Last Winter Push Industries unveiled a new shock dubbed the SV Eight. The new damper comes at a little over half the cost of the universally lauded ElevenSix, while still being made in their Colorado, US facility. Another interesting aspect of the SV Eight is that it takes a more universal approach, offering an A or B tuning set to cover a broad range of bikes and rider weights, rather than being individually tuned for bike, rider, ability level, local terrain, etc., like the 11.6.
This new shock piqued my interest and given that it had also been some time since I’d tested an ElevenSix, Push also sent out the latest S-Series version for a side by side comparison of the two shocks on my Santa Cruz Nomad V6. I’ve been putting the two of them to test – often back to back – over the course of a full year on everything from my local trails to bike park laps and beyond. Read on for the full story…
Details
SV Eight
- 28 clicks external High and Low Speed Compression adjustment
- 18 clicks external rebound adjustment
- Hydraulic bottom out piston and captured external bumper
- e-bike compatible
- 185mm and 205mm length Trunnion sizing
- 210mm and 230mm length Standard Eyelet sizing
- User adjustable stroke lengths with 2.5mm and 5mm spacers
- A or B tune options with 300#-700# Hypercoil springs ($95)
- One year warranty (resets with yearly service)
- 444 grams (our shock, 230mm X 65mm stroke, no spring)
- Made in Colorado
- $865 USD (no spring/hardware)
Starting with weight, the SV8 is the lighter of the two, which shouldn’t be a huge surprise as it’s a bit simpler, with a single damping circuit compared to the 11.6’s two. For what it’s worth, the 525# Hypercoil added 436 grams – just shy of a pound of weight.
The somewhat long reservoir features high and low speed external adjusters at the top. Both knobs have nice ergonomics and positive feeling detents, making them easy to count. It’s worth noting that Push is still in a phase where they are figuring out exactly which bikes on the market will clear the SV8 and at what stroke length. Should you order a shock for a bike they’ve yet to confirm fitment on, they will happily refund you if upon cycling the shock (sans spring) you find out that it does not clear your frame. At the moment their fitment bank is partial, so you can flick them an email before purchasing and see if they have verified your bike yet.
Though not exactly as bougie as the 11.6’s hardware (more on that below), the SV Eight does feature hard coat anodized aluminum shafts and o-ring sealed spacers, making it a cut above many other options on the market.
The shaft is made from high strength steel, thus making it e-bike friendly out of the gate. One unique aspect with the SV Eight is that it offers the possibility for stroke length adjustments by the user. This is done by adding 2.5mm or 5mm spacers to the inside of the lower spring collar, under the bumper, which is captured for improved bottom out control.
ELEVENSIX S-Series
- Dual overhead valve offers two independent damping circuits
- 24 Clicks external Low Speed Compression adjustment
- 28 Clicks external High Speed Compression adjustment
- 16 Clicks external Low Speed Rebound adjustment
- Independent speed sensitive hydraulic bottom out piston
- Progressive, stroke specific external captured bottom out bumpers
- Custom tuned for individual bike, rider weight and ability
- High strength steel shaft for e-bike applications
- 478 grams (our shock, 230mm X 65mm stroke, no spring)
- Made in Colorado
- $1,600 USD
Our 230mm X 65mm Eleven Six tipped the scales at a negligible 34 grams heavier than the SV Eight.
Push’s patented dual overhead valve system allows users to set – and with the flick of a lever, choose between – two completely independent compression circuits, which both feature external high and low speed clickers. The brilliance and uniqueness of this system can’t be overstated. You can set it up as a simple lockout, or you could set the two modes for two totally different types of riding and toggle between the two as it suits you. This could be particularly beneficial if you were going on a trip and riding a broad variety of terrain. In that situation you could set one circuit firmer for jumps and flow trails and another softer for steep and deep trails with each position offering a very different feel.
A top down look at the dual overhead valve system. Note the lockout lever on the drivetrain side.
