Which rear shock upgrade for a 2020 Levo

chris edwards

chris edwards

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Hi all, my current bike is a 2020 Levo expert fitted with Fox 160mm forks. I want to upgrade the rear shock to a Fox float DPX2 however there seems to be two trains of thought regarding stroke.
Standard = 210 x 52.5 / 150mm
Boosted = 210 x 55 / 157.5mm
Very keen to go with the 157.5mm version but worried it may alter the handling and jack up the rear end and BB height .
Can I have some informative advice from experienced riders please .

Curve ball :
Do i go spring or remain air shock ?
 
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210 x 55 fits just fine ;)
 
I am also curious about putting coil shock on. Rear also as I have basic Turbo Levo and front and rear shocks sounds like a washing machine. I live in Colorado so ride alot of rocky terrain. Thinking of putting a coil shock on rear and looking for suggestions or anyone selling a good used in the US. And then maybe coil on front or just upgrade to a Lyric Ultimate
 
ibisacura said:
I am also curious about putting coil shock on. Rear also as I have basic Turbo Levo and front and rear shocks sounds like a washing machine. I live in Colorado so ride alot of rocky terrain. Thinking of putting a coil shock on rear and looking for suggestions or anyone selling a good used in the US. And then maybe coil on front or just upgrade to a Lyric Ultimate
Click to expand...
Ibisacura I recently upgraded the suspension on my 2020 Levo comp. I decided to upgrade the existing Lyrik Select fork to the Lyrik Ultimate spec with HSC/LSC and 160mm travel. It was a bit less than 1/2 the cost of a new Ultimate fork (including shop setup)...just not as sexy. The guys at the local suspension shop recommended Ohlins or Cane Creek coils on the rear. I went with the Cane Creek DB Coil CS because it was more reasonably priced. All in all a reasonably priced upgrade that has made an enormous difference to the feel of my bike. BTW.... My riding style is fast single track/sketchy downhill stuff with some air. I’m too old to scare myself on big jumps which is why I didn’t throw huge sums on all dancing, big hitting suspension.
 
ibisacura said:
I am also curious about putting coil shock on. Rear also as I have basic Turbo Levo and front and rear shocks sounds like a washing machine. I live in Colorado so ride alot of rocky terrain. Thinking of putting a coil shock on rear and looking for suggestions or anyone selling a good used in the US. And then maybe coil on front or just upgrade to a Lyric Ultimate
Click to expand...
I have the base 2020 levo and put 160 lyric ultimates on with the ohlins rear, the difference is incredible.
3985175F-746D-4B05-A84B-C3C46A57DF4C.jpeg
 
chris edwards said:
... I want to upgrade the rear shock to a Fox float DPX2 however there seems to be two trains of thought regarding stroke.
Standard = 210 x 52.5 / 150mm
Boosted = 210 x 55 / 157.5mm
Very keen to go with the 157.5mm version but worried it may alter the handling and jack up the rear end and BB height .
Click to expand...
The shock eye-to-eye length determines BB height, so no change as both are 210mm.

The stroke determines travel, so the 55mm shock will allow the rear end to go ~7.5mm deeper into its travel. Check to make sure nothing hits (shock, linkage, tire, etc.).
 
That looks awesome. Looking for a rear coil shock and maybe upgrade the front in a few months
 
Sounds exactly like my kinda riding but I have the bargain basement Levo with RS 35 fork so can't do your front fork mod
 
levity said:
The shock eye-to-eye length determines BB height, so no change as both are 210mm.

The stroke determines travel, so the 55mm shock will allow the rear end to go ~7.5mm deeper into its travel. Check to make sure nothing hits (shock, linkage, tire, etc.).
Click to expand...

this

i run 160 up front and 55 in the back. All good.
 
210x52.5 vs 210x55 does not change the head angle of the bike because eye-to-eye lenght stays the same 210mm, it just give you about 6mm more wheel travel so you bottom out a bit later. Of course you should check with the geometry of the bike so the additional travel does not interfere into pivoting mechanism of the rear wheel. AFAIK for Turbo Levo 19/20 max rear shox stroke is 55mm without collision in pivoting mechanism, roughly similar as you can upgrade fork travel up to 160mm without losing bike warranty ...
 
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With right dimensions, yes.
 
210 x 55mm should be fine.
 
What are thoughts on a different shock with external reservoir and still being able to use the water bottle/cage? I did an enduro race this weekend at a park and couldn’t believe how hot the rear got on a 5 minute descent. I would like to keep it air and prefer rock shox or fox and would like to know if fitting one with external reservoir will still allow me to run a standard water bottle. Thank you
 
I've upgraded my Rockshox deluxe with a megneg can. You get a bigger negative chamber. As a consequence you've got to run the shock on 20% more pressure. It's a well worth upgrade. Small bump sensitity increases enormous and the bike rides higher in it's travel. The megneg can was only €80,-
 
I have a 2020 Levo Comp. Upgraded the Lyrik charger and travel to 160mm, and put a Rockshox coil = 210 x 52.5 / 150mm.. also mullet!!!! Perfect.
 
Venlo said:
I've upgraded my Rockshox deluxe with a megneg can. You get a bigger negative chamber. As a consequence you've got to run the shock on 20% more pressure. It's a well worth upgrade. Small bump sensitity increases enormous and the bike rides higher in it's travel. The megneg can was only €80,-
Click to expand...
+1 .. noticeable difference
 
Following.

2020 Levo Base, just upgraded the fork to Fox 38 Performance(160mm)and want to upgrade the shock next.
It’s got the Rockshox Deluxe Select and was considering adding the Meg Neg upgrade but am not even sure it will work on the Deluxe Select shock. In addition my shock surely needs full service(3000 miles)...

Might end up just buying a new Fox shock so I’m following the thread.
Sorry for the thread hijack.
Thanks for any help.
 
Bertquist said:
Following.

2020 Levo Base, just upgraded the fork to Fox 38 Performance(160mm)and want to upgrade the shock next.
It’s got the Rockshox Deluxe Select and was considering adding the Meg Neg upgrade but am not even sure it will work on the Deluxe Select shock. In addition my shock surely needs full service(3000 miles)...

Might end up just buying a new Fox shock so I’m following the thread.
Sorry for the thread hijack.
Thanks for any help.
Click to expand...

MegNeg will work with Deluxe, it’s even statedas compatible. I’ve seen MegNeg mods in other treads.
 
Personally I would not run a coil on the Levo. The shock is a structural member so you lose a lot of stiffness plus there are a lot of failures of the shafts breaking. It is bad enough that Fox has put out a memo that the DHX2 should not be used and will not be warrantied when used in conjunction with the Levo/Kenevo. Even the coils with larger shafts have issues with leaking etc.

The final issue is that the leverage ratio is pretty flat so you will bottom a lot with any sort of aggressive riding unless you over spring then you lose the advantages of a coil

A much better option is to upgrade with a Fox X2 air or similar air setup. Any piggyback air shock will be an upgrade compared to what comes stock. The standard setups get overwhelmed very quickly and start spiking even on mellow runs.

The only caveat to this is coil shocks like the EXT that have a hydraulic bottom out mechanism.
 
Hi.
I just bought a DPX2 210x52.5mm for my 2019 TurboLevo Expert Carbon, but with the fox standar bushes plus the spacers from the original shock are to wide to fit the frame.
Wich is the correct bushing kit to fit the DPX2 in my Turbo Levo. Is it the 6x20,0mm?

Thanks
Biclas
 
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