[TMFD]

can someone please tell me where the suspension and ride adjustments knobs are for my '03 rc? actually, i know where they're at, but which name goes with which knob? i have a nice set-up i want to dial in but which are pre-load and dampening and all that?

example: sitting on the bike, the lower left knob next to the front rotor is...?

extremely noobish, i know. but the settings were faxed to me by a friend to fit my weight (215lbs) but i have no idea which knob does what. thanks!

 

[Allen03RC]

Subsailor could prob tell ya.
I would have no idea what to do either.

 

[TMFD]

yeah i'm hoping he'll have time soon. i forgot i was in the "new member introduction" section when i posted so if a mod wants to move it, i understand.

a couple of the settings say '6 clicks out'. from what? full soft? full hard?

 

[SubSailor]

This is based on the SP2 forks and shock.
The SP1's have slightly different fork pre-load adjuster hex sizes.

Important Note:
GENTLY bottom out the adjusters.
Do NOT use a lot of force to crank the damping adjusters to their extreme settings. You can permanently damage their valves.

At the front, the fork adjusters are:
1) The 22mm hex fitting at the top of the forks is the spring pre-load adjuster.
Turn each and equal amount CW to increase spring pre-load, turn CCW to reduce spring pre-load.
The factory setting is: From all way CCW, turn CW 6 turns.
2) The slotted adjuster in the middle of the pre-load adjuster is for rebound.
These adjusters have no detent clicks, it is infinitely adjustable.
They have a reference punch mark near the slot. Turn the adjuster(s) all way in and then count number and fraction of turns out.
Turn right to increase rebound damping, turn left to decrease rebound damping.
The factory setting is: From full CW, turn adjuster(s) CCW 1 turn to align punch marks.
3) The black knobs at the bottom of the forks are the compression damping adjusters.
If you're looking vertically down on the top of the knob(s), turn CW to increase compression damping, turn CCW to decrease compression damping.
The adjusters do have detents. Here you can count the number of clicks out from full in.
The factory setting is: Turn knob(s) full CW, then CCW 12 clicks.

At the rear, for stock shocks
1) The compression adjuster is at the top of the shock on the right. It has detents.
Turn the knob CW to increase damping, CCW to decrease.
The standard factory setting is: From full CW in, turn CCW 10 clicks.
2) The rebound setting is near the bottom of the shock mount on the right.
It is a slotted adjuster.
For factory setting: Turn adjuster CW until it LIGHTLY seats, the CCW one turn to align the two reference punch marks.
3) The pre-load adjuster is a stepped ramp type with 9 settings.
Position 1 is the least pre-load, 9 the greatest.
Position 5 is factory setting.

 

[SubSailor]

yeah i'm hoping he'll have time soon. i forgot i was in the "new member introduction" section when i posted so if a mod wants to move it, i understand.

a couple of the settings say '6 clicks out'. from what? full soft? full hard?

Most damping adjustments are referenced from the full in (CW) or firmest setting.
So your example would be 6 clicks out (CCW) from full in.
And usually adjusters are rotated clockwise to their full in stops.

As a very important reminder:
When adjusting the damping adjusters, do NOT use force to run CW or CCW to either stop. LIGHTLY (as in with finger tips) feel when the adjuster reaches it's limit.
If you don't, you will permanently damage the damping valves.

 

[pushover]

anybody have specific suspension set ups for there weight. I know superbikes used to do it in some issues set up my r1 with there guide and it was great.

 

[SubSailor]

1) What's your weight?
2) Using it for street or track?
2) If street use, how are the roads in your area, smooth or rough?
3) What is your riding style, cruising around or agressive?
4) Is your suspension stock or has it been upgraded or reworked?

I myself weight 235 lbs.
I ride 99.9% street, and tend to ride "sportingly" in-town and can ride agressively out in the country.
My front forks were reworked by Kyle Racing and re-sprung/re-valved.
The streets in my area are generally in the middle to slightly rough.
While we have no potholes, we have crosswalks that border on mini-speed bumps.
So I've had to allow more compliance than I would desire.
Literally some of these crosswalks can be over an inch high and can pop the wheel off the ground if the front has too much compression damping or pre-load dialed in.
So for my forks I'm currently testing pre-load of 8 turns out from full still, 21-22 clicks out for compression, and 1.5 turns out on rebound.

 

[TMFD]

subsailor, you are the man. it's guys like you that make me love riding so much. much appreciated, my friend.

 

[TMFD]

pushover, i'm 6'4" and weigh 215lbs. here's a setting i was given by a similarly sized friend, who rides an '04 rc. unfortunately he's a pretty aggressive rider, which i am not.

front pre-load: 6 turns out
front rebound damp: 2.25 turns out
front compression damp: 10 clicks out
rear pre-load: position 5 from full soft
rear rebound damp: 1 turn out
rear compression damp: 6 clicks out

at the risk of seeming like a beggar to subsailor, please feel free to make any suggestions to these settings. i ride 100% street, prefer an easy pace, run stock suspension components and live in a metro area with pretty decent roads.

