Rockshox Pike Ultimate Charger 3 RC2 Debonair+ C1 Fork Parts

You’ve heard the rumours and pondered the questions yourself. “Could Rockshox have actually made the Charger 2.1 damper any better?” The answer, my friend, is here. Introducing the brand-new 2023 range of Rockshox Ultimate forks with the latest Charger 3 Damper and Debonair+ air spring and the all-new Buttercups.

What are Buttercups I hear you ask? Well, Buttercups are a vibration isolating damper system that uses two rubber pucks to absorb “trail chatter” and low-amplitude, high-frequency vibrations before they make it to your arms. Buttercups are mounted at the base of both the spring and damper assemblies, where your fork lowers transmit “trail chatter” from your wheel through to the spring and damper shafts and onward to your arms, causing arm pump and fatigue. ButterCups block 20% of unwanted “trail chatter” before it reaches your hands, minimising fatigue and arm pump.

The all-new Charger 3 damper system further reduces the harshness experienced by the rider with an all-new Internal Floating Piston (IFP) design that is said to improve consistency through the fork travel and provide better separation of the high and low-speed circuits to further improve adjustability and the independence of those adjustments. With less “cross-talk” between the high-speed and low-speed adjustments, and a re-vamped low-speed rebound system, your wheel will be glued to the ground in total silence and you will be empowered to tune your fork to perfection.

The new DebonAir+ design addresses the two conflicting traits that most riders want and results in them working in harmony together, better than ever. With a larger negative air volume, small bump compliance and plushness are balanced with increased support and a more consistent ride height to deliver a fork that is buttery smooth, ultra-supportive and maintains ride height when things get steep.

The All-New Rockshox Pike Ultimate Charger 3 RC2 Debonair+ C1 Fork is about as good as a trail fork gets. With a new lighter and stiffer 35mm chassis that features air pressure release valves, longer upper and lower bushings with better overlap to increase stiffness and reduce friction, new bolt-in adapters to switch between torque cap enabled hubs or standard hubs, bolt-on fender compatibility and Maxima Plush Dynamic suspension fluids to maximise performance, the new Pike Ultimate, with Charger 3 Damper and Debonair+ and Buttercups gives you more of what you need, less of what you don’t and all of what you want.

Who’s this item for: Trail and All-Mountain riders looking for a lightweight yet stiff, plush yet supportive, super-adjustable fork that reduces “trail chatter” and provides a balance between all the conflicting desires of a suspension fork.

Spring type: The Pike Ultimate is an air-sprung fork featuring Rockshox’s new Debonair+ air spring with buttercups.

Wheel size compatibility: Forks are available to suit 29″ and 27.5″ wheel sizes.

Fork offset: The Pike Ultimate is available in 37mm and 44mm offset for 27.5″ and 44mm for 29″.

Axle to crown height: At the time of writing, these specs were not available.

Max tyre width: At the time of writing, these specs were not available. We suspect it will be around 3 inches.

Suspension travel amount: The Pike Ultimate is available in 120mm, 130mm and 140mm travel options.

Compression damper style technologies / adjustments: The Pike Ultimate features Rockshox’s all-new Charger 3 damper with Buttercups. There are adjustments for high-speed compression and low-speed compression. Adjustments to the Charger 3 damper are said to be more independent and minimise “cross-talk” between them, making your adjustments to high-speed and low-speed settings more specific and more noticeable.

Rebound damper technologies / adjustments: Rebound damping duties are taken care of with the all-new Charger 3 damper with Buttercups. There are adjustments for low-speed rebound, and the low-speed rebound circuit has been re-vamped with improvements to wheel tracking.

Travel adjustability: Travel changes can be made through the removal and replacement of Debonair+ air spring assemblies. If you buy a 120mm travel now, you can change it to a 140mm travel down the track.

Volume adjustability: At the time of writing, these specs were not available. We suspect it will be through the use of air-volume reducing ‘Bottomless Tokens’.

Stanchion diameter: The Pike Ultimate is built around 35mm tapered wall aluminium stanchions.

Axle size and style: 15mm Maxle Stealth Thru-axle, Boost spacing and compatible with both Torque Cap and standard hub end caps with a removable bolt-in adapter.

Steerer tube standard: Tapered 1 1/8″ to 1 1/2″ aluminium steerer.

Lowers materials: Magnesium Aluminium Alloy

CSU / Steerer tube materials: Forged aluminium crown and aluminium steerer tube.

Brake mount style: Post Mount 180mm

Brake rotor compatibility (minimum / maximum): 180mm minimum and 220mm maximum.

Pros: It’s lighter, stiffer, plusher, more sensitive, more supportive, more adjustable and it has Buttercups.

Cons: You can’t have all that moreness without a little more money.