Our Eleven Six came with spherical bearings in the top eyelet. Foam guards the bearings against the elements and keeps things quiet. The spherical bearings allow the shock to rotate slightly under side load, thus improving durability and potentially traction, albeit to a minor degree if at all.
On the other end there is a bit of back story involved. My Eleven Six shipped with standard lower eyelet hardware similar to what is pictured on the SV8. A few weeks ago – after one a year of use – my shock developed some noise so I reached out to Push. A while after I received my shock they made the call to switch over to a sealed cartridge bearing system on all Santa Cruz and Forbidden bikes. This has less to do with any shortcoming on Push’s end and everything to do with the high degree of rotation that lower shock eyelets see on these bikes. In fairness, after prematurely developing play with a different shock on this same bike, I installed a RWC needle bearing kit in said shock to mitigate that issue in the future. So to be clear, this is Push engineering a fix for an issue baked into the bike – props to them for doing so!
Currently, the roller bearing kit now comes as standard on Eleven Six models built for these bikes and Push are actively swapping these new (and beautifully made) new kits out whenever shocks for these bikes come in for service. Lastly, if it wasn’t obvious this did address the noise on my bike and it runs as smooth and quiet as ever.
Two other minor features worth calling out is that the upper spring collar features a grub screw to keep it in place, and it also boasts a polymer spring bearing to prevent coil wind up.
On the trail
At this point, I’ve spent the better part of all four seasons riding both of these shocks and comparing them not only to one another but also to a RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate Coil, as well as two of the more predominant large volume air shocks on the market – the RockShox Vivid and the Fox Float X2. I’ll do my best to break things down below…
SV Eight
The SV8 was a blank slate to me in the sense that I didn’t really know what to expect. My experience with Push has solely been in the form of custom tuned past versions of their flagship 11.6, but this is the first Push rear shock that is offered where the shock covers a broad range of bikes and riders. My shocks arrived with three springs: 475, 500 and 525, which give me some room to experiment. I’m about 190lbs geared up and the SV Eight had the 500# installed as a nudge for a starting point. Before getting into the initial impressions a quick note – I appreciate any company that makes springs in 25# increments (as opposed to 50#), but in the end I’ll keep both the 500 and 525 around as I like having options. I typically prefer a setup that’s on the slightly firmer side and with these dampers going on the slightly more linear kinematics of the Nomad V6 that preference certainly didn’t change. In large part I think this is because they don’t have the quite as much of the end stroke ramp that’s inherent to an air shock on most setups.
As with most good rides my first jaunt on the SV Eight started out with a climb. I must admit, I was pretty skeptical of the idea that the bridged piston design meant a lockout lever wasn’t necessary. I think I would meet Push half way on that claim. To be fair, this shock did exhibit far less bobbing and unwelcome movement than any other shock – particularly coil shocks – that I’ve ridden in the unlocked mode.
For a better understanding of what a bridged piston design is below is a quote straight from Matt Hartwig from Push’s R&D department:
“The bridged piston found in our SV Eight line of shocks features an inverted main damping piston that features a unique damping profile specific to this shock. By reducing the leverage on the main damping shims we’re able to balance the compression characteristic of the shock allowing for increased damping control at very low shaft speeds where pedaling inputs are found. Damping at this velocity range is matched to the compression base valve found in the shock’s reservoir. The synching, or “bridge” formed at this velocity range results in controlled movement while pedaling with minimal compromises in bump performance.”
With 170mm of relatively linear travel, the Santa Cruz Nomad is quite long in the tooth and it isn’t exactly the firmest feeling bike on the climbs, so on a few really big rides I did find myself wishing I had a lockout. However, if you have a bike that’s known for its climbing efficiency, is shorter in travel, or if you’re just the type of rider who never even uses a lockout anyway, then you won’t be let down by its absence. All told, it’s best to be realistic about your personal expectations, but my experience is that this is a nice compromise that does work quite effectively. One thing is for certain, you won’t have to worry about forgetting to unlock your shock before dropping in on a descent – which is something I often do.
