How to do a Rockshox Lyrik lower leg service in 15 easy steps

In this article I’m going to give you a step-by-step process on how to properly perform a Rockshox Lyrik lower leg service.

Tools And Products You Need To Do The Rockshox Lyrik Lower Leg Service

There are quite a number of tools you’re going to need, some of which are very specific to this operation. In the table below you can find the steps involved, included the tools, products, and specifications necessary to perform them.

Step 1. Clean The Fork

Use Bike Cleaner

Before we open up the fork it’s incredibly important to clean it. The dirt could easily get into the fork during the service. Especially the steerer tube can hold a lot of dirt and sand. Spray the fork copiously with bike cleaner. By using a pressurized spray bottle, it’s easy to get the stuff into every nook and cranny.

Rinse Fork

After you’ve used the bike cleaner and let it sit for a minute or two, rinse it off. Any method will do but a mobile outdoor cleaner will proof to be particularly helpful and efficient.

Dry Fork

Make sure to dry the fork properly before moving onto the next step.

Step 2. Remove Rebound Adjuster And Foot Bolt

Use Bench Mount Work Stand

It’s recommended that for the next steps you use a bench mount work stand to be able to hold the fork while doing the Rockshox Lyrik lower leg service.

Remove Rebound Adjuster Knob

Remove the rebound adjuster knob using a 2 mm hex key. It’s located at the bottom of the damper located in the right leg.

Remove Rebound Adjuster Foot Bolt

After you’ve removed this you can take out the rebound adjuster foot bolt with a 5 millimeter hex key.

Remove Air Spring Foot Bolt

The air spring, located at the bottom of the left leg, is tightened with a foot bolt. Using the 5 millimeter hex key, remove this bolt.

Step 3. Remove Damper And Air Spring

Loosen Lower Legs With Removal Tool

There can be quite some stiction between the bottom of the damper and air spring and the lower legs. So you’ll need to knock these out with a hammer.

We use specific damper side and spring side removal tools to prevent the threads from damaging. With the removal tool in place give it a solid tap with a mallet. This should be enough to break it loose.

Step 4. Remove The Lower Legs

Remove Lower Legs

With the lower legs loosened you can rotate the fork to a standing position and remove the damper and air spring. Be sure to have your oil drain pan ready, because oil will be coming out of the fork legs.

Install Thru-Axle

Because only the fork brace keeps the loose lower leg in place, it’s a good practice to strengthen it using a thru axle.

Step 5. Remove Seals And Foam Rings

Remove Seals And Foam Rings

We’re going to replace the foam rings, seals, and sag ring. To do so we need to remove the old ones first.

Using a fork seal removal tool, we can pop the seals and foam rings out.

Clean lower legs

Clean the parts where the seals and foam rings used to sit using a shop towel.

Step 6. Remove The Air Spring Shaft

Remove Air Cap Valve cover

For now we’re going to leave the fork legs for a while and focus on the damper and air spring. Remove the air cap valve cover to get to the valve underneath.

Remove Valve

Use a valve remover tool to remove the valve.

Remove Top Cap

Remove the top cap using a 24 mm top cap socket. Don’t use a standard socket. A standard socket doesn’t engage the top cap enough and may twist loose when pressure is applied, damaging it in the process.

Remove Internal Retaining Ring

Rotate the fork so the stanchions point upwards. The air spring is kept into place with an internal retaining ring. Using retaining ring pliers you can remove this ring.

Remove Air Spring

Using the lower leg removal tool for some extra leverage, we can now simply pull the air spring out.

Remove Loose Tokens

Normally the air spring top cap is attached to one or more tokens. In this case the tokens had loosened and simply fell out the bottom of the stanchion.

Reattach Tokens

Since the tokens had gotten loose from the air spring top cap, we need to attach them again. Use the 24 mm top cap socket and an 8 mm hex tool to do so, and give it a gentle snug of about 2 Nm.

Step 7. Clean Parts

Clean Air Spring

Wipe the old suspension oil from the air spring using a shop towel.

