Yes, it was 6mm. If you are using a socket, it needs to be about 1 1/2" long or about 40mm to people who work in Euros, otherwise it won't reach.

As for your forks, they're different internally to the later 30 and the 35, with those of you had trouble you could always make/borrow/buy a damper cartridge holder, but yours don't have such a thing, or at least not in quite the same manner. I think on facebook someone suggested trying a rattle gun, or putting the forks back together and trying to crack the bolt loose while the fork is under load.

Thanks, the rattle gun approach worked. Put that on my Xmas list.....

It's correct, a 6mm allen bolt type that you best can loosen best with a long allen key and just ~ 1 sec with an air impact gun/rattle gun. Note that there is loctite to fit this bolt as per manual Best is to use a genuine bolt only and also a new genuine washer. Nothing gives you more headache then a stuck washer inside.

FYI, for conventional Showa cartridge forks, the air ratchet is the preferred method. If you want to try your luck w/o one, put the forks under tension (not compression). If you look at the way the cartridge interacts with the fork stanchion, compressing the forks cannot stop the bottom bolt from spinning (actually, the bolt does not spin, the compression valve body spins with the bottom bolt stationary within it!)

Ciao,