Black Box your Boxxer
Installing the Rock Shox damper kit for '03 and '04 boxxers.
Words and photos Cam McRae
The old cherry-red Boxxers were one of my favourite forks ever.  They were a little fast and not easily adjustable but they were amazingly plush and consistent.  I always knew what they would do. The bonuses were that they were relatively light and fairly tough. The first time I was on a 2003 Boxxer Team I had high hopes.  There was an external rebound adjuster that had a significant range and the externals looked very similar to my old cherry.  The same only better was my hope.  Alas there were some issues.  The fork tending to spike in some situations because of insufficient oil flow and I wasn't able to predict what it would do in every situation.  The old consistency seemed to be gone. 


Dizzy Cycles North Van service manager Dale McEachern

Instead of just distancing themselves from the '03 and '04 Boxxers, RockShox decided to do something about the issues.  That is how the Black Box upgrade was born.  The entire base valve assembly is replaced with parts that improve durability (more aluminum bits) and allow for more oil flow.  The oil volume is also larger which might explain why the forks tend to feel as though the spring rate has increased after the work has been done.

I took my fork down to Dizzy Cycles in North Van to have the fork upgraded so I could let the experts do the work - and to free me up to shoot the photos.

The following procedures apply to the Team and World Cup forks.  There are a few omissions for the Race model. Information about the procedures for each fork can be found in the service guides.

After disassembly (download the 2003-2004 Boxxer service guide for the disassembly) the first step is to clamp the compression damper shaft in a vice (in soft jaws or some other protective barrier to avoid scratching the shaft) and then drill out the existing refill port to 3mm (.125"). Then clean off any burrs and any debris on the inside of the shaft. Your compression side is done - all you need to do is put it back together following the instructions in the guide.

The rebound side is a little more involved in terms of parts but really all you are doing is replacing the old parts with the new ones.  All this is laid out step by step on the Black Box site in the tuning section under "Black Box Damper Upgrade."  You can follow the guide on the site or download and print off the RockShox Boxxer Upgrade Service Guide.


A freshly drilled port
You will need to refer to both manuals when you reassemble the rebound side because the part assembly,oil levels and fill procedures for the upgrade kit differ from the standard operation. You'll follow steps 1-18 in the 03/04 Boxxer service guide and then step 19 will come from the upgrade guide. At steps 20-25 you go back to the 03/04 guide and then the remainder of the procedure comes from the upgrade guide.  It sounds complicated but it actually isn't .  If you have a few tools and you were good with Lego as a kid you're golden.

New parts to improve durability and oil flow on the rebound side.

The other option is to find out if your local shop has the kits.  RockShox provides them at very little cost to bike shops so you'll pay some labour but you shouldn't get violated for parts. The boys at Dizzy have a few kits ready to go and of course the know-how to get 'er done.

So at the end of all this was the little adventure worth it?  As I mentioned earlier, immediately after reassembly the fork felt oversprung for my 170lb frame but after I went to a light spring in one leg (thanks Jed!) the fork felt fantastic.  It rivalled all but the most exotic forks I have ridden - the Manitou Dorado for example.  The rebound adjustment worked really well and the range was amazing.  You could set it to return really slowly for big hucks or jackrabbit fast for a high speed course.  I was using all the travel without any nasty bottom out jolt and most importantly, it allowed me to ride my best.  If you have a 2003 or 2004 Boxxer get the upgrade rolling - you won't regret it for an instant.

For more info check out blackboxracing.com
Download the 2004-2004 Boxxer Service Guide Here.
The upgrade guide is here or you can follow it on the Black Box site linked above.


Dizzy Cycles in North Van - at 1st and Lonsdale

Thanks to Dale and the boys at Dizzy for their help with this article. If you have never walked through the doors of the old bank building do yourself a favour - it's a mighty cool shop.

Cam McRae