Clean Stanchions

Using a shop towel on a long plastic plastic tube, you can easily clean the stanchions without damaging them. The towel is fixed to the tube so you can move it back and forth without it becoming detached.

Step 8. Reassembling And Installing The Air Shaft

Grease Air Shaft

Use suspension grease on the air spring shaft seal head and part which connects to the inner wall of the stanchion.

Reinstall Air Shaft

Then insert the air spring shaft into the stanchion. The air spring shaft is also kept into place using an internal retaining ring.

Step 9. Reinstalling The Air Cap

Install Sag O-Ring

Place the sag o-ring onto one of the stanchions and rotate the fork into an upright position.

Reinstall Air Cap

Reinstall the air cap using the 24 mm top cap socket.

Reinstall Valve

Insert the valve again.

Step 10. Replacing Foam Rings And Seals

Pre-Soak Foam Rings

Pre-soak the foam rings, which we’re going to install later. Use a plastic container with lower leg oil.

Install Foam Rings

With the legs cleaned place the new foam rings into the lower legs using a pick to get them out of the plastic container.

Install Fork Seals

Since the foam rings were lubricated when moved into place we don’t need any extra lubrication for the seals, since the foam rings have left enough on the insides of the lower leg. Using a seal driver tool we can then proceed to hammer the seals into place.

Step 11. Reinstalling Lower Legs

Grease seal channels

Before reinstalling the damper and air spring put some silicone grease on the seal channel to aid in this process. We use Renolit SL 410 M silicone grease for this purpose.

Reinstall Lower Legs

It’s now time to very carefully insert the damper and air spring into the lower legs. Be careful not to damage the smooth walls of the lower legs during this process. And also make sure that the damper and air spring go in correctly, with the air spring sitting on the left and the damper on the right. The damper is the side with the rebound adjuster. It might take some moving back and forth before the air spring and damper actually go into the lower legs.

Step 12. Inserting Oil Into Lower Legs

Rotate Fork

Next up is the oil insertion into the lower legs. To be able to do this its best to rotate the fork so the legs are pointing upwards for gravity to do its job when you put in the oil.

Move Damper And Air Spring Out

Be sure to move both damper and air spring out a little again so they don’t stick out of the lower legs, and the oil actually has some room to go into.

Fill Air Spring Side With Lower Leg Oil

Put 10 ml Öhlins Renep CGLP 68 lower leg oil into the lower leg housing the air spring using a syringe.

Fill Damper Side With Lower Leg Oil

Proceed to put 10 ml Öhlins Renep CGLP 68 lower leg oil into the lower leg housing the damper as well.

Step 13. Reinstalling Bottom Nut And Rebound Adjuster

Install Crush Washers

If you haven’t already, remove the old crush washers and replace them with new ones. The last thing you want is for your fork to start leaking because you skipped this step.

Reinstall Air Spring Foot Bolt

Reinstall the air spring foot bolt and use a torque wrench set at 7.4 Nm to tighten it.

Reinstall Rebound Adjuster Foot Bolt

Reinstall the rebound adjuster foot bolt. Use a torque wrench set at 7.4 Nm to tighten it as well.

Reinstall Rebound Adjuster Knob

Reinstall the rebound adjuster knob using a 2 mm hex key.

Step 14. Inflate Air Spring

Reinflate Air Spring

Inflate the air spring up to 100 Psi. This is the starting air pressure, which can be modified based on personal preferences and riding style.

Reinstall Air Cap Valve Cover

Install the air cap valve cover afterwards.

Step 15. Clean Fork

A final cleanup with a bit of Bike Protect and your Rockshox Lyrik lower leg service is done.

Johan van Seijen

FoundeR Restoration.bike

Johan van Seijen is the founder of restoration.bike. His passion for cycling in general, and restoring older bikes turned into a website to share his knowledge with a broader audience. Starting out on his father’s road bike and riding classics as the Amstel Gold Race and Liege Bastogne Liege he has shifted his attention to trail, XC, and gravel riding since. No matter how much he loves writing about everything related to cycling, nothing beats actually using his ever-expanding bicycle collection.

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