FOX FLOAT X Factory Rear Shock [Rider Review]

Our "Rider Review" article series features the honest reviews from verified purchasers of Worldwide Cyclery. They contain the photos, thoughts, feedback & overall review you are looking for.

Fox Shocks just recently dropped the Float X shock to replace the DPX2 shock. Fox included a lot of new features on this shock. Our friend, Justin, just got his hands on one. See what they think!

Overview

The 2022 Fox Float X is quite the jump in performance from the DPS that came with my 2019 Yeti SB5. I had been wanting to upgrade the DPS for the longest time because it just couldn’t keep up with the trails and jumps I was riding. Originally, I was mindset about upgrading to a DPX2, so when I saw the release of the 2022 Float X I knew that was going to be the shock for my bike.

As we all know, the supply chain for bike parts has been a mess, so when I saw the email from Worldwide Cyclery that the 210x50 size Float X was in stock, I immediately clicked the link, and to my surprise, the website said “Only 1 left”, so I whipped out the ol’ credit card and purchased that sucker faster than Jared takes his shirt off in a hot Podcast studio!

In typical Worldwide fashion, the Float X was shipped out lickity spilt and was on my doorstep in just a few days. Man, was it like being an 8-year-old on Christmas morning all over again! Opening the orange and black Fox box and seeing the beautiful Kashima color glowing through the protective plastic, it was quite a beautiful sight. You can really see and appreciate the meatiness of this shock and I knew it was going to lightyears better than the DPS.

Installation was beyond a breeze, and to be honest it was the first time swapping a rear shock for me. I lucked out and the mounting hardware from the DPS was in great shape and easy to remove with no special tools. So once the DPS was off, I swapped the hardware over to the Float X, re-installed it, and was all done in less than 30 minutes!

The Float X came with a .6 spacer pre-installed and since I’m of relatively average weight (175lbs) for the factory setups of most shocks/forks, I left the spacer in and proceeded to set the sag. I knew that the Float X took a lower PSI than the DPX2 and I knew that a rider of my weight was typically running 280+ psi on the DPX2 so I was definitely curious where I would land with the Float X. Sure enough, I was right at 240PSI (for 30-ish % sag) which was right on par with Fox’s claim for a lower PSI.

Of course, when I was done with the installation, I had to take the bike for a ride. Immediately, I could feel the extra support the Float X had and could see that this shock was staying higher in its travel compared to the DPS. I have yet to need to touch the lock-out lever because it does such an amazing job on the climbs in the fully open position. The numbered adjustment dials are a much-appreciated upgrade and the lock-out lever is easily reachable in the saddle. I played around with rebound and compression on the first few runs but ended up back where Fox had set them from the factory.

The downhill was where I really started to see a noticeable difference compared to the DPS.

The Float X kept up with everything I was hitting and kept the ride feeling nice and plush but still supportive.

It has a nice amount of pop to it and made my SB5 feel even more lively! I have yet to bottom it out (with only a few millimeters of travel to spare) so I’m very happy with the .6 spacer that it came with, but I may play with adjusting it just a pinch next season.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I absolutely recommend the 2022 Fox Float X to anyone who wants the latest and greatest all-mountain/enduro shock from Fox. But even more so for those with a lower-end “trail” shock who are looking for something that can handle bigger hits and chunkier terrain with ease all while feeling plush yet supportive! This shock has definitely boosted my confidence in hitting bigger jumps and rougher terrain!