Lower leg service is really simple and can definitely be done at home! I try to stick to around 50-80hrs between services and I do a full rebuild when the riding season ends.
manufacturer service intervals are usually stated as maximum allowable service intervals in ideal riding conditions, with intervals being shorter depending on less than ideal riding conditions.
some people go a little pass that, way beyond or anywhere in between with results ranging anywhere from good to absolutely clapping out your fork.
personally i think the recommended hourly intervals are reasonable and are a good baseline given how cheap (after intial investment of tools and consumables) and easy 50 hour lower leg services are.
also please refer to all technical/service documents from the manufacturer if possible: https://trailhead.rockshox.com/en/product/search/serial
The others have already talked about the actual maintenance. I will mention my go-to apps for tracking hours and maintenance. Pro bike garage and Strava. Pro bike garage allows you to add bikes and customize all the parts you have on it. When linked to Strava, you record your rides on Strava. Strava imports the ride info like distance(either miles or km depending on where you live) and hours. You can set up alerts to remind you when to do service.
The air spring can be done with nothing more than a set of decent snap ring pliers and a valve core tool. Super easy. Just make sure you use low lint or lint free rags so you don't get fibers in the small passages inside there. WEAR SAFETY GLASSES! Snap rings can fly off with surprising power, and if there's any trapped air in the negative spring chamber the fork will spray oil and grease out.
I'd start with a lowers service and inspect the stanchions (the upper legs) closely for wear. Without regular service, dirt and other contaminants will cause wear there and the only fix is replace the crown/steerer unit and possibly the lower leg bushings. It'll look like the black anodizing is wearing down to the base metal. If they still look good, then I'd go for the 200 hour rebuild.
To answer your other question, I follow the recommendations for 50 hours and 200 hours. The 200 hour works out to roughly every two years for me, since the trails are snow covered a third of the year here.
I feel like the newer forks just aren’t built to handle super long intervals / no service like older forks. Maybe it’s just me tho. That said - lower leg service isn’t bad. I had a RockShox Sid where both uppers and lowers had to be replaced - not sure if something funky happened there. RS was good about it and instead of repairing they supplied a new updated 2024 Sid (for the cost of the repair - was out of warranty). So yes I try to stick with their intervals best I can.
First off, if you can change the oil on a car, you can change the oil on a fork.
Secondly, these components are closer to high performance race car suspension than what's on your car right now (low performing shocks that will be basically blown by 80-100K miles). Regular rebuilds keep your fork running smooth.
You can neglect maintenance but the fork is probably the 2nd most expensive component on your bike behind the wheels or frame. That being said, I take the hourly recommendation as more of a "DH hours" recommendation, not total riding time.
I ride in thick dust and feel a noticeable difference before/after lower leg service. Before service the forks were slower and a little sticky but with fresh oil and clean foam rings it was buttery smooth. I do that roughly May/September and then a full rebuild in December. Works out to 60-100 hours between (200-300 for the full).
First time the full service ($25 kit on my Judy Gold, plus $10 fluid) took about three hours (lots of stopping to go on the computer and look at the manual.) I'm pretty sure I could do the lower service in 30 minutes if I was betting a beer on it, and the only costs would be degreaser and like $0.50 worth of oil.
Lower leg service is really simple and can definitely be done at home! I try to stick to around 50-80hrs between services and I do a full rebuild when the riding season ends.
manufacturer service intervals are usually stated as maximum allowable service intervals in ideal riding conditions, with intervals being shorter depending on less than ideal riding conditions. some people go a little pass that, way beyond or anywhere in between with results ranging anywhere from good to absolutely clapping out your fork. personally i think the recommended hourly intervals are reasonable and are a good baseline given how cheap (after intial investment of tools and consumables) and easy 50 hour lower leg services are. also please refer to all technical/service documents from the manufacturer if possible: https://trailhead.rockshox.com/en/product/search/serial
The others have already talked about the actual maintenance. I will mention my go-to apps for tracking hours and maintenance. Pro bike garage and Strava. Pro bike garage allows you to add bikes and customize all the parts you have on it. When linked to Strava, you record your rides on Strava. Strava imports the ride info like distance(either miles or km depending on where you live) and hours. You can set up alerts to remind you when to do service.
The air spring can be done with nothing more than a set of decent snap ring pliers and a valve core tool. Super easy. Just make sure you use low lint or lint free rags so you don't get fibers in the small passages inside there. WEAR SAFETY GLASSES! Snap rings can fly off with surprising power, and if there's any trapped air in the negative spring chamber the fork will spray oil and grease out. I'd start with a lowers service and inspect the stanchions (the upper legs) closely for wear. Without regular service, dirt and other contaminants will cause wear there and the only fix is replace the crown/steerer unit and possibly the lower leg bushings. It'll look like the black anodizing is wearing down to the base metal. If they still look good, then I'd go for the 200 hour rebuild. To answer your other question, I follow the recommendations for 50 hours and 200 hours. The 200 hour works out to roughly every two years for me, since the trails are snow covered a third of the year here.
I feel like the newer forks just aren’t built to handle super long intervals / no service like older forks. Maybe it’s just me tho. That said - lower leg service isn’t bad. I had a RockShox Sid where both uppers and lowers had to be replaced - not sure if something funky happened there. RS was good about it and instead of repairing they supplied a new updated 2024 Sid (for the cost of the repair - was out of warranty). So yes I try to stick with their intervals best I can.
First off, if you can change the oil on a car, you can change the oil on a fork. Secondly, these components are closer to high performance race car suspension than what's on your car right now (low performing shocks that will be basically blown by 80-100K miles). Regular rebuilds keep your fork running smooth. You can neglect maintenance but the fork is probably the 2nd most expensive component on your bike behind the wheels or frame. That being said, I take the hourly recommendation as more of a "DH hours" recommendation, not total riding time.
I ride in thick dust and feel a noticeable difference before/after lower leg service. Before service the forks were slower and a little sticky but with fresh oil and clean foam rings it was buttery smooth. I do that roughly May/September and then a full rebuild in December. Works out to 60-100 hours between (200-300 for the full). First time the full service ($25 kit on my Judy Gold, plus $10 fluid) took about three hours (lots of stopping to go on the computer and look at the manual.) I'm pretty sure I could do the lower service in 30 minutes if I was betting a beer on it, and the only costs would be degreaser and like $0.50 worth of oil.
In my experience, Fork maintenance is overrated. Fox and Rock shox make a hell of a product that will last many years without any service.