Time for a little suspension debate!

Tufbusa

Track Coach / TufPoodle Coach
Registered
Okay fellow "Throttle Twisters" spring has not arrived just yet in most of the country making this a good time to enjoy a friendly debate. The question is "Do I really need to upgrade my suspension" and how do I know if and when I need to upgrade? I think most everyone on this forum has ask themselves this very question. Hopefully, this thread will generate information that will help most inquisitive minds make that decision?

Before I share my thoughts, I'd like to ask anyone and everyone to share their thoughts. For instance, if you have upgraded your suspension, what made you decide on upgrading, what did you purchase, what specificly did you expect to gain, cost and satisfaction level?

:beerchug:
 
Boy Tuf a suspension thread now :thumbsup: . Well here is my little story I upgraded my suspension in the front with heavier springs from race tech I went with the 2.0Kg springs I did no research and now I am kicking my self in the butt. I thought when I bought the springs that they would be good due to my weight when leathered up for track day well then I took everything to my suspension guy and he told me I should have gone with a lighter spring something along the lines of a 1.2Kg spring. So morale of the story for me was DO SOME DARN RESEARCH NEXT TIME!!!! :whistle: but on a good note the springs are working well in the frontend and the bike still feels stable :thumbsup:
 
ive done nothing. i have had folks suggest doing it but for what? it feels fine to me now. I mean I guess its like getting a gen 2. you dont miss what you never had. I too would like to see what is said here and find out what the real bennies are and what the cost is. I like mine the way it is stock. What is the diff anyway? I cant wait to hear about it. seems like there would not be much of a big deal but im sure im wrong on this. :bowdown::thumbsup::beerchug:
 
I think if you do alot of aggressive/spirited riding in the twisties you may want to consider an upgrade. If you're pushing your bike hard and seem to be loosing confidence in the suspension then you may want to consider an upgrade. If your bike dives hard during hard braking, can't hold a turn well, and/or gets loose while exiting a turn and getting on the throttle then you may want to consider an upgrade.

I would first suggest setting up you OE suspension for your weight. An upgrade will make a measurable improvement in your bikes abilites.

oh yea, I've swapped front springs, and rear shock and spring.
 
I have race tech gold valves for the front and rear ohlins suspension.Did my research stock springs are good enough unless time to replace them.Very good at high speed bends and corners very stable.When encounter bumps on the road you wont feel much of the impact.The stability is there.I believe our bikes suspension is 1 of the must to unpgrade.I got the rear ohlins a second hand at a very good price,even though its due for servicing.Its the best value for money and its one of the best for me:thumbsup:
 
I was caving in the fronts on mine and the bike was doing wierd stuff on corner entry.. the bike would enter the corner, the front would compress (a lot) and then the turn in would start.. most uncomfortable.. Racetech gold valves. 1.1kg front springs and that problem went away.. now I have the rear that is soggy...

if I bounce up and down on the pegs with my weight, the rear compresses about 50% more than the front, to my understanding this should be equal front to rear..

next move Penske rear setup...
 
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my subpar stock suspension has been sorted :laugh:

2008-02-24d.jpg

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2008-02-24f.jpg
 
I was caving in the fronts on mine and the bike was doing wierd stuff on corner entry.. the bike would enter the corner, the front would compress (a lot) and then the turn in would start.. most uncomfortable.. Racetech gold valves. 1.1kg front springs and that problem went away.. now I have the rear that is soggy...

if I bounce up and down on the pegs with my weight, the rear compresses about 50% more than the front, to my understanding this should be equal front to rear..

next move Penske rear setup...

Or an air ride suspension?:laugh:
 
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hey Mike... bite my sub-par behind...

:rofl: that bike is really a work of art... what are you going to do for bash this year to make us drool? shameless hussy....


well maybe finally get the rest of my powercommander modules on, my ceramic wheel bearings in, as well as the onboard communication system me and John bought at Americade

ohh and finish the tuning and ignition timing :laugh:

other than that I havent bought anything this winter mostly because I have no idea what I want to add next :rofl:
 
I've got Öhlins valves and 1.1 springs in mine. Big improvement, both in ride qulaity and compression on braking and hard cornering. Rear shock is now a must and in the works. The +1 links in rear also should be mentioned as a low cost improvement.
 
I've got Öhlins valves and 1.1 springs in mine. Big improvement, both in ride qulaity and compression on braking and hard cornering. Rear shock is now a must and in the works. The +1 links in rear also should be mentioned as a low cost improvement.
specs on rear??
 
(1)what made you decide on upgrading, (2) what did you purchase, (3) what specificly did you expect to gain, (4) cost and satisfaction level? :beerchug:

1. Everyone else is "modding" their bike, I had to keep up with the Joneses.

2. The most expensive stuff I could find, even if the owners manual uses big words and I don't understand all the button and dials.

3. Parking lot respect.

4. The more I pay for something the greater the validation of my self worth as a consumer.

:laugh:
:moon:
:whistle:
:beerchug:

cheers
ken
 
you know how you read a thread and quickly realise you don't know shiz. :cheerleader:

That is where I am ...
 
Hey Tuf what do you think about this? ON THE THROTTLE



Do you think pretty imformatory or not?

I live so far out in the sticks that highspeed interent has not reached me yet. So downloading movies is not much of an option for me. However, Dave Moss is a suspension Guru!

Keep in mind, the goal here is to have a better understanding of, "What point does upgraded suspension become necessary". No one can argue that expensive aftermarket suspension is far superior to stock.
 
1. Everyone else is "modding" their bike, I had to keep up with the Joneses.

2. The most expensive stuff I could find, even if the owners manual uses big words and I don't understand all the button and dials.

3. Parking lot respect.

4. The more I pay for something the greater the validation of my self worth as a consumer.

:laugh:
:moon:
:whistle:
:beerchug:

cheers
ken

Ken, you always come up with some good sheitz man! :laugh:

Even though you post this with a giggle, there may be some truth in what you say! :bowdown:
 
I still have the stock suspension both front & rear, but it has been set up for me. I only weigh 172# on a good day (Just slightly less than Rubber2burn :alcoholic:) I set my corner entry speed before the corner & I don't use my brakes prior to cornering to adjust speed (on the street). My 600RR has racetech fronts & a Penske triple on the rear.
 
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I weigh 190lbs without gear. I sent my forks to Lindemann engr for their $600 build up. The first trackday at my local track on my new suspension I improved my lap times by 4 seconds. The riding when carrying around a passenger is also a big improvement. I too thought my stock suspension was ok before the upgrade, now I know there is a big difference and I am alot smoother and comfortable when riding.

Here may be a simple quick evaluation on your suspension. And I am referring to some hard fast spirited riding not a sunday leisure ride.

When entering a right hand turn and you have to scrub off plenty of speed to make the turn do you find that you have to slow down way before you enter the turn to allow the bike suspension to settle down before you lean over for the turn? Kind of like seperate actions of line up for the turn, break hard, pause for the suspension to get stable, lean into the turn, straighten up the bike from a lean then throttle on.

With proper suspension the bike is more stable during the break, and turn actions. I don't find myself having to break two seconds earlier because now the suspension is sharper, quicker and smoother. Where stock suspension made the turn into five seperate actions, the upgraded suspension becomes three actions that overlap each other (slow down, lean, go faster).

Do you have to upgrade the suspension to ride the bike? - No
Will it help, is it money well spent? - Sure
 
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