Once pointed downhill I was immediately impressed with the SV8’s performance when being pushed to its limits. In terms of setup, Push included starting point recommendations for damping based on my bike and body weight. From there and throughout all of my testing I only changed a couple clicks of each adjustment when I dabbled with going up or down in spring rate and never really felt the need to go beyond that. With that in mind, experimentation proved that the range is very useful and spaced out in a way that going a click or two does not make such a dramatic difference that you end up boxed in with too little usable range.
Compared to the 11.6, the SV Eight does feel a bit more muted, but mainly in the parking lot – perhaps due to the bridged piston – but it comes alive on trail. The shock felt supple and offered phenomenal traction without feeling wallowy or getting bogged down in its travel. It’s also worth noting that it runs very quietly. The combination of a beefy captured bottom out bumper and the hydraulic bottom out paired well with my Nomad’s suspension and offered a bottomless feel that was on par with an air shock at the very end, but with the advantages of improved traction, a more open mid-stroke and consistency in its feel regardless of altitude, temperatures and length of descents. On the topic of bottom outs, the SV8 has less of a seamless feel at the end stroke when compared to how the 11.6 handled things. It’s a bit hard to put a finger on, but at lower speeds and on ploppy flat drops you could feel a more distinct transition as the bumper and HBO engaged in their duties. With that in mind, this was less obvious on high speed events and really big hits.
All told, while I haven’t ridden every boutique offering out there on the market, I would rate this shock as being well ahead of what’s on offer from big brands like Fox or RockShox at the moment – but to be fair it does cost substantially more money. Regardless, that’s pretty impressive for Push’s first crack at a more universal option that comes in at a lower price point.
ELEVENSIX
Shifting toward the crown jewel in Push’s lineup it’s worth dissecting some of the changes made with the update from the R-series to the new Six S-series shock on test here. This time around Push focused on making the shock feel more lively and poppy without suffering from setbacks in traction or sensitivity. They did so by making the shock a bit more progressive overall, while making the transitions from low to mid to high speed less perceptible. This was accomplished by reducing the low speed compression and rebound at certain shaft speeds, then shifting where the mid speed compression kicks in and eventually meshes with a more finely tuned end stroke (more on that in a bit). To achieve some gains in liveliness, Push also reduced hysteresis – which can be read as an improvement to the way the shock manages directional changes – through a more optimal balance between the piston and the compression valves.
They also improved bottom out control by increasing the progression of the high speed compression damping, thus smoothing out the transition into the range of travel where the hydraulic bottom out and bumper begin to engage. A noteworthy non-hydraulic upgrade to end stroke management was accomplished via stroke length specific bumpers. In simple terms, bumper lengths are scaled relative to shock stroke lengths. It’s also worth pointing out that to begin with, the 11.6 bumpers are progressive and vary in shape and hardness within each setup based on a bike’s kinematics, the rider’s body weight and ability, etc.
So – how did all of this pan out on trail? Compared to the last iteration of the shock, as well as compared to the SV8 I it felt more alive in the parking lot, and with a slightly faster feel in the rebound damping at low speeds in general. Once I was on the trails this translated to a shock that felt a bit more boosty and quite frankly, more fun – but it didn’t feel skittish or nervous in any way. On the compression side, compared to the prior version of the shock it performed better in successive mid sized hits, although to be fair it is a bit of an apples to oranges comparison because I tested the R-series shock on a completely different bike. With that in mind I do think I’m perceptive enough to separate that out and I feel confident in stating there is a noteworthy improvement in that realm over the last version. Regarding bottom out resistance and performance on big hits, I do think that the changes Push made brought about significant improvements as well. Being able to take advantage of relatively linear travel with a coil sprung shock without getting beat up on hard bottom outs is very beneficial. Having ridden the Vivid and Float X2 on this same bike, I do not think that they have a significant advantage over the 11.6 in the end stroke travel, so the 11.6 essentially makes the biggest case for an air shock a more difficult sell – certainly on my Nomad anyway.
