Fork revalve 2016 KX450

MXD
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Edited Date/Time 4/8/2016 7:34am
Has anyone revalved their 2016 KX450 forks? If so, what are your thoughts about the before/after? Who did you use?

Thanks
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MMCDan
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1/13/2016 12:11pm
I had mine done by Enzo (along with the shock) and I am extremely happy. I thought the forks worked well before the re-valve but now they are even better. I think they work as good, or possibly better, than the Enzo modified KYB forks on my 2015 YZ450F.
Titan1
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1/13/2016 12:13pm
How different are the forks on the '15 vs the '16?
MXD
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1/13/2016 12:14pm Edited Date/Time 1/13/2016 12:15pm
MMCDan wrote:
I had mine done by Enzo (along with the shock) and I am extremely happy. I thought the forks worked well before the re-valve but now...
I had mine done by Enzo (along with the shock) and I am extremely happy. I thought the forks worked well before the re-valve but now they are even better. I think they work as good, or possibly better, than the Enzo modified KYB forks on my 2015 YZ450F.
I feel like mine work well stock but I'm having trouble finding the balance between plushness and bottoming resistance. I feel like I'm close but there just isn't quite enough in the mid stroke to bridge the transition between the 2. I don't even know if that description makes sense. It does in my head tho....haha
1/13/2016 12:18pm
Titan1 wrote:
How different are the forks on the '15 vs the '16?
i also wanna know that

The Shop

keith101
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1/13/2016 12:46pm
MMCDan wrote:
I had mine done by Enzo (along with the shock) and I am extremely happy. I thought the forks worked well before the re-valve but now...
I had mine done by Enzo (along with the shock) and I am extremely happy. I thought the forks worked well before the re-valve but now they are even better. I think they work as good, or possibly better, than the Enzo modified KYB forks on my 2015 YZ450F.
MXD wrote:
I feel like mine work well stock but I'm having trouble finding the balance between plushness and bottoming resistance. I feel like I'm close but there...
I feel like mine work well stock but I'm having trouble finding the balance between plushness and bottoming resistance. I feel like I'm close but there just isn't quite enough in the mid stroke to bridge the transition between the 2. I don't even know if that description makes sense. It does in my head tho....haha
Simple fix.

Add 5-10cc's or add a small amount of air to your outer or the easiest test is to add compression (less clicks)

You can also play with a variety of air pressures and probably see some results. Having a balance chamber really opens the box in terms of playing with pressures to get the results you want. I run far different pressures than what my tuner calls for and they are plush and hold up well. There's no magic number, it's what works best for you.
mxb2
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1/13/2016 1:22pm
Showa has a pretty good app, to get started, if that doesnt work call factory connection,they have some really good settings for that suspension.
mxb2
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1/13/2016 1:24pm
Titan1 wrote:
How different are the forks on the '15 vs the '16?
Pretty sure they are the same,but ergos are different on the 15/16, and the 16 seems to work better, maybe frame, loss of weight helps the performance of the suspension.
mx510
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1/13/2016 1:32pm
MXD wrote:
Has anyone revalved their 2016 KX450 forks? If so, what are your thoughts about the before/after? Who did you use?

Thanks
I had my 2015 forks and shock re valved by EVO Industries and have been happy with it. For comfort I had to mess with the pressures a little while talking to Dan at EVO and almost immediately found a good setting. I would recommend it for sure, made the forks WAY better!
Bruce372
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1/13/2016 1:58pm
MXD wrote:
Has anyone revalved their 2016 KX450 forks? If so, what are your thoughts about the before/after? Who did you use?

Thanks
what you really mean is, i really like my forks, but i need a good excuse to get some A-kit parts??? Smile
Magic Man
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1/13/2016 2:09pm
I had Graeme Brough revalve both ends on mine and am very happy. He upped the oil levels on the forks, played with the shim stacks which solved my issues of frequent bottoming when trying to achieve plushness. I know the valving from the 2015 to the 2016 is different, so the Showa app doesn't quite work for the 2016 unless it's been updated as the last time I looked, it just listed the 2015. I'd say Graeme is the best bang for buck suspension guy I've tried and I've tried a few of the big guys.
Titan1
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1/13/2016 3:17pm
I just bought a 15 KX450...and my suspension is at TBT suspension in Arizona (well my shock is)...I'm going to play with the forks a bit before I spend money on them.

