So I've been trying to dial in my settings on these air forks. I ride in SWFL (74 *closed*, Sandlot *closed*, and Lazy Springs) and I honestly feel that the sand down here at the tracks is incredibly different, even to other tracks in Florida like Motobros or Pax. Not just the consistency of the sand but also how the track develops (blows out) during the day.
Found a post by Chris Keefer that breaks it down between east and west settings for a '21 350. I've been running these settings at the tracks for the last six months but it seems that the stiffness is getting to me when the track develops a lot of breaking/acceleration bumps but if I decrease compression to make it softer it tends to fold/dig/plow in the deep ass sand in the turns. Same with the air, if I let air out of the fork, the bike won't stay on top of the dirt and the front end tends to dig into the turn even if I'm sitting back.
2021 KTM 350 SX-F
East Setting:
Fork:
Height: Second Line
Air: 162-164 PSI
C: 13 out
R: 20 out
Shock:
Sag: 98mm
HSC: 1.5 out
LSC: 8 out
R: 16 out
If anybody with the same suspension or knowledge of it could leave me any tips or clicker settings/air pressure in the fork that would be fantastic.
If the settings don't change anything I might switch over to XACT 6500/Racetech spring conversion since it seems everybody that has it loves it but from what I gather the AER suspension is not bad for deep sandy conditions.
Thanks!
There is a KTM app on the iphone (and maybe android) that will give recommended settings for rider weight, skill level, track type, etc. Here is the settings for your bike for sand and a B rider with 85kg weight and about 10 lbs of gear on.
Fork: comp 5 clicks, rebound 14, pressure 10.7 bar, height 0 rings
Shock: LS comp 8, HS comp 1 turn, reb 8
Does this work? I don't know but it gives you somewhere to start and you can see they recommend much stiffer settings for sand.
It doesn't give a sag recommendation other than the baseline from the manual but you usually want more sag in sand. 98mm is probably not nearly enough.
Agree with the sag suggestion, I run 103-105 on my KTM”s in any conditions. I don’t run the Aer forks, but when I did, I could get them feeling pretty good in sand, it’s the square edge that can challenge the Aer”s….
I am a 50+ rider that sucks but for what it’s worth I was told to run 108 to 110 sag at Southwick
Really helps to let you surf the sand and not knife the front end
Check sag…..adjust sag first up and then down. See if that change helps alleviate the feeling. How high up are the forks in the clamps? Change that……try both up and down. Then come back on here and report your findings
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My findings with my 22 SXF 350 with the air forks and shock.
I live in Pennsylvania, so our tracks are loamy clay with deep ruts. One track we race is in south Jersey which is the closest we get to a sand track and that probably doesnt compare to the sand you run in. But I make fairly significant changes just planning on running on that track compared to the others. Now, I also really do like the air forks on my bike and the shock, but I didnt hate my 17 KX450 air forks either.
My opinion, and I am a loyal Keefer fan and I think he is an expert in testing then putting his findings into simple words for us average guys, is that the Keefer settings are way to stiff. We have to remember that Keefer is a pro rider and his testers are all very good dirt bike riders. This demands stiffer suspension and stiffer settings. I also read the east vs west coast settings, but he had Kenny Day test the bike and suspension for the east coast settings. Kenny Day is blazing fast and an expert on a bike. Simply put, we all agree the way to ride sand is to attack it and carry speed, which is a talent in its own.
So back to my settings; I ran the Keefer west and east coast settings thinking that since im probably 25-30 pounds heavier than Keefer and 50 pounds heavier that Day the settings would work for me. Not even close, way to stiff. A fast B rider took my bike out one day at a soft deep tilled track and he is lighter than me. He came back and said my forks were way to stiff.
I was running 152 PSI C at about 16-18 R 15-17--Shock 100mm sag and clickers right about stock settings My buddy said drop 12 PSI and see how it felt, I thought he was crazy, but tried it and it was unbelievably better. So I dropped to 140 PSI and then started dialing in the clickers and found myself going out on compression and finally stopped at about 26-28 out, then adjusted rebound accordingly.
So when going to our "sand" track I found adding 4 PSI to the fork 2-4 clicks in on compression and also dropping sag to closer to 103-104 got the front end up a touch more to ride on top was the key.
Sorry for the long post, but I add thats the beautiful thing about the air forks, you can play with a wide range of pressures to where you can feel comfortable, then dial in with the clickers.
Thank you for that in-depth explanation. I realize I should've added more info to my original post.
I'm 6"1 170 lbs. Been riding for about a year and a half but I would like to say that I'm pretty decent for how long I've been on the bike. I clear the triples at every track I've been to except the Sandlot cause that shit was 140 ft long and I was only riding for 6 months at that point
My forks are showing 0 rings from the top so its alllll the way as low in the triple clamp as they can go. I've got 160 psi in the fork which is probably where I'm going to start first after reading your post.
Gonna try to see how 150 feels without changing anything else. Will set sag a bit higher to 105.
Next I will try the settings from the KTM App for my weight and conditions that wrc777 showed me.
From there it's probably going to just be trial and error. I'm going to be doing the Motoacademy at Motobros with AJ Catanzaro on Tuesday so hopefully some of the guys there will be able to help me out while I'm on the bike.
Thanks for all the replies you've all been incredibly helpful!
I’m probably not much help, but for me I’ve found with AER forks I need to find the PSI that works best for my skill and weight and not mess with a different PSI once found. Then I just make adjustments to comp and rebound.
