How to Install Your VSS
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How to Install Your VSS
Ten minutes and one socket. If you've ever added a volume spacer, you've already done this.
You're opening the top of one fork leg, swapping what's inside for the VSS, and closing it back up. That's the whole job. The nozzle you selected in the configurator is already installed on the VSS when it arrives, so there's nothing to assemble.
What you need
- FOX / Marzocchi — a 32 mm chamferless socket. Around $20 on Amazon, cheaper on AliExpress and they work great. We also sell a 32 mm chamferless wrench that works well as long as the cap isn't torqued down like crazy. The newer fox forks use a cassette tool like rockshox.
- RockShox — a cassette lockring tool with the splined head, like this one.
- Both — a shock pump.
The install, step by step
- Let all the air out of the air spring side.
- Pull up on the lowers to release the pressure trapped in the negative chamber. The fork gets sucked down as you let the air out, so you need to pull it back open.
- Unscrew the top air cap assembly once every bit of pressure is out.
- Pull the old spacers out. On FOX they're clipped in, on RockShox they're threaded in.
- Put the VSS in their place. FOX clips in and you're done. RockShox threads in — take your time and start the threads straight, they're made tighter than OEM RockShox tokens on purpose. Do not tighten the threaded VSS too hard, jsut a bit snug.
- Reinstall the top cap assembly. Around 25-30Nm, not crazy hard please...
- Pump the fork back up to the pressure you were running before, equalizing the chambers every 25 PSI.
This is the only step that isn't completely obvious, so don't skip it. Add roughly 25 PSI, then compress and extend the fork a few times before adding more. You'll feel or hear the air transfer over to the negative side. Repeat until you're at your normal pressure.
How to know it worked: pull up on the lowers when you're done. There should be a bit of float, and the fork should sit slightly sucked in at top-out. That's perfect. If it feels preloaded, the chambers didn't equalize — let the air out and go through it again.
⚠ What not to do
Don't grease the threads.
RockShox tells you to grease the threads on their tokens. Don't do it on the VSS.
Don't crank the RockShox VSS down.
The threads are intentionally tighter than OEM so it can't back itself out on the trail. Hand tight is all it needs.
Don't force it in.
The VSS should go into the air spring shaft easily. If it doesn't want to go, stop — you've most likely got the wrong model for your fork, and forcing it will just cost you a part.
Don't skip straight to full pressure.
Pumping it up in one shot without cycling the fork leaves the negative chamber under-filled, and the fork will feel harsh and topped out. Take the extra thirty seconds.
What pressure should I run now?
Start with exactly what you were running before. The VSS doesn't change how much air your fork needs — it changes how the fork behaves once it starts moving.
After a few rides you may find you can drop a few PSI. The fork gets noticeably more support through the mid-stroke, so you'll often use a bit less travel than before while it feels smoother doing it. Plenty of riders end up running slightly softer for the extra comfort and keep all the support anyway. Ride it as-is first, then decide.
Something doesn't feel right?
If the VSS won't slide in, if the token colour in your fork doesn't match what the configurator told you, or if the fork feels wrong after the install — message me before riding it.
Email info@shockwaveparts.com or reach out on Instagram at @shockwavebike.
That's it — go ride. There's nothing to adjust on the VSS itself and nothing to maintain. If you want to fine-tune the fork around it, the tuning guide covers what to do with your knobs.