But I'd love to hear if anyone has some feedback on the forks for off road use?
mx510
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1/13/2016 4:22pm
Titan1 wrote:
I just bought a 15 KX450...and my suspension is at TBT suspension in Arizona (well my shock is)...I'm going to play with the forks a bit...
I just bought a 15 KX450...and my suspension is at TBT suspension in Arizona (well my shock is)...I'm going to play with the forks a bit before I spend money on them.

But I'd love to hear if anyone has some feedback on the forks for off road use?
My set up is a hybrid off-road/moto set up. Its basically a pretty stiff off road set up. I really like. the last month I have been riding at a place that has a moto track that with tight single track that connects it all. Around a 4-5 minute lap depending on what we run, and it has been really good. I am liking the forks, and according to the guy that does my stuff once it has been re done a lot of people are saying the same thing.
MXD
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1/13/2016 4:32pm
I have the app and I've spent a lot of time testing different air pressures. I settled on the ones that felt the best and adjusted the clickers from there. Overal, I'm happy with how they work stock but I'm now wondering how much better they can be. To Keith's point, the only thing I didn't play with is oil height. I'm a 225 pound Vet B MXer and my settings are 188 inner, 10 outer, 215 balance, 12 out compression and 10 out rebound.

The best way to describe it is if I set it up just stiff enough to give me comfortable bottoming resistance, I lose just a tad too much of the feel and plushness in the high speed stuff.
MXD
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1/13/2016 4:35pm Edited Date/Time 1/13/2016 4:36pm
Bruce372 wrote:
what you really mean is, i really like my forks, but i need a good excuse to get some A-kit parts??? Smile
I was speaking with my local suspension shop today and I told him point blank "I'm not opposed to just buying A kit spring forks from you" but he talked me out of it. He said we should try the revalve first because they are really good forks. When someone convinces you to spend $200 instead of $3000, they have instant credibility.
Titan1
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1/13/2016 4:47pm
Titan1 wrote:
I just bought a 15 KX450...and my suspension is at TBT suspension in Arizona (well my shock is)...I'm going to play with the forks a bit...
I just bought a 15 KX450...and my suspension is at TBT suspension in Arizona (well my shock is)...I'm going to play with the forks a bit before I spend money on them.

But I'd love to hear if anyone has some feedback on the forks for off road use?
mx510 wrote:
My set up is a hybrid off-road/moto set up. Its basically a pretty stiff off road set up. I really like. the last month I have...
My set up is a hybrid off-road/moto set up. Its basically a pretty stiff off road set up. I really like. the last month I have been riding at a place that has a moto track that with tight single track that connects it all. Around a 4-5 minute lap depending on what we run, and it has been really good. I am liking the forks, and according to the guy that does my stuff once it has been re done a lot of people are saying the same thing.
A pro friend of mine ran stock forks on his 15 last year (off-road). He said he really liked them, stock. And he gets free suspension work, so the fact that he didn't revalve them says a lot. (He did revalve his shock).

His opinion is why I'm going to play with the stock forks and then revalve if I feel like I have too.
mx510
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1/13/2016 6:46pm Edited Date/Time 1/13/2016 6:47pm
Titan1 wrote:
A pro friend of mine ran stock forks on his 15 last year (off-road). He said he really liked them, stock. And he gets free suspension...
A pro friend of mine ran stock forks on his 15 last year (off-road). He said he really liked them, stock. And he gets free suspension work, so the fact that he didn't revalve them says a lot. (He did revalve his shock).

His opinion is why I'm going to play with the stock forks and then revalve if I feel like I have too.
Stock, I thought the forks were alright, just felt harsh to me. The re valve fixed that. I have not been able to ride them on a track with a lot of high speed rough sections yet, for comparisons sake though, they feel similar to a most every other fork I have had and they all worked well, so I expect the same from these.
coastie44
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1/14/2016 11:00am
MXD wrote:
I have the app and I've spent a lot of time testing different air pressures. I settled on the ones that felt the best and adjusted...
I have the app and I've spent a lot of time testing different air pressures. I settled on the ones that felt the best and adjusted the clickers from there. Overal, I'm happy with how they work stock but I'm now wondering how much better they can be. To Keith's point, the only thing I didn't play with is oil height. I'm a 225 pound Vet B MXer and my settings are 188 inner, 10 outer, 215 balance, 12 out compression and 10 out rebound.

