ok so after searching the forum today some old posts talk about using 15w oil in the front end for a better feel
HOWEVER
no one seems to say what they have settings at for preload, compression, rebound
anyone out there using the 15w oil with altered settings (mcn settings go out the window with thicker oil)
forget town riding as i will live with whatever it is - i want it set for when i ride hard and fast so anything as a starting point on settings will be an improvement to its current state (oil change is needed so will do it as soon as oil is here)
Hello Punk,
Assuming your talking about your FSZ 600, there is very little you can do to adjust anything on the standard FZS 600 damper rod forks as they leave the factory, without major surgery.
The compression is a combination of spring and the oil and the rebound the same.
The speed of compression and the rebound are controlled by the thickness of the oil squirting though a 5 mm hole in the base of the damper rods, thicker oil ...... blah blah blah, you know the score.
The pre-load adjuster on the top of the later models stanchions make very little difference with the standard (Dual rate) springs in, as they are harsh when compression reaches the spring rate change and rebound rapid at first because of the same but slows a little when it reaches the lighter/softer part of the spring.
People say that the standard FZS Fazer 600 springs are progressive but in fact they are dual rate, there is a definite step/change in the spring coils, progressives would change spring rate slowly over its total length, hence progressive. The dual rate springs crash your wrists and jar you when compression reaches that point and also make the bikes handling a little unpredictable when riding around bumpy corners if you hit fast bumps because of that change in the spring rate both on compression and rebound.
True progressives would give you a smooth transition.
Thicker oil in damper rod forks can cause something like hydro lock under certain situations, IE: The oil can not pass quick enough through that 5 mm hole in the damper rods and effectively cause the forks to go solid/seize.
Some one told me, and I have mentioned it in here before so sorry for repeating myself, it is like a child's water pistol if you squeeze the trigger very very softly the water will dribble out of the nozzle, if you pull the trigger at a normal sort of speed the water will squirt out and travel some distance, if the yank the trigger in it will lock/jam the trigger because the water can not pass through the nozzle quick enough, a form of hydro lock, the same principle applies to damper rod forks hit a fast/sharp bump on a fast bend and the forks can stiffen up, worse case scenario lock up.
The picture in this post i have posted before when this sort of topic come up and i make no apologies for posting it again as it shows that the original Yamaha spring on right is not a true progressive spring, to the left of the Yammy spring is an Ohlins linear spring. Chalk and cheese when riding.
To be honest that is the way I would recommend anyone go, do the fork cartridge emulators if you have the finances, time and ability, but they are the extra bit of icing on the cake, the linear springs are the cake and 50% or more of the icing. And it such any easy job to do, the forks stay in the bike, just make sure the front wheel is off the ground (Centre stand with wooden blocking up under the down pipes) just slacken the top yoke pinch allen bolts a tad, make sure the pre-load adjusters are completely unwound then undo the top yoke 17mm cap nuts, go steady, a cloth over the top of the cap nut will help if the cap pops off when its undone, top disk washer out, spacer out hook the old spring out with a bit of wire coat hanger, reverse the procedure and the job is done, honestly its a couple of hours work at the very very most, and if you ever do it again it will take you half the time.
once its all done you can then change the oil.
If you are around 12 to 14 stone fully togged up to ride try 15 weight proper fork oil, I used Silkolene fork oil, but any will do.
Oh! one thing I did not mention the old fork oil will smell like rotten fish and be dark pearlecent in colour.