# Roubaix future shock spring settings



## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

Just a note of caution for anyone with a 2017 Roubaix-

I test rode a Roubaix expert and was impressed by the comfort and smoothness, particularly the front end, so ordered a Roubaix S Works.

Bike felt harsh compared to the test ride, so after investigating I found that the bike was shipped with a hard spring installed ( 40 lb/in ) so swapped to the medium spring ( 25lb/in ) which comes with the bike as a spare

Much better.

Specialized recommend the medium ( black ) spring for most use so cant understand why the bikes are shipping with the hard ( yellow ) spring installed


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Any pics of your S-works bike? Possible...that the S-works bike which is top of the Roubaix food chain with most racing bias is shipped with the heavy spring whereas lessor models are shipped with the medium spring rate shock. Conjecture only.

Congrats on favorite new bike. I like the bike so much...I own a Roubaix SL3 pro...I may pick one up at some point.


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## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

11spd said:


> Any pics of your S-works bike? Possible...that the S-works bike which is top of the Roubaix food chain with most racing bias is shipped with the heavy spring whereas lessor models are shipped with the medium spring rate shock. Conjecture only.
> 
> Congrats on favorite new bike. I like the bike so much...I own a Roubaix SL3 pro...I may pick one up at some point.


Could be right. I graduated from a Roubaix Elite, to Roubaix SL2 Pro, then SL3 S works, to 2017 S Works. I will post a review elsewhere. Here is a pic. I didnt like the bright red seat or black bar tape so swapped for white


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Quite a bike, congrats!




carrock said:


> Could be right. I graduated from a Roubaix Elite, to Roubaix SL2 Pro, then SL3 S works, to 2017 S Works. I will post a review elsewhere. Here is a pic. I didnt like the bright red seat or black bar tape so swapped for white


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## 73Bronco (May 24, 2015)

Per my LBS, they come with the hard spring installed because most people get a feel for it on the show room floor. I.e. not riding the bike. The difference is a lot more body weight compared to when riding the bike. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

73Bronco said:


> Per my LBS, they come with the hard spring installed because most people get a feel for it on the show room floor. I.e. not riding the bike. The difference is a lot more body weight compared to when riding the bike.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk


Forgive me, but as comes out of the mouths of too many bike shops, that sounds like utter BS. To change a shock after a customer buys a bike because of the feel of the shock on the shop floor? Ah, no.

I do agree and most report that the medium shock is preferred to the stiff shock because of amount of weight on the front end for most people...but not all. The more aggressive the position, the more the weight on the hands and more aggressive riders 'may' prefer the stiffest shock. But as reported, most will prefer the medium spring rate.


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## 73Bronco (May 24, 2015)

11spd said:


> Forgive me, but as comes out of the mouths of too many bike shops, that sounds like utter BS. To change a shock after a customer buys a bike because of the feel of the shock on the shop floor? Ah, no.


If I had to guess, the avg joe will base their initial impression on how it feels on the shop floor. So if it feels to soft, they are likely to think it will be spongy underneath them and be turned off by the bike. 

People like us will understand how it works better and know that it can't be judged how it feels while standing over the bike. I'm not disagreeing with you, but I think you have to give the bike shop slack to deal with a wide customer base.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

73Bronco said:


> If I had to guess, the avg joe will base their initial impression on how it feels on the shop floor. So if it feels to soft, they are likely to think it will be spongy underneath them and be turned off by the bike.
> 
> People like us will understand how it works better and know that it can't be judged how it feels while standing over the bike. I'm not disagreeing with you, but I think you have to give the bike shop slack to deal with a wide customer base.


Maybe you are right. Just seems implausible to put a spring rate on the bike which invariably will be changed out. To me, any sponginess can be explained by the salesman...and confirmed with a test ride. You could be right and this position may even be specific your particular shop...but doesn't seem like a sound practice to end up changing shocks on most builds...and many bikes are also demoed off the shop floor and prospective buyers wouldn't like the stiffer shock generally on the road so out the road a given bike demo'ed off the shop floor would not be flattered with the stiffer shock.


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## 1Butcher (Mar 15, 2011)

11spd said:


> Just seems implausible to put a spring rate on the bike which invariably will be changed out.


I believe that no matter what they put in it, most owners would change it out just to see what the difference is. Curiosity is part of being human.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

1Butcher said:


> I believe that no matter what they put in it, most owners would change it out just to see what the difference is. Curiosity is part of being human.


Excellent point.