The best way to describe it is if I set it up just stiff enough to give me comfortable bottoming resistance, I lose just a tad too much of the feel and plushness in the high speed stuff.
"Feel" and "plushness" are orthogonal to each other.

When forks are plush, you lose feel of the front wheel.

I dont buy your description here at all.
MXD
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1/14/2016 11:25am Edited Date/Time 1/14/2016 11:30am
MXD wrote:
I have the app and I've spent a lot of time testing different air pressures. I settled on the ones that felt the best and adjusted...
I have the app and I've spent a lot of time testing different air pressures. I settled on the ones that felt the best and adjusted the clickers from there. Overal, I'm happy with how they work stock but I'm now wondering how much better they can be. To Keith's point, the only thing I didn't play with is oil height. I'm a 225 pound Vet B MXer and my settings are 188 inner, 10 outer, 215 balance, 12 out compression and 10 out rebound.

The best way to describe it is if I set it up just stiff enough to give me comfortable bottoming resistance, I lose just a tad too much of the feel and plushness in the high speed stuff.
coastie44 wrote:
"Feel" and "plushness" are orthogonal to each other. When forks are plush, you lose feel of the front wheel. I dont buy your description here at...
"Feel" and "plushness" are orthogonal to each other.

When forks are plush, you lose feel of the front wheel.

I dont buy your description here at all.
You're right, I just made the whole thing up so I could start a thread and feel important. Whistling

Let me try explaining it a different way. When the front end is nice and plush, it gives me a certain "feel" that is comfortable to me. However, at that level of plushness, I lose too much bottoming resistance. When I stiffen it up at all to regain some bottoming, I lose that plushness that I like and the comfortable "feel" is gone and replaced with an uncomfortable rigid feeling. Maybe your definition of feel is different than mine.
keith101
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1/14/2016 7:11pm
MXD, while you are quite a bit heavier than I, your balance pressure seems pretty high. Not sure what the max pressure is for the inner and balance on your bike (you may want to check), but my guess you are pretty close on the balance chamber?

In addition, running such a large variance between inner and balance, you typically see more in the range of 10psi or so variation. Running so much in your balance chamber must really be pulling the forks down for you to get the plushness you desire, but again, that seems pretty high. I'm just wondering what other pressure settings you've tested thus far?

I run the same pressure in both chambers now and it seems to offer a good mix of holding up and providing plushness, irrespective of clickers. I've never had any luck using outer pressure as it always introduces harshness, but will hold up in the mid and latter part of the stroke, but at the expense of plushness. Just wondering if you had any success with settings that eliminate outer pressure?
coastie44
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1/14/2016 7:14pm
Ok I see. Usually "feel" when talking about fork settings is that you can "feel" the tire as it rolls over ground/obstacles but that it is not harsh or spikey.

To me, "plush" means you cant really feel the small stuff at all.

Maybe supple is a better term. Smile
MXD
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1/15/2016 5:46am
keith101 wrote:
MXD, while you are quite a bit heavier than I, your balance pressure seems pretty high. Not sure what the max pressure is for the inner...
MXD, while you are quite a bit heavier than I, your balance pressure seems pretty high. Not sure what the max pressure is for the inner and balance on your bike (you may want to check), but my guess you are pretty close on the balance chamber?

In addition, running such a large variance between inner and balance, you typically see more in the range of 10psi or so variation. Running so much in your balance chamber must really be pulling the forks down for you to get the plushness you desire, but again, that seems pretty high. I'm just wondering what other pressure settings you've tested thus far?

I run the same pressure in both chambers now and it seems to offer a good mix of holding up and providing plushness, irrespective of clickers. I've never had any luck using outer pressure as it always introduces harshness, but will hold up in the mid and latter part of the stroke, but at the expense of plushness. Just wondering if you had any success with settings that eliminate outer pressure?
I think the max balance chamber pressure is 218 but I'm not 100% sure. I do know that it is something near my setting but I still have a little margin.

