For 2011, the Rockshox Boxxer may look mostly the same on the outside, but the internals have changed dramatically.
In the photo above, current model year internals are on the right, and the new design is on the left. One of the biggest visual changes, assuming you have a cutaway model like this to look at, is the movement of the air assembly from the top of the leg to the bottom. This was done to prevent binding if/when the lower crown was over-tightened on the stanchions.
For air management, they’ve switched to Solo Air, filling both positive and negative air chambers simultaneously. Rockshox product manager Jeremiah Boobar says this will make the travel smoother and easier to set up.
More pics and info after the break…
A closeup of the new air assembly (left) versus old shows that there’s also a new system for moving air between the positive and negative chamber.
In the old version, air slipped past the black rubber seal (small one, shown in center) and around the black “top hat” piston directly below it. Comparatively, this was a lot of moving parts and used things that could wear out.
The new model replaces all that with a high pressure schrader valve. the black “top hat” depresses the valve to let air flow between the two chambers to keep them equalized.
On the top of the right leg, there’s an air volume adjust knob. crank it down to reduce the air volume inside the fork, which will give it more progressive ramp and bottom out a bit harder. Back it off for a softer fork.
Availability is sometime in the fall.
