05-09-24, 10:30 PM
Welcome to the R6 shock club, had one on mine for yrs.
Before going any further check shock has clearance to frame rail above alloy casting, this model shock usually needs a few mil filing off to clear the frame rail.
I was never happy with setting suspension until I read up on shock damping.
What I discovered & seems to be a little known fact is when you add rebound damping, you automatically add compression damping, it's all about fluid dynamics & how shock valving works.
This is why lots of bikers end up chasing their tale & can't get a good setup.
This R6 shock it's equipped with high & low comp damping, both upper adjusters need to be wound fully (out).
Remove all compression damping from lower adjuster, fully (out).
Get an assistant to hold bike upright.
1)Measure rear ride height (end of swing arm) to a fixed point on bike, bit of tape & a pen mark is sufficient (write it down).
2)Get an assistant to fully extend shock (lift rear end) measure again (write it down).
3)Bounce rear end a few times, measure again (write it down).
this is to see how much stiction there is in the shock.
Any difference between 2 & 3 you need to find the mid point, use this as your true ride height.
4) No rider, adjust spring pre-load until you can consistently see around 10mm sag after a bounce, then check with rider aboard in full riding gear, 30mm sag is desirable, if you max out the pre-load & still can't get around 30mm sag, shock needs a heavier spring... stock is 95N/mm.
Don't forget riding gear can be in excess of 1stone in weight, so it's crucial to add it's weight if you want decent results or you're just wasting your time.
Since you're now on shorter dog bones, this massively changes the leverage the swing arm has on the R6 stock spring, R6 spring now becomes usable up to rider weight of around 18st ish.
So take this into consideration if you plan to carry a pillion a lot, you'll defo need a stronger spring of at least 120 - 140N/mm from experience or you'll be riding arse end down even at max pre-load, ie, too much sag.
When adding rebound damping, keep bouncing rear end until shock won't go into its second stroke, ie shock compresses & comes back up & stops at the top of its 1st stroke without going over the top into a second bounce, this is an ideal starting point, you'll find you'll hardly need to add anymore rebound damping & may even need to remove a bit.
By adding rebound damping you're automatically add an amount of compression damping.
Go ride the bike around a chosen circuit that has some decent undulations, check shock isn't too bouncy, if it feels a bit of a pogo stick, add a tad more rebound damping until this stops.
Consider rebound as set for now, don't be tempted to mess with it (write down) where in the damping screws range you have it set at.
Leave high speed comp damping fully out for now.
Rear end bounce time again, keep adding low speed comp damping until you feel it starts to affect how you've set the rebound damping earlier, ie rear end will be slow to bounce back up, set comp damping till it just starts to slow shock from springing back up, then remove a tiny but of rebound damping to compensate, you'll find this will ride really well.
Leave high speed damping fully (out) ie no damping, ride the bike, put a good 100miles on it before adding high speed comp damping, this adjustment is only to reduce how much a bump bucks you out of the seat, if bike feels ok hitting bumps & doesn't buck you out the seat, there's no need for any high speed damping for you personally.
If you do get bucked out the seat from sharp bumps, gradually a few clicks at a time until you feels it improves (write it down) keep going until it get worse, you can always go back to where it felt good.
From experience you'll hardly need any high speed comp damping.
Same process to set the front.
Try forks flush with top yoke, the drop em thru 10mm, see which you prefer, 10mm works well, makes front end a bit more nervous at speed, but bike just drops into corners much easier.
Hope this info helps.
Enjoy?
Before going any further check shock has clearance to frame rail above alloy casting, this model shock usually needs a few mil filing off to clear the frame rail.
I was never happy with setting suspension until I read up on shock damping.
What I discovered & seems to be a little known fact is when you add rebound damping, you automatically add compression damping, it's all about fluid dynamics & how shock valving works.
This is why lots of bikers end up chasing their tale & can't get a good setup.
This R6 shock it's equipped with high & low comp damping, both upper adjusters need to be wound fully (out).
Remove all compression damping from lower adjuster, fully (out).
Get an assistant to hold bike upright.
1)Measure rear ride height (end of swing arm) to a fixed point on bike, bit of tape & a pen mark is sufficient (write it down).
2)Get an assistant to fully extend shock (lift rear end) measure again (write it down).
3)Bounce rear end a few times, measure again (write it down).
this is to see how much stiction there is in the shock.
Any difference between 2 & 3 you need to find the mid point, use this as your true ride height.
4) No rider, adjust spring pre-load until you can consistently see around 10mm sag after a bounce, then check with rider aboard in full riding gear, 30mm sag is desirable, if you max out the pre-load & still can't get around 30mm sag, shock needs a heavier spring... stock is 95N/mm.
Don't forget riding gear can be in excess of 1stone in weight, so it's crucial to add it's weight if you want decent results or you're just wasting your time.
Since you're now on shorter dog bones, this massively changes the leverage the swing arm has on the R6 stock spring, R6 spring now becomes usable up to rider weight of around 18st ish.
So take this into consideration if you plan to carry a pillion a lot, you'll defo need a stronger spring of at least 120 - 140N/mm from experience or you'll be riding arse end down even at max pre-load, ie, too much sag.
When adding rebound damping, keep bouncing rear end until shock won't go into its second stroke, ie shock compresses & comes back up & stops at the top of its 1st stroke without going over the top into a second bounce, this is an ideal starting point, you'll find you'll hardly need to add anymore rebound damping & may even need to remove a bit.
By adding rebound damping you're automatically add an amount of compression damping.
Go ride the bike around a chosen circuit that has some decent undulations, check shock isn't too bouncy, if it feels a bit of a pogo stick, add a tad more rebound damping until this stops.
Consider rebound as set for now, don't be tempted to mess with it (write down) where in the damping screws range you have it set at.
Leave high speed comp damping fully out for now.
Rear end bounce time again, keep adding low speed comp damping until you feel it starts to affect how you've set the rebound damping earlier, ie rear end will be slow to bounce back up, set comp damping till it just starts to slow shock from springing back up, then remove a tiny but of rebound damping to compensate, you'll find this will ride really well.
Leave high speed damping fully (out) ie no damping, ride the bike, put a good 100miles on it before adding high speed comp damping, this adjustment is only to reduce how much a bump bucks you out of the seat, if bike feels ok hitting bumps & doesn't buck you out the seat, there's no need for any high speed damping for you personally.
If you do get bucked out the seat from sharp bumps, gradually a few clicks at a time until you feels it improves (write it down) keep going until it get worse, you can always go back to where it felt good.
From experience you'll hardly need any high speed comp damping.
Same process to set the front.
Try forks flush with top yoke, the drop em thru 10mm, see which you prefer, 10mm works well, makes front end a bit more nervous at speed, but bike just drops into corners much easier.
Hope this info helps.
Enjoy?