Air Spring
The RS-1 features the same Solo Air spring found in many RockShox forks, and like pretty much all of RockShox’s forks, it is compatible with the brand’s bottomless tokens. The RS-1 uses the same black tokens as any other 32 mm stanchion fork in the lineup. My 100 mm travel RS-1 came with 2 out of 4 tokens installed, which I felt gave the fork the right amount of progressivity. Set up with two tokens, I simply set the air pressure based on the weight chart printed on the fork. I consistently used full travel, but only once was I met with the harsh bottom out ‘thunk’ that everyone hates.
Damping
Compared to many forks, the RS-1 doesn’t offer much in the way of external adjustment, but the factory tune exactly matched the rest of the RS-1’s purpose-built characteristics. The RS-1’s Accelerator damper is great at separating rider input from trail chatter. Even when getting out of the saddle and really stomping on the bike on climbs, I couldn’t get the fork to bob much. The fork also resisted diving under braking extremely well.
At the same time, small bump compliance was up there with the best forks on the market. Despite only having 100 mm of travel to work with, the fork tracked over small hits almost as well as a RockShox Pike.
There’s no external compression adjustment, but there is a “gate” adjustment on the fork’s remote lockout that controls the stiffness of the fork in its locked-out setting. Dial the gate knob out about halfway, and you get a stiff platform that still takes the edge off of bumps in the locked out setting.
I used the remote lockout occasionally when I was on road climbs, but left the fork in its open mode for the vast majority of my riding. I mostly kept the “gate” adjustment on the RS-1’s lockout all the way locked out – I like forks to feel locked out when they’re locked out, and open when they’re open.
I was happy riding most terrain with 12 out of 19 available clicks of rebound damping, which left me with plenty of room to add or subtract clicks.
Durability
Some riders I’ve talked to have expressed concern about the fork’s exposed stanchions being low to the ground, and therefore more prone to coming in contact with rocks. I don’t think this is valid, because you’re probably less likely to hit the stanchion on an inverted fork if it falls on its side when you separate from the bike. And I had no issues with hitting the stanchions on any kind of rock, flying or stationary.
I didn’t service the RS-1 at all while riding it. RockShox recommend servicing the RS-1 every 50 hours, which is pretty similar to most forks on the market.
Who’s it For?
So how does my experience affect how I’d be inclined to use this fork? I think I’d prefer the RS-1 to any other fork I’ve ridden in the context of an über-techy, modern XC course, or an ultra-endurance race. I say this simply because I think the fore-aft stiffness and activeness under braking of the RS-1 would do a better job of keeping me alive while bouncing down the stuff that modern World Cup courses are made of.
If you are primarily interested in a fork for short-travel trail ripping, berms, and jumps, I’d give the nod to the Reba, Revelation, or even a lowered Pike if you can tolerate the weight penalty.
Also, a word of advice to XC racers: the advantages of the RS-1 over other forks I’ve tried were the most apparent when I was riding lines that are steep and scary on a XC bike. If your XC courses tend to be a lot flatter and smoother than what you see in the World Cup, consider going for a conventional fork. You’ll save yourself a lot of money, as well as the need for a proprietary hub. Both the Fox 32 SC and the updated SID are appealing options; they cost less than the RS-1, and are significantly lighter.
Bottom Line
The RockShox RS-1 stands out as a highly-specialized fork that will shine on extremely technical XC courses and envelope-pushing epics like the BC Bike Race.
The RS-1 is also practically the definition of a niche product. If you’re within that niche, you’ll be very satisfied with everything the RS-1 offers. However, there are also plenty of cheaper, lighter, and more conventional options out there that are arguably better suited to a wider variety of uses. Because of this, I can’t recommend it as the absolute best product out there, despite what its price tag may imply.