RECOMMENDED TOOLS AND SUPPLIES

for installing NBKRWC2185 Shock Eyelet Needle Bearing Kit
in EVIL BIKES "THE FOLLOWING"® V1

-5mm Allen wrench
-RWC DU Needle Bearing Tool
-RWC DU Bushing Pilot
-Press Handle Set w/8mm threaded rod
-”Channel-lock” pliers
-Torque wrench w/adapter and Allen bit
-Clean shop towels
-“Super-Coat” or similar grease
-Blue Loctite
-Shock pump

1) PREPARE FOR POSSIBLE OIL SPRAY and depress the Schrader valve core to release the air pressue from the shock. NOTE: You might want to write down the current shock air pressure that you are running.

2) WHILE SUPPORTING THE REAR TRIANGLE OF THE FRAME, use the Allen wrench to remove the upper shock mounting bolt.

3) Place a shop towel under the shock, as pictured to hold the shock in place and to protect the frame’s paint.

4) Remove the spacers and seals from the shock thru-pin.

5) Place the DU Bushing Pilot onto the handle set and slide the threaded rod through the shock thru-pin.

6) Slide the RWC Needle Bearing Tool onto the threaded rod of the press handle set. Be certain that the larger opening on the tool is facing toward the shock. Put the other handle onto the threaded rod and wind the handles toward each other until you feel the thru-pin bottom out inside the green receptacle. Then, remove the tools and you’ll find the pin partially removed.

7) Use channel-lock pliers to grip the end of the partially removed thru-pin. Twist back and forth with the pliers as you pull the pin the rest of the way out of the shock bushing.

With the thru-pin removed, you can see the metal bushing that is inside the shock eyelet. This metal bushing is usually coated with a red colored dry lubricant coating. THIS BUSHING MUST BE REMOVED.

8) Place the DU Pilot directly inside the bushing and place the needle bearing tool on the opposite side of the shock. Face the larger of the two openings in the tool toward the shock.

Thread the opposite handle onto the threaded shaft and wind out the bushing.

In the picture below you can see the removed bushing. With the bushing removed, you now have a bare shock eyelet bore that is ready to receive the needle bearing in place of the bushing.

NOTE: There is only one Real World Cycling shock eyelet needle bearing kit. As with all successful products, others have made attempts to copy our kit. The fact is, no other needle bearing kit has the level of engineering put into our kit. Our kit contains multiple bearing inner rings (“axles”) of varying Outside Diameters to account for the machining tolerances of your shock manufacturer. This guarantees a proper fit with YOUR shock.

KEEP ALL OF THE INNER RINGS THAT YOU DON’T USE IN A SAFE PLACE WHERE YOU CAN FIND THEM LATER. You may need a larger or smaller OD inner ring in the future. The aluminum sleeve is for use with 6mm mounting bolts and won’t be used in this application.

Because the inner ring OD differences cannot be discerned by the naked eye, we recommend that you NEVER HAVE MORE THAN ONE INNER RING OUT OF ITS BAG AT THE SAME TIME. Most of the kits have 3 inner rings. Some kits contain 4.

When you get ready to place the needle bearing onto the pilot, remember that this is a “MAX” bearing--it’s all rollers with no retainer cage. This makes it stronger, but remember that THE ROLLER ELEMENTS CAN FALL OUT!

9) Place the needle bearing onto the installation pilot.

10) Check the fit of the needle bearing with the shock eyelet. Attempt to slide the bearing into the eyelet by hand.

11) If the bearing will NOT slide into the shock eyelet by hand, skip ahead to step 17. If the bearing DOES slip into the shock eyelet by hand, apply some Vibra-Tite bearing fixative into the shock eyelet.

12) Spread the Vibra-Tite into an even coat inside the eyelet.

13) Apply some Vibra-Tite to the outside of the bearing cup.

14) Spread the Vibra-Tite evenly over the outer cup surface.

15) Push the bearing into the eyelet and center it.

16) Wipe off any excess Vibra-Tite off the edges of the bearing, being careful not to get any inside the bearing. ALLOW FIXATIVE TO CURE FOR 24 HOURS and then skip ahead to Step 22.

17) Put some grease inside the shock eyelet.

18) Put some grease on the outside of the needle bearing cup.

19) Configure the tools as illustrated in the picture at the left. Orient the female half of the tool with the smaller opening toward the shock. The back side of the tool is actually marked to show you which end faces the shock depending upon which operation is being performed.

20) Tighten the press handles until you feel the needle bearing cup come to a rest against the female half of the tool.

21) Remove the handle set and carefully remove the pilot from the bearing, remembering that the needle rollers can fall out.

22) Start with the largest OD inner ring and remove it from the bag. KEEP THE OTHER INNER RINGS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE BAGS so that you can keep them properly identified.

23) Attempt to slide the “++” inner ring into the bearing. If this inner ring goes into the bearing and turns smoothly (no binding), then you are ready to move onto step 17. If the OD of the “++” inner ring is too large, move down a size and try again. Continue this process until you find the right fit. It is possible that after a few rides, the needle rollers will bed in and you could require an inner ring with a larger OD. For this reason, keep the other inner rings in a safe place and in their properly marked bags.

24) The aluminum spacers have rubber seals installed into them. Put a light coat of grease on these seals and place them onto each side of the inner ring.

25) Put some blue Loctite Threadlocker on the threads of the shock mounting bolt.

26) Raise the rear triangle of the frame to align the shock with the DELTA Link rocker arms and slide the shock bolt into place.

27) Keeping everything properly aligned, turn the shock bolt clockwise and tighten until you feel the shock bolt bottom out.

28) Proper torque spec for the bolt is 10 N-m or 88 INCH-pounds.

29) Air up the shock to your previous setting, stopping at stages to compress the suspension a few times in order to equalize the positive and negative air chambers.

You may find you need slightly more air pressure now that hardware-induced friction has been removed from the system.

30) Replace the air valve cap.

Note that for most of the DELTA Link applications, only the top mount is replaced with a needle bearing kit. The lower shock mount has almost no rotation taking place inside the shock eyelet. Where there is no rotation happening, a convention bushing is actually the best choice.

IF you have previously made adjustments to your shock to dial in the best performance, it is strongly suggested that you re-analyze and make new adjustments since the old friction-bound mounting hardware would have negatively affected shock performance. Now that the excess friction has been removed, a re-tune will result in much better performance than you were previously able to attain.

Please don't hesitate to contact us with any kit sizing questions or service part needs. Individual replacement parts are available. Our tools are designed to do the job quickly and easily without risk of damaging the parts or the shock. However, you are welcome to use whatever tools or improvised methods you prefer. Having said that, please be advised that we will not be responsible for the results of your improvised tools. If you do have any installation problems, you will find that we are willing to help you make things right regardless of where the fault lies. As with all of our products, satisfaction is guaranteed.