Thus, in every situation – from the critical traction over off camber slippery roots to the pop needed for last second pulls, on the roughest sections of trail and during the most chaotic moments I was approaching downhill bike levels of control and confidence out of an enduro bike. All told, I simply have not ridden another shock that comes even close to the performance of an Eleven Six. When parsing out the why aspect of this I think the answer is not just due to superior craftsmanship, quality control and an intelligent design, but also due to the obsessive nature of Push’s testing. They do not release an 11.6 for a particular frame until they’ve gotten a hold of a sample bike and done extensive in house testing on it, relentlessly pursuing a perfect tune. Because of this, they are able to map and extrapolate out perfectly individualized tunes for each and every rider, which I believe is the linch pin in achieving such elevated levels of performance.
Lastly, it is worth expanding on the benefits of having two separate compression damping circuits for a bit here…I touched on some of this earlier in noting that you can program the 11.6 for two very different characteristics optimized for divergent terrain sets, but I also wanted to expand on another key aspect…I requested that Push set the second mode up as a lockout, which they obliged. It’s worth noting that they don’t just set this up to shut down the circuitry and deaden all movement, they actually set the secondary mode’s adjusters to provide excellent climbing characteristics through the right balance of HSC and LSC. Thus, it resists excessive suspension movement due to mass transfer (read: body movement) and pedaling input. However, when you are charging up rough, technical terrain things do open up just the right amount upon encountering some of the more square edged obstacles in your path, like roots and rocks. This definitely assists in getting you up some nasty climbs with a more optimized level of traction than I think would typically be on offer with a run of the mill lockout. So while the Eleven Six may code as a high performance upgrade built for the gnarliest descents, it has the potential to be rather advantageous on the climbs and keep your bike very well rounded.
Overall
So where does this leave us? Most of my reviews place a heavy emphasis on value and to be clear neither of these shocks on test are considered “budget” by any means – rather they are boutique American made high end offerings that should be viewed as longer term investments. You could call a Push shock the Chris King headset of the suspension world. Anyhow, on the one hand we have the 11.6 at $1600 (spring and hardware included) versus the SV8 which, realistically comes in at $1000 by the time you add in the spring and eyelet hardware. For me personally, I think that the custom tuned aspect of an Eleven Six as well as the additional improvements and options it offers make the additional $600 worth it. However that may be a bridge too far for some, which is understandable because that’s essentially the cost of an additional shock altogether. With that in mind I would still pick an SV8 over any of the other shocks that I’ve currently ridden to date.
If I had to dig in and come up with a couple of critiques I’d say that it’s unfortunate that you can’t install the roller bearing hardware on the lower eyelet of the SV8 as I did eventually develop a tiny bit of play in the standard hardware. Keep in mind however that this is an issue relegated to bikes with a high degree of rotation at their lower shock eyelet and new bushings are just $10/pair.
Lastly, a minor complaint that I would make about both shocks was that they developed a somewhat annoying top out if you preloaded the spring very much at all. As a caveat, it was really only slightly noticeable in the parking lot and even less so at some low speeds. Additionally, given how effective the damping adjustments are and with springs available in 25 pound increments, this isn’t really a major concern.
All told, either of these shocks would serve as very convincing upgrades to whichever bike you put them on. The main hangup is the cost and with that in mind I’d likely avoid buying one for a bike I wasn’t exactly stoked on or was considering selling in the semi-near future. On the contrary I wouldn’t think twice about installing one on a bike that I was very content with and planned to keep for some time. Personally, my plan is to keep the 11.6 on my Nomad – a bike I’m beyond thrilled with – as it goes into its third season.