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## johngwheeler (Aug 16, 2017)

carrock said:


> Just a note of caution for anyone with a 2017 Roubaix-
> 
> I test rode a Roubaix expert and was impressed by the comfort and smoothness, particularly the front end, so ordered a Roubaix S Works.
> 
> ...


Yes, I found this when I took delivery a my Roubaix Expert a couple of weeks ago. The LBS told me (incorrectly) they are delivered with the lightest spring (13lb), which I think is what I test rode. However, my understanding is that the 40lb (yellow) spring is the default on all models. 

I changed to the 13lb (Blue) spring last week and it feels a lot smoother over rough surfaces.


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## johngwheeler (Aug 16, 2017)

Out of interest, for those who have changed the spring in their Roubaix, did you add extra lubricant / grease to the new spring? The default yellow spring was covered in a thick red grease when I took it out, and I tried to transfer some of this to the new spring with a brush. Just wondering whether I should add some more....


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## rdavids1 (Aug 22, 2017)

I have the 2017 Pro model, with Ultegra Di2. They installed the softest spring, so no issues there, it's fine. My big problem with this bike is the seat post clamp - it makes a constant cracking sound that no amount of carbon paste or careful tightening of the bolts will fix. I'm on my second frame (first one replaced due to a manufacturing defect), and the exact same problem is happening on the new frame. I've been through two saddles and three seat posts in an effort to fix the problem, so I'm pretty sure it's not the post or saddle. Anyone else experiencing this issue?


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

rdavids1 said:


> I have the 2017 Pro model, with Ultegra Di2. They installed the softest spring, so no issues there, it's fine. My big problem with this bike is the seat post clamp - it makes a constant cracking sound that no amount of carbon paste or careful tightening of the bolts will fix. I'm on my second frame (first one replaced due to a manufacturing defect), and the exact same problem is happening on the new frame. I've been through two saddles and three seat posts in an effort to fix the problem, so I'm pretty sure it's not the post or saddle. Anyone else experiencing this issue?


Two back to back seems like an odd dynamic. Did you transfer the same components to the second bike? Does it creak out of the saddle?


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## rdavids1 (Aug 22, 2017)

Same components transferred to the new frame. First frame made the same noise regardless of multiple seat posts and saddles. Neither frame made noise when out of the saddle. Just getting off the saddle almost always causes the noise to occur.


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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

For all the praise the new future shock gets maybe the design on the seatpost flexing mechanism wasn't as well thought out? Has anyone else with a new roubaix experienced this noise? 

Another thing to keep in mind is that with the carbon frames it can be hard to narrow down where the sounds come from. On my old venge what I thought was a bb or seat creak ended up being the headset needing some tightening.


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## dougrocky123 (Apr 12, 2006)

My main complaint regarding my Roubaix comp are the various noises it makes. It drives me crazy.Some noises come from the future shock area. I had the shop cover the rear brake cable in the frame so its not that. Hollow sound when I hit the rough stuff and sometimes a pop when I load the handlebars or seat. My 20 year old Ritchey on the other hand is dead silent!


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## rdavids1 (Aug 22, 2017)

I haven't heard much noise from my future shock, maybe a slight amount when going slower (probably because the wind noise isn't blocking it out). Update on the seat post clamp - I bought myself carbon paste, a torque wrench, and blue locktite (maybe not recommended, but what the hell). I took the seat post completely out, cleaned it then reapplied paste. I also took the seat post collar (yoke? that's what it looks like) completely off, put paste on the exposed seat tube carbon underneath, and also applied locktite to the threads of the two seat post bolts, then torqued it down to spec. My first ride after that was blessed silence! Going out again this morning, hope it lasts.


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## Hawk85 (Aug 24, 2012)

johngwheeler: LBS sold me some Phil Wood Waterproof Grease and suggested that I add some when swapping springs. I did that each time, trying all three springs before settling on the middle one. 

You reminded me of a question for my LBS, now that I have about 3500 miles on the middle spring: Does the spring that is being used need to be greased periodically?


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## tommybike (Dec 30, 2015)

How hard is it to swap it out? Any videos online?

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## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

tommybike said:


> How hard is it to swap it out? Any videos online?
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


Literally a 5 minute job. Unscrew top cap. Remove cartridge cover. swap springs. reassemble.


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## Jjll (May 3, 2021)

Hi, 2 questions please.
1) is there a noticeable difference in speed performance in the bike with the different springs, I.e is there a loss of power conversion when using softer springs?
2) my stem boot is torn and replacements are hard to come by, any suggestions please?
Thanks


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