 

[pushover]

cool ill give it a try and see what happens

 

[SubSailor]

pushover, i'm 6'4" and weigh 215lbs. here's a setting i was given by a similarly sized friend, who rides an '04 rc. unfortunately he's a pretty aggressive rider, which i am not.

front pre-load: 6 turns out
front rebound damp: 2.25 turns out
front compression damp: 10 clicks out
rear pre-load: position 5 from full soft
rear rebound damp: 1 turn out
rear compression damp: 6 clicks out

at the risk of seeming like a beggar to subsailor, please feel free to make any suggestions to these settings. i ride 100% street, prefer an easy pace, run stock suspension components and live in a metro area with pretty decent roads.

Suspension settings are all subjective. What feels good for someone is lousy to another.
About the only measurable setting is for static and rider sag.
Start with a base setting and keep notes so you can go back if it doesn't work.
I tried to use a similar setup to the one above and it was great on smooth, new sections of road, but got beat up on the older, rougher sections.
So I've had to compromise and soften the bike to cope.

 

[SubSailor]

Looked at the notes on my suspension.
When received from Kyle Racing, the base settings were:
Forks:
Pre-load: 8 turns in from full out.
Compression: 14 clicks out from full in.
Rebound: 1.5 turns out from full in.
This is with 11N/mm springs in both fork legs.
(Note: To match the forks to rider weight, you can have different rate springs for each fork leg).

For my Ohlins 3-way w/hydraulic pre-load:
Preload: 20mm at shock collar and 0 at hydraulic pre-load.
Hi-speed compression: 30 clicks out from full in.
Lo-speed compression: 10 clicks out from full in.
Rebound: 12 clicks out from full in.
This is based on 11N/mm spring rate.
I also have a Kyle Racing lower link that requires a slightly stiffer spring.

 

[larry9901]

1) What's your weight?
2) Using it for street or track?
2) If street use, how are the roads in your area, smooth or rough?
3) What is your riding style, cruising around or agressive?
4) Is your suspension stock or has it been upgraded or reworked?

I myself weight 235 lbs.
I ride 99.9% street, and tend to ride "sportingly" in-town and can ride agressively out in the country.
My front forks were reworked by Kyle Racing and re-sprung/re-valved.
The streets in my area are generally in the middle to slightly rough.
While we have no potholes, we have crosswalks that border on mini-speed bumps.
So I've had to allow more compliance than I would desire.
Literally some of these crosswalks can be over an inch high and can pop the wheel off the ground if the front has too much compression damping or pre-load dialed in.
So for my forks I'm currently testing pre-load of 8 turns out from full still, 21-22 clicks out for compression, and 1.5 turns out on rebound.

Hi subsailor,

I was wondering if you could help me out with my suspension. It is a bit stiff and I would like to optimize both front and rear as much as possible.

ITs a 2001 with stock suspension

ITs for street (michigan roads, fairly bumpy)
mostly cruising around riding
I am 150 lbs

Please advise at settings you would start with.

Greatly appreciated,
Larry

 

[SubSailor]

Hi subsailor,

I was wondering if you could help me out with my suspension. It is a bit stiff and I would like to optimize both front and rear as much as possible.

ITs a 2001 with stock suspension

ITs for street (michigan roads, fairly bumpy)
mostly cruising around riding
I am 150 lbs

Please advise at settings you would start with.

Greatly appreciated,
Larry

I lived in the western Detroit suburbs in the late '80s and recently visited again for business. I noticed nothing's changed in the intervening years.

That's going to be difficult to reach a compromise between handling and compliance.
To tweak the bike for great handling will beat you to death on the frost heaves.
And softening the bike to handle those, will make the bike tend to wallow when ridden aggressively.

All I can say is start at the base factory settings, then start adjusting from there.
Take notes so you can keep track of what seems to work.
Rebound has the greatest affect on handling and compression to a lesser degree.

In your notes, consider these alternate descriptions for your adjustments:
For Compression: think Hard or Soft.
For Rebound: think Slow or Quick.
So for instance, did your forks react to the bump soft or hard? And did the forks extend slow or quick?
Then tweak your settings based on those descriptions and note the settings.

A common failure is to confuse too much rebound damping with too much compression damping as the two can appear similar at a certain point.
So if the two get confusing, back off then try again.

Also most OEM cartridge forks use 10 wt. fork oil.
Depending on the weather conditions and how harsh the forks behave on compression, you can replace the 10 wt. oil for a lighter weight, say 5 to 7.5 wt. to soften the response.

Also replacing the springs for ones that match your weight is also important.
Especially if your weight is significantly outside the "standard" rider weight of 150-160 lbs.