Volume spacers — sometimes called tokens, sometimes called bottomless rings — are the most-misunderstood tool in the suspension box. Riders add them hoping for a magic fix to a bike that feels off, swap pressure around to compensate, and end up with a setup that solves nothing while introducing new problems. Tokens are not a general-purpose tuning knob. They solve one specific problem.
This guide covers what volume spacers do, when adding one helps, when removing one helps, and how to know which side of that line your bike is on.
What a volume spacer does
Inside the air-spring chamber of your fork or rear shock, there is a fixed volume of air. When the suspension compresses, that air gets squeezed into a smaller space. The smaller the starting volume, the faster the pressure rises as you compress, and the harder the spring resists going further into travel.
A volume spacer is a small plastic ring that sits inside the air chamber and takes up space. Less air volume means a faster pressure rise, which means a more progressive spring curve.
The key word is progressive. Tokens do not change the firmness of your suspension across the board. They change how much firmer it gets the closer you are to bottom-out. Initial travel feels the same. Mid-stroke feels nearly the same. Late stroke is where the difference lives.
This is why adding a token to fix a soft mid-stroke feeling never works. Mid-stroke is not where tokens act.
When to add a token
You want a token if:
- You are bottoming hard on every drop or G-out, even with pressure cranked up high enough that the bike feels harsh in early travel.
- The bike uses full travel on hits that should not be using full travel.
- Big landings produce a hard clack at the end of the stroke.
- You like how the bike feels in the first half of travel but want more support deep in the stroke.
The order of operations: first try adding 5–10 psi. If that fixes the bottoming but makes the bike feel harsh in early travel, take the pressure back down and add a token instead. The token gives you the bottom-out support without making early travel harsh.
Most modern Fox and RockShox forks ship with one token already installed. Adding a second is the typical first move for riders who want more bottom-out support. Three tokens is aggressive and starts to feel artificial in late travel for most riders. Some bikes can fit four. Hardly anyone needs four.
When to remove a token
You want fewer tokens if:
- You never use full travel even on hits where you should.
- The bike feels firm-and-firmer the deeper you go into stroke, like it is hitting a wall before bottom-out.
- The bike feels great on chatter but unrewarding on big hits, like you are not getting the cushion you expect.
- Pressure feels right based on sag but the bike still rides high in its stroke through rough sections.
If you remove a token, drop pressure 5 psi. The bike should now use travel more linearly. If it now bottoms too easily, you went the wrong direction or you removed one token too many.
Light riders and cross-country riders tend to want fewer tokens than the bike ships with. Heavy enduro riders tend to want more.
How tokens differ from compression damping
Tokens and high-speed compression damping (HSC) both affect bottom-out resistance, but they do it in completely different ways and feel different on the trail.
- Tokens change the spring curve. The change is invisible until late travel, then becomes pronounced. The bike feels the same in initial travel.
- HSC changes how fast oil can flow through ports during fast shaft movements. The change is felt across the whole stroke any time the wheel is moving fast.
If your bike feels harsh on sharp roots and rocks, and you address it by adding tokens, the harshness will stay because tokens do not affect chatter behavior. The fix for chatter harshness is HSC, not tokens. The compression damping guide explains the high-speed/low-speed split in detail.
The general rule: if you are bottoming, try a token first. If you are harsh on fast hits but not bottoming, look at HSC.
How tokens differ from pressure
Pressure changes the entire spring curve up or down. Tokens change only the steepness of the late-stroke ramp.
A bike with one token at 80 psi feels different from a bike with two tokens at 75 psi, even though the static sag may be the same. The two-token setup will feel slightly softer in early travel but ramp harder near bottom-out.
This is why "I added a token and now my bike is too firm" is usually wrong. The bike was probably overpressured. Drop 5 psi after adding a token. Recheck sag. Then ride it.
Adding or removing a token, step by step
The actual install is mostly tool-free on modern forks and shocks. You need a shock pump and a strap wrench or air-cap tool that came with your suspension.
For a Fox 36, 38, or RockShox Lyrik/ZEB:
- Let all the air out of the fork's positive chamber. Use the shock pump to bleed it down to zero psi.
- Unthread the air cap on top of the fork. Tokens are stacked on the bottom of the cap.
- Add or remove tokens. They click into place.
- Reinstall the cap. Pump the fork up to your previous pressure, plus or minus 5 psi if you adjusted both pressure and token count.
- Recheck sag.
For rear shocks the procedure is similar but more shock-specific. Check your shock manual. Some require a strap wrench to remove the air can. Some require a small Allen key.
If you have not done it before, watch a video for your specific model. The procedure is forgiving but worth getting right the first time.
Common token mistakes
Things that come up on every forum:
- Adding a token to fix a soft mid-stroke. Mid-stroke softness is a sag problem or low-speed compression problem. Tokens do nothing for it.
- Adding tokens without dropping pressure. Without a pressure drop, you are just stacking progression on top of an already-firm spring. The bike will feel worse.
- Maxing out tokens on a light rider. Lighter riders rarely need more than one token. Two is sometimes appropriate. Three is usually wrong.
- Forgetting to recheck sag. Tokens change the spring curve. Sag will move slightly even at the same pressure. Always recheck after a token change.
- Treating shock and fork tokens as the same problem. They are independent. You might want one more token in the fork and one fewer in the shock to balance how the bike sits under hard loads.
Tokens and rider weight
Rider weight drives token strategy more than any other factor. Heavier riders push deeper into travel under the same load, so they benefit from more progression to keep the bike from blowing through stroke. Lighter riders sit higher in stroke and benefit from fewer tokens, often staying with the factory single token.
A rough starting framework, assuming a trail or enduro bike with about 150–170 mm of travel:
- Under 145 lb: factory tokens, often one. Removing one is sometimes the right call for park-style riding where bottoming on big hits is acceptable.
- 145–185 lb: factory tokens. Adjust based on terrain.
- 185–215 lb: consider one extra token, especially for enduro and park use.
- Over 215 lb: two extra tokens is often the right call, with pressure tuned to keep sag in range.
These are rough guides, not prescriptions. The ride feel test matters more than the chart.
When to revisit tokens
Token count should be stable for most riders. Reasons to revisit:
- You changed riding style — moving to bigger hits or more park-style riding.
- You gained or lost meaningful weight.
- You changed bikes and the new bike's leverage curve is different.
- You started bottoming more on hits you used to clear comfortably, even after pressure adjustment.
Otherwise, set tokens once and leave them alone. They are not a knob you tune ride to ride.
Where to go from here
Tokens come last in the setup order. If you have not yet set sag and dampers, work through how to set sag, rebound, and compression first. Most setup problems get solved before you ever need to crack open the air spring.
If the bike still feels off after that, the reading suspension symptoms guide will help you map the feeling to the right adjustment, including whether tokens are actually the answer.