The initial settings that FC gave me for my weight and ability were 174/10/215 clickers were 8/10 C/R. I tried those and it felt way too soft. Next I started walking the IC up about 3-4 psi at a time. 188 felt the best. It was the turning point between feeling better and getting worse but it was still a bit harsh so I started backing out on the compression. 12 out on comp gave me the best feel. Again, 12 was the turning point between getting better and getting worse. Any more than that and it seemed to ride too low and blow through a little. Once I settled there, I experimented all over the map to get an idea of what was out there. I have a friend with the same fork (except with a revalve) who is about the same weight and he is running 185/0/185 and loves it. I tried that and I didn't like it at all. I'd have to go out to the trailer to check my notes to see what my complaints were as I don't recall exactly but I remember it feeling very uncomfortable

Again, I want to stress that if this was as good as it could get, I wouldn't be upset. I'm just doing what dirt bikers do. We can't leave well enough alone hahaha. I feel like I can open up the window where plush and stiff overlap a little bit more.
Trav138
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1/15/2016 6:52am
coastie44 wrote:
Ok I see. Usually "feel" when talking about fork settings is that you can "feel" the tire as it rolls over ground/obstacles but that it is...
Ok I see. Usually "feel" when talking about fork settings is that you can "feel" the tire as it rolls over ground/obstacles but that it is not harsh or spikey.

To me, "plush" means you cant really feel the small stuff at all.

Maybe supple is a better term. Smile
fortunately this thread isn't about you and the only thing you contributed is the lack of comprehension you seem to have an abundence of!
BlueThumper
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1/15/2016 9:08am
Just received my suspension back from Factory Connection and put it all back on the bike this morning. Interested to see the difference from stock. I'm 6'3", 220lbs. Below are the settings they sent me.



MXD
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1/15/2016 9:10am
Just received my suspension back from Factory Connection and put it all back on the bike this morning. Interested to see the difference from stock. I'm...
Just received my suspension back from Factory Connection and put it all back on the bike this morning. Interested to see the difference from stock. I'm 6'3", 220lbs. Below are the settings they sent me.



Please let us know how it goes. We are close in weight so I'm very interested. Thanks
mx317
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1/15/2016 9:20am
Interesting to see fork tube height at 2mm. MB1 recommended to me to run at cap bottom (0mm) while stock is 5mm. Sounds like MB1 and FC are close with 2 and 0mm. I've kept it at 5mm, but I'm going to try less now.
MXD
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1/15/2016 9:23am Edited Date/Time 1/15/2016 9:25am
mx317 wrote:
Interesting to see fork tube height at 2mm. MB1 recommended to me to run at cap bottom (0mm) while stock is 5mm. Sounds like MB1 and...
Interesting to see fork tube height at 2mm. MB1 recommended to me to run at cap bottom (0mm) while stock is 5mm. Sounds like MB1 and FC are close with 2 and 0mm. I've kept it at 5mm, but I'm going to try less now.
I noticed that as well. I love the way it turns and coming off of a Suzuki, it feels as stable as can be to me at 5mm haha.

EDIT: It's also interesting that they went up in oil level from 345 to 360 (I'm pretty sure 345 was stock).
1/15/2016 10:33am
has anyone tried skf low friktion kit ? im thinking rg3 revalve and smart valve and skf low friktion kit.
has anyone done something like that ?
1/15/2016 12:11pm Edited Date/Time 1/15/2016 12:12pm
I had RaceTech rebuild the TAC forks on my '15 and these are the settings they recommend:

190lb rider (without gear)
Damper side 350cc oil
Air side in 100cc / Out 320cc / Tac 10cc
Inner 180psi / Outer 10psi / Bal 190psi

Night and day difference after the rebuild! So much better than stock.
coastie44
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1/15/2016 2:42pm Edited Date/Time 1/16/2016 6:38am
Trav138 wrote:
fortunately this thread isn't about you and the only thing you contributed is the lack of comprehension you seem to have an abundence of!
Not sure why you need to be all butthurt about it?? I clarified my thoughts and understood op's response.

Do you even lift bro?

MXD
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1/22/2016 10:58am
Just received my suspension back from Factory Connection and put it all back on the bike this morning. Interested to see the difference from stock. I'm...
Just received my suspension back from Factory Connection and put it all back on the bike this morning. Interested to see the difference from stock. I'm 6'3", 220lbs. Below are the settings they sent me.



Have you had a chance to ride it yet?

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