How to Dial in MTB Suspension from Sag to Rebound for Every Trail

Sam Anderson from Cane Creek explains how mountain bike suspension works, and shares expert tips for getting the most out of your setup.
Provided photo.

Sam Anderson is the Brand Manager for Cane Creek Cycling Components based in Fletcher, NC just outside Pisgah National Forest. Cane Creek designs and markets their own line of shocks and suspension forks and assembles many items by hand at their factory in Western North Carolina.

  • What is suspension compression?
  • What is rebound?
  • What do you see people typically getting wrong when it comes to suspension setup?
  • What is meant by a linear or progressive suspension curve as it relates to full suspension mountain bikes?
  • What are the differences between a coil and air shock?
  • Is it possible to perfectly tune suspension to ignore pedal inputs while remaining responsive to the trail?
  • What is stiction, and how important is minimizing it?
  • How do you know when your fork/shock needs a rebuild or service?
  • What are some of the latest innovations in suspension design? Will tomorrow’s shocks and forks look like the ones we have today?

Check out suspension products from canecreek.com.


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