Setting up compression/rebound/preload etc?

[Paul the 6th]

So the internet has turned up the following settings for my 'GSXR 750 2000-2003'.. I know that preload is meant to be setup by measuring the static sag so I'll use a cable tie on front forks & get someone to help with the rear.. But as for the rest of it I'm not 100% about what I'm doing..

standard settings

rear
preload 10mm of thread above top locking ring
rebound 1.25 turns out from fully in
compression 1 turn out from fully in

front forks
four rings showing
rebound 1.25 turns out from fully in
compression 1turn out from fully in

suggested settings

rear
preload 15mm of thread showing above top locking ring
rebound 3/4 turn out from fully in
compression 1.25 turns out from fully in

front forks
preload 2 rings showing
rebound 1.5 turns out from fully in
compression 3/4 turn out from fully in

With me being plenty heavier than your average 11 stone test rider should the suggested settings be a lot 'more' than the suggested 1.5 turns or 3/4 turn from fully in. I.e. like 3 turns and 2 turns?

Also when I bought the bike I never got a handbook so I don't know which adjusters do which job on the forks and shock.. I'll post up some pics if necessary so the wise owls of the org can guide me

Thanks in advance

[Sid Squid]

By all means try the settings you've found, but bear in mind that your bike isn't new and that suspension units, (even the good stuff), will gradually deteriorate through their life, making the settings needed for a given amount of damping change, sometimes quite dramatically. Clearly this is less so for spring settings, but it's still completely impractical to make any sort of prescriptive recommendation as to where your shock should be set, other than a heavier rider will generally require a higher setting that will a lighter one.

There is no universally 'right', or even for that matter 'good' setting, the suspension is right when it's set to accommodate the way you ride, on the roads you ride, at the speeds you cover them.

I know this isn't an answer, (at least not a direct one anyway), to your question, but hopefully this will disabuse you of the notion that there is a prescription for correct suspension settings. As said above, by all means try the settings you've found, but bear in mind that they are almost certainly not the best your suspension can offer you, there is every possibility that trying them will expand your understanding of what does what, and allow you to reach a suitable setting based upon your experience of how changes to the suspension make a difference to how your bike works - experiment, it's the only way.

Very generally speaking the adjusters on a Japanese motorcycle are found thus:

Front
Hexagon at top of fork typically 17/19 ish mm = preload adjuster.
Top of fork, screw in centre of preload adjuster, typically a slot, sometimes a 5/6ish mm square = rebound damping adjuster.
Bottom of fork, screw, typically facing backwards under brake caliper = compression damping adjuster.

Rear
Big slotted ring around shock body, usually at the upper end = preload adjuster.
Screw at top of shock body, or on reservoir whether remote or not = compression damping adjuster.
Screw at bottom of shock body = rebound damping adjuster.

Damping adjusters; almost always clockwise, (inwards), for more, out for less.
Preload adjusters; viewed from top, clockwise, (downwards), for more.

[Paul the 6th]

Nice squid thank you mate. I appreciate it's not a black & white issue & the settings can be tweaked to make a difference..

All it is is that my SRAD 750 handled like a dream but this 'newer bike' is still twitchy & the steering feels a bit vague so I'm guessing the suspension needs fiddling with to get rid of this lack of cornering confidence.. Also hoping some new rubber might help (back on pr2's!)

[punyXpress]

. . . and you're within 10 miles of Reactive Suspension, of whom I have heard great things.
01347 811 529

[yorkie_chris]

Don't bother with out of the book settings, ride it.
You can completely screw all low speed adjustments by changing from 1 brand of 5W to another so what chance have they got.

When you have the rebound too tight it will feel to chatter and skip wide. Too loose and it feels like the front is floating and doesn't settle.

Sort compression when you have rebound right, you are lucky on those forks that they are independant adjusters.

[Paul the 6th]

Pleez will you come and fix it for me yc.

edit feck me YC how did you get to 23,000 posts?

when you say its twitchy do you mean it drops in and needs to settle or you feel as though you need to pick it up mid corner? or its just bouncing about a lot.

my forst bit of advice would be get the rubber sorted as i noticed you had two different tyres on it last time i was up. this sint going to help.

then think about what the actual problem is (this is harder than you think) you will notice that getting it right for a smooth corner isnt the same as a bumpy tight corner.

Ive had a fair old play about with mine and am really happy with it (although ill probably egt the rear rebuilt for giggles this year) i would advise you seriously think about getting the fork oil changed as well. its really not hard.

[Paul the 6th]

I guess the best way to describe it, is the front end feels vague..

On the srad I could set up for a corner and carve through it like the tyres were leaving dig marks in the road, or I could even run into a corner too hot, look to where I wanted it to go and it just leant over and went without ever feeling like I might come off..

With this though, even the most familiar smooth corner it kind of feels like a guessing game with the front end. I'm back to my old way of thinking "Is this gonna wash out in in a minute??? Or am I ok?".. Kind of like it's 2 seconds away from disaster but there's no real feedback or sensation of what's going on with the steering..

I also think the rear might be a little squared off as I felt a weird unexpected movement when I tipped into a corner the other day.. Could have been my bowels. But yeah I desperately want Pilot Road 2's on it asap.

[Paul the 6th]

D'ya reckon the fork oil could do with replacing as well?

unless you know its been done then i noticed an improvement when i did mine. Having dishwater in their basically all your adjusting wont have the desired effect.

try roadsmarts

ok does it run wide then and you feel as though your fighting to keep it on line? or that its waving in the air?