I agree with Keefer’s settings being stiff for most of us mortals. I like to compare Keefer’s settings to those from MXA. Sometimes they are pretty close, sometimes they are a bigger spread. I like to try the different settings at different tracks to see which is the best all around for me.
I'm on a 22 GasGas 350, 150lb wet weight. Also, found 140psi is really good for the XACT forks. My rebound is pretty far in at 8 and comp is 14.
What's your weight and rebound on your forks. Your comp seems so far out. I think I bottomed trying that far out! 14 out has been comfortable and saved me during OJs.
Also, curious on your shock settings?
I ride NJ Field of Dreams every weekend. I assume that's what you mean by South NJ track.
Hawk, well I weigh more than you and im 51 years old. I weigh 200 on a good day and I race C class. So obviously our settings will be much different especially if you are a send it type of guy, im not. Im too old to be breaking bones and pulling muscles, lol.
I can understand why some may think my comp is too far out at the mid to high 20s. However, im not maxed out on comp and Ive found over the chop on say a Doublin Gap, Pagoda, or Sleepy Hollow track the (fast/looser/less) compression damping soaks up the chop nicely, for my riding style. Again remember im an old guy that wants comfort. I would also concede a revalve would probably advisable, but I got it where I like it without spending the money.
So rebound Im at 19 out. For rebound most of my adjustments come from the feel in the corners, then the twitchyness of the front end at speed, and finally the reaction in long chop sections. As you can see by my setting I like a free feeling in the forks.
My shock settings sag 103mm-100mm sag, I hate the KTM squat at 105mm. HS Comp 2 1/4 - 2 3/8 out LSComp 17 out, Rebound 13 out. These settings are for the loamy clay based tracks in PA. I race day is tilled especially deep I'll stiffen comp up just a touch and by the days end when there tends to be hard pack I'll loosen comp up.
At Field of Dreams my settings are 105mm sag, then I need more squat to lighten the front end on corner entrance under hard braking and corner exit to get the front end to "want" to float over acceleration chop. I increase air 4-6 PSI which is 2-3 spring rates, or the front end dives in corners and will tend to knife dramatically in that sandy soil. The shock I go to 2 turns out on HS, and the LS comp and rebound I play with after a couple laps. Usually finding my self going in a couple clicks on Com and out on rebound 1-2. All that depends on how it tracks through a corner and on exit. Example, if it feels wollowy coming out under acceleration I go in 2 clicks at a time on LS comp and if the rear end is snapping back I'll try slow rebound a click or 2.
I know its a long response, but im a suspension geek, lol. I tweak and play with my suspension all the time sometimes back everything out or run it all the way in, or go way in on one and way out on another and ride it just to feel the difference on different soils.
So first thing is our weight is obvious different and probably more importantly, Im not a hit the triple guy, too old for that.
You also hit on another thing I didnt and thats the forks in the triple clamps, If I rode in sand, mostly, yeah Id definitely run the forks low in the clamps. However, I havent changed my ride height at all on my bike and I cant tell anyone the feeling on the KTM. However, 1-2mm made a noticeable difference in corners and high speed stability.
Look im no expert, but Ive been on dirt bike for 45 years and the suspension has always intrigued me. So I end up being the one in the pits helping my buddies set sag and dial in their suspension. And I tell all of them just write down your baseline settings and from there dont be afraid to make changes, especially on the airforks. It takes nothing to add and subtract air and turn clickers. You cant hurt anything unless you go way too free and are bottoming out over every obstacle, then maybe you start breaking shims, and thats a maybe.
I appreciate all of your insight! I ended up seeing what the settings from the KTM app for my weight would feel like and I have to admit it's pretty spot on. I rode Tampa MX which is hardpack and had used the settings from the app, bike felt great.
I'm starting to also learn that a lot of the trouble I'm having turning in deep sand stems from my body position being too forward on the bike rather than having anything to do with the suspension.
Going to try these settings at Motobros tomorrow and hopefully AJ or one of the other coaches can give me some pointers.
Thank you for the additional information and don't worry about the long response. Better to have the details than not. I'm also pretty into suspension.
I understand now why your comp and rebound are so far out. These forks really suck up every little bump if you soften the comp up a lot and it doesn't sound like you necessarily need the safety net for accidental over jumps.
NJ FOD definitely has a lot of acceleration and braking bumps. That's been my struggle. The bars start bouncing side to side over acceleration chop and the square edge holes are quite sharp/not being absorbed. I've heard of many people going 15-20 out on rebound to free up the forks and I'm hoping that will allow the forks to suck up the job/react faster. I just hope there isn't excessive rebound when casing jumps. I like my suspension to be very dead when casing so I can't be bucked off the bike during rebound.
Shock-wise, I'm HS: 1.75 (played with it a lot), LS: 15 (stock, haven't touched it), rebound 6 (using the low friction piston band), sag 104mm (played with it a lot and very happy). Going to HS: =>2.0 gave a wallowing under acceleration in turns, but square edge felt better. I'm thinking I could go to HS: 2.0-2.5 if I compensate for wallowing by going in on LS. The only question is if the opened up high speed will cause bottoming on jump faces?
Thoughts?
Also, I'm intrigued by the KTMconnect app suggestions. Might try exactly the caluclated setting just to see how it feels. I'd never try such drastic changes all at once otherwise. Unfortunately, I only ride once a week and sometimes changing one thing at a time is too slow. Though I've been doing a good job of sticking to one change at a time recently.
I run 105 at southwick on my 23 350
What spring rate are you running for the shock?
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