(06-09-24, 11:02 AM)EarlOfEasycore Wrote:(05-09-24, 10:30 PM)Gaz66 Wrote: 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.
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?
This is definitely insightful and useful! I'll get my wife to help me out on that. We're quite used to setting the settings on our mountain bikes, so your bit about the damping circuits and adjustment makes perfect sense. In principle, once the static sag is set and your desired rebound is dialled in, it's a case of refining the damping as per your guidance, which is really helpful.
I've got a bit of experience setting suspension, albeit on mountain bikes, so transposing with your guidance is helpful. I've got a very useful 5 mile loop from my hosue that's got everything from rough surfaces, fast sweepers, undulations and sharp bends, so I'll be using that to dial in the damping. Likewise with compression damping - There's not going to be much need to wind in high speed comp, given that big hits and high amplitude strokes aren't going to be much of an issue with the sort of riding I'm planning to do (It's not as if I'm going to hit a 6ft drop or a 20ft gap jump on the bike).
Pulling the forks through the yokes by 5mm from flush feels really nice for me. The turn in is at a point where it's predictable and neutral. However, reading a 10 year old post on front fork setting when some Czech chap was trying to chase the tail with the damping, would it be worthwhile to just get some linear 10.0N springs? The relationship between compression and rebound was mentioned there too. What I took from that is that the standard dual rate fork springs is an absolute bugger to get a reasonable setting with, since most will add a bit too much compression to stop the diving, at the detriment to rebound.
I've used a rudimentary calculator online that uses generic wet weight (I've assumed 250kg for a fully fuelled bike) and rider weight (95kg in kit) and style of bike, as well as riding style (normal road) to arrive at the spring rate. Again, not too fussed with going to linear springs - I remember when I took my 929 Blade to Perry Leask at HM Racing, it was generally considered to ditch the "progressive" springs and obtain a better set up with linear.
But yeah, thanks for your useful pointers - I'll have a look at the clearance when I'm setting the sag with the wife and get the dremel ready.
Hi again.
Only just seen your 2nd post.
Yes defo go with linear springs if you've not done so already, dual rate/progressive springs are a compromise at best, you'll never find a good setup in a month of Sundays.
Linear 9.5nm (K-tech) springs in mine, I weigh 17.5st in full gear & they're more than enough for fast road work ... if you're not experienced in comp/rebound cartridge forks assembly, I advise follow a manual, it's all too easy to do damage if assembled wrongly.
K-tech stuff is a known trustworthy brand, most bike pro race teams use em for shocks & springs, they're not exactly cheap, but not that pricey either if you only need springs.
You can source cheaper springs if you go direct to other spring manufacturers like Faulkners, they'll do just about any weight, any size & from experience & will be quite a bit cheaper than K-tech, plus K-tech put a limit on the highest rate they supply, where as Falkners will do coils way heavier than K-tech if that's what you need, worth bearing in mind if you ever need to re-spring a rear shock, I've had some really heavy coils made for my old VFR800, no one else was that bothered in my business for one offs, but Faulkner supply the Motorsport industry, hence the heavy coil spring availability.
If you need any starting settings, gimme a PM, I'll pass on what works & what doesn't.