suspension tuning

I bought the Lee Parks Total Control book recently and read the suspension chapter over and over. I think I finally found my suspension sweet spot. I have been playing with the adjustment for weeks now and finally took the time to adjust the sag properly. I think that was the key I was missing. My initial sag was incorrect which was affecting everything else. The rear preload was way too weak but I couldn't tell sitting on it. I set the rear shock Ohlins to 35 millimeter riders sag. that has made all the difference. the stability is back. smoothness and plushness is back. The entire ride is improved. now I was able to lower the compression settings drastically and get the plush feeling back and still have incredible feeling handling while I am riding.

Here is what I wound up with.

Rear rider sag 35mm.

Rear compression 18 clicks out

Rear rebound 14 clicks out

Front preload 2nd line EDIT (about 20 mm)

Front compression 16 clicks out

Front rebound 12 clicks out.

I ride a gen II. I am 5'11" 185 LBS.

Have the Ohlins YA-707 rear

And the GP suspension rebuild of the front forks.

I was disappointed for a long time with how much money I spent and the results I got. Now after realizing that it was just the rider sag that was screwing everything up I am more than satisfied with the results that I got for the money I spent. GP suspension is well worth it. just pay attention when you initially install if you do it yourself. I didn't think that I needed to measure the rider sag. I thought I could just do it by feel. You can't you need to measure. trust me, it makes all the difference. The Lee Parks Book by the way is great reading. I plan on taking the total control riding clinic so I wanted a little head start on the course. Which is why I bought the book.

Excellent. Those are my specs so when I do the suspension, I'll use these as a baseline to build on.

You need to measure the front sag just like you did on the rear. Looking at the marks on the fork preload adjuster doesn't tell you anything about your actual sag number. Somewhere between 28 and 33% of the total front suspension travel is in the ball park for the sag. How do I know this? I wrote the suspension chapter in Lee's book. Have fun. Tracy...

Seriously? Wow. Nice job on it.

I should have been more clear on what I did. After measuring the sag on the front; 2 lines showing is where I wound up at. You know that when I have suspension questions I'm coming after you from now on right? .... And your cell number is??? JK

3dogs said:

Somewhere between 28 and 33% of the total front suspension travel is in the ball park for the sag.

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What is this number for our FJR's ?

I put on new forks and got the unloaded length, but not the fully compressed length.

Aasland said:

3dogs said:

Somewhere between 28 and 33% of the total front suspension travel is in the ball park for the sag.

Click to expand...

What is this number for our FJR's ?

I put on new forks and got the unloaded length, but not the fully compressed length.

Click to expand...

Don't know off hand. It's in the owners or service manual.

Ah yes .. in the Bin'o'Facts:

Front: 5.31 inches = 135 mm... 28-33% = 37-45 mm sag

Rear: 4.92 inches = 125 mm ... 28-33% = 35-42 mm sag

I believe that I read, Ideally you want to have equal sag in the front and the rear.

DailyCommuter said:

I believe that I read, Ideally you want to have equal sag in the front and the rear.

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Yes, Ideally. but the sag setting are more important to the relation of the spring(s) and the weight they have to support (bike and rider). You can "play" with the sag settings to get the bike to handle differently provided that you are still in the ball park of 28-33%. Slightly lower sag at the front (and higher in the rear) will make the bike turn more easily. The opposite will provide slightly more straight-line stability. A ride height adjustment for either front or rear is the better way to change handling even though sag adjustment does affect ride height.

Fork ride height can be changed by raising the fork tubes in the tripple clamp (makes the front ride height lower). Rear ride height can be changed if your shock has a threaded adjustment on either the lower or upper bushing. Some bikes can change rear ride height by changing the length of the dog-bone mounting links.

Taking the Total Control class this weekend with David Grant of "What Next Training". He took us through the suspension setup this evening. I was riding a plush barcoloungerbefore he adjusted it. He definitely stiffened up the ride and now it corners like its on rails.

I need to understand street suspension better than I do now. Dirt, I got it. Street, not so much. Went to GP Suspension and had them set it for me. What a difference, haven't adjusted a knob since.

Being a total newb to adjustable suspensions, where is a good place for me to start. I would like to tweak mine to fit my size but don't know the first thing about it. My suspension is not bad now but seems a little too "floppy". Being 6'2 230lbs I feel like I could stiffen it up and get more enjoyment. I also seem to have a tendancy to oversteer in curves on this bike. Can tuning the suspension help this?

dcarver said:

I need to understand street suspension better than I do now. Dirt, I got it. Street, not so much. Went to GP Suspension and had them set it for me. What a difference, haven't adjusted a knob since.

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Been riding since I was 7 Don, and all this suspension stuff is voo-doo black magic to me! When you get it sorted, come do mine