Several weeks ago I noticed that the Rock Shox Mag 21 suspension fork on my 1996 Raleigh M800 mountain bike was drooping. The suspension had left. With that age I was fearing the only solution was a costly fork replacement. 10 years of service was more than I had expected so the problem was bound to happen at some point.

Before I jumped to buying that new fork though I thought some research online might give me clue on how to solve this problem. After checking a few Google links I found the service manual for the Mag 21. Reading about disassembling the fork I saw that the air chamber (this is an air over oil type suspension) could be recharged by using a basketball needle and floor pump. The key was to use a needle without a side opening to keep from tearing the rubber seal and to use some grease.

A few cautious pumps on each leg and the fork popped back into full suspension mode. Thanks to the 1996 service manual I found I do not need to buy that new fork.

Now if I could have the same good fortune replacing my kitchen faucet.