Why were my shocks only half full of nasty black oil?

[Blorper]

My rear suspension has always been soft, so I was gonna replace the springs, but I discovered that the shocks didn't have enough oil in them. When I opened them up for the first time ever they were only half full of oil and the oil was black. This is an RTR rc10gt, so the shocks should have been done right...

Have I damaged my shocks by running w/o oil for like 4 months, and what is with the black oil? I don't think oil was leaking out, I think associated didn't fill them up! :mad:

[andy51289]

The black oil is the dirt that gets stuck on the shock shaft, and when the shock shaft compreses, the dirt gets mixed in with the oil.

Replace you shock seals (o-rings), fill the shock up with new oil, and install "SHOCK SOCKS"

[XXXER]

Have you damaged your truck by running it a little low? Nah, if anything, you would just get an odd handling/jumping car. Any oil turns black, no matter how new your o-rings are, or your shock shafts, it will just happen. just fill with 40WT fluid(what it comes with) and bleed as the instructions tell you to, and you should be fine :)

-Steve

[superpitstain]

Dont; worry, everytime i rrebuild my shocks there'll be black oil(but the bad smell is usually gone!0

[DirtRacinFool]

I always check my shocks at the end of a day of racing, I look for signs of leakage and bent shafts. Once a month, I drain the oil out, clean the inside of the shocks and refill with fresh oil. This regular maintenance has kept my shocks in top shape, and has kept rebuilds down to once every season or two. :cool: