| Author | Message | ||
     Eece_ret |
So... How do you have your spring preload dialed in? What is your weight. How would you describe the handling of your bike. ME: 240lbs Fork Preload: All the way out Rear Preload: Two clicks from fully loaded. I had been working with settings for awhile. Still kept getting vague feelings over bumps, felt like I was topped out up front. Last track day had a very well known AMA suspension guru go over the bike with me. Turns out I was topped out up front, sitting on the bike I had about 1/8" sag! The only way we could get the sag close was to release all spring preload up front. This gave me my sag  the bike has been worlds better ever since! Damping followed... Pretty much 1.25 turns out Comp/Rebound up front, rear is 14 clicks comp damp, and 1.5 turns rebound. (these might be off... don't have my info sheet handy) | ||
| Aeholton |
Set mine by the manual the first weekend I got my bike, haven't touched it since. However, I live in FL with mostly flat straight roads. | ||
| 99buellx1 |
Use a zip tie to assist in knowing what you are getting for fork travel. | ||
| Mtch |
I am 175 fully geared up, now on the softest settings in manual. might try playing with front preload. only change from stock is more compression damping to reduce dive when braking. | ||
| Dannybuell |
Sag, read about sag. | ||
| 1125rrrred |
Larry, Glad to see this post and compare some notes. Like you, had my R set up by a pro a couple of weeks ago - bike is wayyy better now. Main Complaint was I had to really muscle it into a turn. Once turned it was rock stable, but turning was way too slow/heavy feeling. I also ended up having to back preload out to get reasonable sag. The book says 7 turns for my 212lbs(with gear), and am now at 1/3 turn. Looks like a few bikes might have been released with somewhat heavier than spec. springs in front. Rear is set on #5 (with #1 being the lightest - matches book baseline). Front compression - 2.3/4 turns out Front rebound - 2.1/2 turns out Rear compression - 11 clicks out Rear rebound - 1.7/8 out Now I've got base line settings that feel good, some quality time on the track is sounding really inviting. Cheers | ||
| Bueller4ever |
Red, 2 and 3/4 turns from full hard seems awfully soft for someone of your stature. 2 1/2 turns from full hard for rebound doesn't make it bouncy? I've found that video taping the front forks while bouncing them is the easiest way to see what it's doing if you are by yourself. I'll have to check my front rebound, but I think 2 1/2 turns would pogo on my bike. | ||
| Tbowdre |
for us lightweights correct sag is impossible. I am 160 with gear and... well.... I forget what my actual measurement for the front was but much less than recommended. So i tried it with no preload in an attempt to get as close as possible. My bike handled like s#it. I am now at 4 turns in and manual recommended 3 for the rear its pretty solid Front compression 2.25 out front rebound 1.75 out rear compression 24 rear rebound 1.25 | ||
| Xb1200rick |
I might be 200 with gear. I had my suspension set up at wheelers because I just could not get it right . Tried the set up in the book etc... He set the front preload all the way out too. 1/2 rebound 1/4 compression. He said the springs were too heavy for my weight and the oil was too thin. BUT it does ride much better now .. The rear is set close to the book values . I think the CR with the high bars makes the difference in front preload settings Rick | ||
| 1125rrrred |
Bueller, Turn in is so much better, will try it a while (learn it's feel more) b/4 making changes - though even with minimal preload, fifty miles of (not overly aggressive) street riding is only showing 3" of fork travel (not counting free sag). Specs say almost 4.7" of available travel, so I don't think I'm too close to bottoming out yet. Doesn't feel bouncy with street bumps and the only track I've been on is way smoother than anything I see on the street. I am reasonably certain that hard riding on track would require firmer settings. My only thought is bikes are all a little different - give it what makes it happy. If my springs are a little stronger than average, I can see requiring less compression dampening to balance with the rear, but that does not explain less rebound. I understand the basic theory of balancing the suspension between front and rear and getting a reasonable sag set to keep the suspension working as close to mid-stroke as possible. Just have to put it into practice - lots to learn. Thats why I'm here ... Having said all that, you may be completely correct. I'll have a for real opinion one day: I'm a mite tad slow, but I'll catch on eventually. Thanks for your input. Greg | ||
| Dannybuell |
I find that the bike needs a bit more pre-load in front for the decel of the stock ECM. | ||
| Tbowdre |
