Too much front end dive on brakes

[Jza]

Hey guys,

I never realised how bad the front dive was on my bike on the brakes before going out on a very windy road last night at dusk, following a ZX-6R

I could see his front lights were staying fairly horizontal on the brakes, whereas mine would be up and down like a pogo stick... highlighting the fact that under braking, the fronts not right. The fact im 250lbs probably doesnt help

I'm not going to get the agility or braking stance of a 600, i know that, but if i get the screw drivers out, im sure by adjusting things a bit i can reduce this effect (not irradicate - i know that)?

Question is - what should i be adjusting to reduce the effects of my weight on the front of the bike?

Cheers,

Jza

 

[twotonevert]

You can try to sit further back in the seat, but that is going to hurt your back eventually. You are going to have to firm up your front end with heavier springs. These bikes are set up for a 165lb(I think I am close on the number) rider from the factory.

 

[BLUR]

I would first bust out the manual and put all settings to stock. Then try a few turns/clicks in on preload, compression and rebound. You can go from there.

 

[GSXcite]

There is a Jinkster thread on how to set up your suspension so that the busa won't dive. I run the setup, and after adjusting it, you would think you were on a different bike. Try the search.

 

[NickSully]

I believe this is the thread you're looking for.

Suspension Tuning

 

[GSXcite]

I believe this is the thread you're looking for.

Suspension Tuning

Thats the one!

 

[Jza]

Nice - so that covers the pre load, what about the compression and damping. What effect do these have?

 

[Kainedogg]

Or you can just starve your self down to a svelte 165 and voila!

 

[Jza]

Interesting stuff.. checked the Jinksters thread and got playing with the spanners..

My UK spec bike already had the Jinkster settings at the rear.. they arent standard. Has Suzuki UK been reading the .org threads?

LOL

Jza

 

[TruWrecks]

You might want to turn the compression settings up 2 or 3 clicks on the forks. That will make the front ride more firm and help reduce dive.

 

[SANDFLEA85]

You can try to sit further back in the seat, but that is going to hurt your back eventually. You are going to have to firm up your front end with heavier springs. These bikes are set up for a 165lb(I think I am close on the number) rider from the factory.

why is it(and im not disagreeing with you because i dont know the answer) that everyone says they are set up for 165# or I hear 175# rider..etc. the bike does come with a passenger seat and I would have to assume there were adjustments made with that in mind even if it was for a 100# passenger,that would make it set up for a 275# rider then....

Im just sayin

 

[Mr Bogus]

how much do you weigh? I had to replace the springs on my bike to get rid of the dive.. you can slow it down with compression but if you are 200+, you are up against a wall.. everything is just a patch job until you get the spring rates up a bit.

 

[Lamb busa]

how much do you weigh? I had to replace the springs on my bike to get rid of the dive.. you can slow it down with compression but if you are 200+, you are up against a wall.. everything is just a patch job until you get the spring rates up a bit.

Setting up the Laden sag #'s is the first step in getting the suspension set up right. The bike should sag or lower very little when you sit on it. The compression is what controls the front end dive. Having the front end stable really helps the bike to stay stable throughout the corner as well as upon brake application. A man of your weight will have to respring. Lamb weighs 210 and had to upgrade to .95 springs from the bikes standard .85.

 

[Takeuon]

Thats the one!

Do you know if these setting apply to a Gen II ?

 

[Mr Bogus]

Setting up the Laden sag #'s is the first step in getting the suspension set up right. The bike should sag or lower very little when you sit on it. The compression is what controls the front end dive. Having the front end stable really helps the bike to stay stable throughout the corner as well as upon brake application. A man of your weight will have to respring. Lamb weighs 210 and had to upgrade to .95 springs from the bikes standard .85.

the dive on my bike was pretty much awful.. at full compression damping, I still had to load the front end on turn entry in order to get the bike to turn when I wanted it too.

The problem was any inconsistency in the corner (bumps etc) I was out of travel or the front was just way stiff from the compression damping, the front wanted to "push" out on me..

I am on 1.10 now (240lbs) and they are a bit stiff on the street.

On the track? it is pretty darn close.. next outing, a bit more fine tuning..

 

[Tufbusa]

Keep in mind, when you put heavier springs in, you'll most likely need revalving as well. Your rebound is not the best in these bikes to start with and when you put heavier springs in you may need more rebound damping to get away from the pogo stick effect when the heavier springs rebound and the OEM damping can't control it.

It's kinda like building a hot rod when you were a kid. You jack up the engine hp without drivetrain upgrades and shiitz starts breaking. Same with your suspension. You upgrade the springs and not the valving, then learn you can't control the stiffer spring with your stock valving? It's only MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!

 

[Mr Bogus]

Keep in mind, when you put heavier springs in, you'll most likely need revalving as well. Your rebound is not the best in these bikes to start with and when you put heavier springs in you may need more rebound damping to get away from the pogo stick effect when the heavier springs rebound and the OEM damping can't control it.

It's kinda like building a hot rod when you were a kid. You jack up the engine hp without drivetrain upgrades and shiitz starts breaking. Same with your suspension. You upgrade the springs and not the valving, then learn you can't control the stiffer spring with your stock valving? It's only MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!

I did have "gold valve" kits installed... $400 for the works installed..

 

[BIKE DUDE]

At your weight you'll probably need to crank up the preload all the way (and then some) to get the sag correct and then dial in a few more clicks of compression dampening.

 

[Wag]

+1 on getting all the springs and valves redone. Do the front and the rear at the same time. Then you have all the hardware set up in the range where you can work with the adjustments and make sense out of them.

You'll be glad you did.

My RaceTech setups were around $1,000, front and rear about two years ago.

--Wag--

 

[GSXcite]

Do you know if these setting apply to a Gen II ?

I don't know about the GenII, but I would think they would respond to the same type of adjustments. I can tell you this, after setting my busa up using this method, there was a DRAMATIC difference in the handling, and I weigh 235 lbs. I set up Mike Fate's busa at the bash a couple of years ago, and he thought I gave him back a different bike!