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1/9/2016
Location
Malvern, PA
US
ben5020
12/3/2019 12:52pm
12/3/2019 12:52pm
Edited Date/Time
12/4/2019 9:59am
Have you guys ever switched suspension tuners just to see their “take” on your bike and springers? Can they get it just that much better?I’ve used FC and they were decent but I always suffered from some head shake and we could never get it right on my 15 yz250f and 14 crf270, so when I bought my fc350 I knew it was time to upgrade to some kyb’s because I didn’t care for the small chop harshness that came from the aer so I went with the guy whose at most of the local races and has a good reputation. We started outbuilding a set of kyb and they were pretty awesome, huge improvement over the aer forks, I then bought PC national spring tubes so he went back in for surgery and did what he thought would be good, it’s pretty decent but I’ve gone up in oil 10cc that has helped with the mid blow through I think I’m feeling, we spoke and said he would go back in and change the valving if I want with that being said would you go back to him and keep working together to get them dialed in or would you go with let’s say Enzo who is one of the best kyb tuners out there and is familiar with pc spring tubes.... the whole reason why I post this is because a buddy of mine has a ktm450 with cone valves and they felt freaking amazing, like my bike has always felt pretty damn great compared to others bikes but this one got the wheels spinning. What to do?
Go with a new guy who can most likely get me dialed in first try, or keep working with my guy and see what happens?
Go with a new guy who can most likely get me dialed in first try, or keep working with my guy and see what happens?
The Shop
show us your credentials... where did you finish in the Outdoor nationals?
You don't need extensive suspension tuning to ride it & enjoy it though.
Id question if this suspension stuff is in fact bringing him joy..... sounds like he's head-fucked to me.. Get on it, ride it, smile!
I play guitar, and I don't NEED anything more than a midrange $400 Epiphone, but goddamnit, I sure do like my Gibsons and I sure do want a $3,000 PRS. If someone wants to spend some extra money to help grow the industry, let em. Unless they're struggling to pay other bills.
And not trying to be a dick, but the AER’s are really good with small chop. Should feel like pillows. That’s a strength, that and bottoming, so I’m questioning your personal settings. CV’s are not magic and either are KYB SSS, but you wouldn’t know it because... internet opinions.
Rant alert! 89% of us we don’t spend the time at tracks testing sections back and forth, screwdriver stuck in a tree/dirt, trying this, that, until it’s the best it can be and doing that at ALL the tracks you ride. (I am bad about this too, but find when I do take the time it pays off BIGLY.)
If it’s still not feeling great communicate that back to tuner. Somehow we expect the tuners to read our minds and deliver a set of suspension with the exact valving and clicker settings that work perfectly out of the box. Gotta click that shit. Track to track. So many guys don’t hardly touch suspension clickers. It’s weird.
Pit Row
I could spend that 2k on some bad ass forks but I don’t think it would bring me as much joy.
1. It takes several swings at the tuning bat to get things working well...then go to a new track and hit the reset button.
2. This is why all the teams have a suspension guy...they make changes all the time. They adjust to tracks and track conditions.
3. Stick with one suspension tuner you like, that will redo stuff and that gets you closer to the mark with each try. This is normal and the tuner should enjoy this process too. However, if each try gets you further from the mark... you may have someone that doesn't understand you (or you're not explaining what's going on correctly) or doesn't understand that fork or shock and which mods to make to get it to work as you want.
4. Learn how to do it yourself. Infact, I had a problem with a tuner back in 1988 and had to go back to him several times. He'd argue with me when I brought it back. So I said screw that..... I called a buddy that had done a few shocks then called another buddy that ran Fox Racing Shocks Power sports division and worked there for 23 years. It took one 20 min white board session for me to understand a few simple concepts of valve stack building and I was off on my own. Have not let anyone touch my forks or shock since then but myself.
5. Recently a kid moved into my neighborhood that had a garage full of bikes... moto and bicycles. There were also several ALTA motorcycles in there too. So I stopped one day and said hi.. asked about the ALTA's. Turns out he was the chassis engineer at ALTA till it shut down. And ALTA hired Dave Arnold (ex Honda Team manager) to work with him on chassis design. I started to explain to him the issue I'm having with getting the valving on a 2016 KTM 350 XC-F to work and he got out a pen and drew the linkage curve on a piece of cardboard in his garage. He said this is what is happening... And KTM does this so they can put the lightest shock spring on the bike to keep the weight down.
6. So I start reading about various linkage options from PR2 and ProCircuit for that bike. Their reason for the linkage in the product description describe the EXACT issue I'm running into! So I purchase a knuckle from a company called Luxon MX for the bike and now.... now I have to go in and revalve and possible respring the rear shock... But all the while it's getting better. And now I'm learning the linkage game... They go hand in hand. Goofy linkage curves will make your valving chase a NIGHTMARE!
7. So that's the process... get used to it! And enjoy it.
Good suspension can take a mid pack C rider to the front of the pack C rider, or a mid pack B rider to a front B rider.
Good suspension allows you to gain confidence in hitting things from braking bumps, acceleration bumps and jumps and will allow you to ride better and faster overall.
So you need suspension setup and dialed in for you specifically? Absolutely, Yes! It makes a bigger difference than a pipe, graphics or anodized parts ever will.
Your buddy had dream like Cone Valves..... Buy a set for yourself!
Case closed.
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