The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Took the blade out for a blip at the weekend and it reconfirmed to me that 'something' isn't right. It feels horrible on anything other than perfectly smooth tarmac (of which there is very little around here at the minute).

Bouncy, mid way round bends if I hit anything bumpy it wants to sit up and buck...

I had a tinker with the suspension a while back (stuck everything back to standard) and thought I'd sorted it but clearly not.

So, is there something out there that explains what everything is, what it's for and more importantly under what circumstances one might want it set to hard or soft?

Cheers!

For the sake of details, I'm about 15 stone and the bike's done 38,000 miles on what I believe to be the original suspension (front & back).

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

I would try and give you advice but I've only ever been able to adjust preload as that's all my suspension has!

If it's any help I'm around 11 stone and find I need to adjust my preload to almost the hardest setting before my bikes feels planted in corners but then again when you do that you get thrown out of the seat when you hit a bump!

It's finding that happy medium really?

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

here yo go

http://www.sportrider.com/features/1...sag/index.html

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Perfect, thanks Andy!

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Even Honda suspendies don't last that long surely? Is it just not in dire need of a rebuild?

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Very possibly, I'm planning on getting the shock serviced and the fork oil done shortly, which will hopefully help too...

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

you might like this

http://www.gostar-racing.com/club/mo...ion_set-up.htm

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

38k on stock oil, there is no point doing anything until you sort that.

Any settings you get to like will be meaningless anyway once new oil is in

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Front and back I take it Chris? Is there anything else I should also be doing at the same time as the oil?

Cheers all for your help so far.

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

While it's in bits to change the oil and clean it out properly (forks will be full of sh*t) you can revalve and spring. Depends how much you want to spend.

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Chris,

How often should fork oil be changed?

Yearly? After a certain number of miles?

Pete ;)

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

After 4 years and 20,000 odd miles, the oil in my SV, in one fork in particular, was fckd

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

Safe to say that's a good place to start on mine then... ach well, looks like I know what the first few days of my redundancy will be spent doing!

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

10k if you've got a bike that's worth keeping handling well

Re: The idiot's guide to suspension setup?
 

to be fair, after recently doing mine (yc showed us how it was done on the sv previously) it was worth it on the sv with standard forks, but oh my god its transformed the bike with adjustable forks!

Its like having the bike i wanted a year ago! So much more predictable i havnt changed any settings appart from the fork oil (and dropping the forks 2mm, would that make a diff? originals were 4mm above yokes and i corrected to 6mm which is standard.) I dont want to touch things now because its so much better. Cant wait for dry roads!

Only thing is what to do with the rear?