Also consider tire pressure. this can be huge on these bikes and really changes turn in | ||
| Eece_ret |
Its interesting to hear that others have had similar findings with the preload up front, maybe spacers .5" longer than usual? With all the preload removed the front is still stable, zip ties show about 4 inches of travel being utilized. That was with some purposeful hard stops to induce dive (looking for bottoming out...) | ||
| Rpm4x4 |
I have been steadily setting it softer and softer I I feel its getting better. Im 230 with gear and I thought it was just me but I find the bike feeling waaay better the softer Im setting the preload. At least I know Im going the right direction. First off Im no suspension pro so dont everyone run out and follow my settings. Im just playing with stuff to get it to corner like my XB. Im 230 with gear I now have my front preload at 5 (down from 7) and my rear on 4(down from 5). compression and rebound are per manual. When I sit on the bike the rear drops about 1 1/2 inches but the front I have no idea. I like the ziptie idea!  Great thread topic BTW. Id like to hear what settings some of you are running. Especially some of the trackday guys. | ||
| 1125rrrred |
+1 On tire pressure. Just adding 2 psi helped turn in. Problem is I'm anticipating wanting to lower pressure slightly for the track and still want fast light turn in. Also considering tire change (Dunlop Q2). Road on a set at Barber (school bike) and was dually impressed (for my riding speeds) Apologies for hijacking the thread, but its all related. One hard lesson (for me) learned over the years - don't chase what the guy next door is doing. Good to know what works for someone else, but you have to learn your own equipment and what makes it happy based on how 'YOU' ride. | ||
| Drdorsey |
I am 240 plus gear. I keep the rear preload maxed out and the front soft. (mostly the front is skipping along anyway) This jacks the rear up helps the bike fall into the turn with a shift in the center of gravity. Gravity; not just a good idea. It's the law! | ||
| Mtch |
i took all the preload off the front today and its transformed the cr. loads more feedback from the tyre and better turn in. it made me feel a lot more confident in corners, just need to play with the back and the damping a bit more. | ||
| Captain_america |
Correct me if I'm wrong... Isn't some front end dive a good thing? Like as you are breaking into the turn, the front dives, shortens the wheelbase, and helps on turn in? I know they say that you should have your braking done before the turn but if you were slightly breaking going into it.... | ||
| Jdugger |
> I know they say that you should have your braking done before the turn but if you were slightly breaking going into it.... I'm not the fastest guy around, but I wouldn't say that at all. I would say you begin turn in under quite heavy braking and trail the brake off as you approach the apex of the corner, keeping the front tire quite committed. Yes, the front end dive makes the turn-in easier and allows the bike to turn a given radius at a given speed with less lean angle. It also gives you the option of giving back some of the brake if the front pushes, vs. the "turn then gas" method which gives you no options. | ||
| Pwillikers |
I've been frustrated trying to get my '09 cr to turn in and maintain a line. Since day one it has required way too much effort to initiate a turn and constant counter steer to maintain a line mid turn. In preparation for the first track day, at 5K miles, I replaced the Pirellis with Michelin Pilot Power 2CTs. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! With the Michelins, turn in is light and effortless and mid turn lines are maintained with no hands. Boy I wish I had done this sooner. I've always been a Pirelli fan. Not so much now. FACTS and SETTINGS: Rider weight: 185 lbs Front preload: 0 (as in none) Front vehicle sag: 15 mm Front rider sag: 34 mm Rear preload: 6 (notches up from none) Rear vehicle sag: 9 mm Rear rider sag: 32 mm (Message edited by pwillikers on August 09, 2010) | ||
| Mtch |
@ Captain_america i dont like the dive that happens with the stock comp damping setting for me at 170, so i have increased it quite a bit, but not sure of the setting @ Pwillikers. i found that that with corsa III's that were stock, my cr needed to be pushed into a corner, especially as the tired wore down. it was not a nice feeling at all as i felt like i was going to have some kind of accident or scary moment having to do that. i put a pair of michelin power pure's on and they are just great, very grippy and better turn in with no effort needed. i haven't measured sag, but am 0 preload on the front and notch 2 on the rear. rebound is slightly less than standard about 1/4 turn out. it might be that the pure's are lighter than some other tyres so dont affect the suspension so much. (Message edited by Mtch on August 09, 2010) |
