rob162 wrote:
So with the talk of the 49mm showas being cheap A-Kit or derived from A-kit. How does this stack up with the fact that it now has factory coatings on it.
Obviously suspension really depends on personal set up and valving. But how does stock 49mm, the WE 49mm and A-kit compare to each other. Same question with the shock.
The stock 49mm Showa suspension that comes on the let's say "base" CRF450 is going to have the 49MM fork tubes, but have production based internals for the fork and shock.
The "works edition" Showa suspension has the same internals as the "base" Showa suspension, but will have the fancy coatings that Honda claims to provide better small bump absorption and finer movement. Coming from mountain biking and snowmobiling, Kashima coating and Titanium nitride coatings on shock parts really don't make all that big of a difference for the average guy. Titanium nitride on the fork legs is a hard coating that is used to prevent wear on the shafts. Looks cool, but for the average guy it will just be a placebo effect. Ohh its a different color, has to work 10x better than stock.
Lastly, Showa A-Kit is going to feature the same 49mm forks and coatings on the base and works forks. However, the fork internals and shock internals are where the biggest differences are. The fork is going to have billet bottom fork lugs, a larger piston in the fork, 39mm subtank, and dimple processed outer tubes. The shock is going to have a larger shock shaft diameter, 30mm compression adjuster, and a 50mm billet shock body.
Upgrading to real A-kit is the best option and value. The Works edition is just "pretty" stock suspension.