bidder stuff that can't hold a candle to a bearing manufacturer like SKF. I tried running an Enduro bearing in a simple NC vibro-pean machine at my last job and it lasted all of one month before developing severe pitting and run-out issues. The SKF replacement was more than double the cost, but ran for over a year before needing any attention.

I'd think that a company like SKF is going to produce a better seal than what Enduro can offer.
 
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jeremy_2640

jeremy_2640

Monkey
Oct 4, 2007
114
42
Melbourne
tuumbaq said:
boy, there's actually quite a bit of misinformation in your post my friend.If your fork squeak and you find it sticky, chances are, it needs a rebuild more than anything...Seals have very little to do with that.

Pre 2012 where "stickier" because of the tighter seals.The general weakness you are refereeing to was the friction and the durability of them seals...If its squeaks and feels dry, you need to rebuild and of course, grease the seals. I guess they could squeak if you never serviced the fork but to say it was an issue with the old seals is a long shot I'd say ...Poor maintenance and service intervals would be more appropriate.

Im no suspension expert but from my understanding the "weakness" of air forks arent the dust seals BTW. With air forks you have more "seals" ( to keep the air trap ) than a coil but the dust seals are ALL the same across the board no matter how the fork is sprung.Air by nature gets harder and harder when you compress it therefore, air fork tends to ramps up more than coil forks...Combine extra seals ( more friction ) and steeper ramp up and you get a fork that isnt as smooth as its coil counterpart.

Now to answer your question , enduro seals have always and will always = CRAP

The new SKF = GOLD . . . they arent so new BTW , I've been able to buy them in shops for months already so I dont you'll have a hard time getting them now )

The difference between the old "stock" FOX seals and the new SKF is NIGHT AND DAY. You will literally need to run more pressure in your fork to get the same sag.They truly have ZERO friction thus giving MOAR grip ( better small bumps )

Learn how to service your fork, its SOOOOO easy and will make a difference on your riding...:thumb:
Click to expand...

Do you have an SKF part number for the 40 seals, or are they and exclusive thing with Fox?
 
B

Bajaguy

Chimp
Nov 10, 2011
7
0
Foothill Ranch
Switched to enduro seals from stock fox seals on a 2010 160 and the ride was much better. Less stiction and better small bump sensitivity.

Got rid of that fork and now have 2012 fox 40 and 180 rc2 with the SKF seals and they are great. The forks have little stiction and are very smooth.
 
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davec113

davec113

Monkey
May 24, 2009
419
0
Switched to SKF seals on my '09 Fox 40 and they do have less stiction, making for better small bump compliance. I'd go with SKF, they are an industry leader for these kind of parts.
 
Wa-Aw

Wa-Aw

Monkey
Jul 30, 2010
354
0
Philippines
Asked our importer of fox shox here about them so i could get it serviced and have the seals installed at the same time... they say 2011 and 2012 seals are the same. :confused:
 
RedOne

RedOne

Monkey
May 27, 2007
172
0
Nuremberg, Germany
The new SKF seals are coming from the motobike world. Saw an onlineshop offering them for almost every fork from 35mm to 50mm Marzocchis, KYB, Showa, WP...
They claim to use some sort of 'self-lubricating' material for these to reduce stick-slip and drag.
 
R

roel_koel

Monkey
Mar 26, 2003
278
1
London,England
would not use Enduro seals on a Fox fork, or the Enduro bearings either on a suspension frame (the Enduro products are nothing special, just rebadged catalogue items as someone else mentioned...)


recently switched from stock Fox seals to SKF seals on my 2010 36 Float RC2

this fork has always had regular servicing of both the lowers (every 6-8 weeks) and damper (every 6 months), good fork but always felt a little sticky in the initial travel (like a platform, which needed a slight knock to get it moving)

installed the SKF seals and followed the same lowers servicing routine as before, night and day difference to the previous Fox seals

the fork now feels more supple and much more sensitive to small bumps (trail chatter), had to actually adjust the air pressure (sag) and low speed adjustment to compensate :)


from fellow riders on 2011 Kashima (with fox seals) and 2012 Kashima (with skf seals), and riders who have installed SKF on their 2011 Kashima forks, these guys tell me the SKF seals make more noticeable difference than the Kashima coat itself
 
ridiculous

ridiculous

Turbo Monkey
Jan 18, 2005
2,907
1
MD / NoVA
RedOne said:
The new SKF seals are coming from the motobike world. Saw an onlineshop offering them for almost every fork from 35mm to 50mm Marzocchis, KYB, Showa, WP...
They claim to use some sort of 'self-lubricating' material for these to reduce stick-slip and drag.
Click to expand...
Im interested. have a link?
 
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