Need input from light riders – suspension Q’s

I’ve been going back and forth with my husband about (a) lowering my 07 TE250, and (b) having it revalved for my weight (125 lbs).

I’ve conceded that for what I bought the bike for (easier trails and dual sport rides) that I can get by with the seat height. But I’m holding firm on wanting the suspension revalved. My bike handles very well, but going over rocks and roots it feels like a jackhammer sometimes unless I go stupid slow – like first gear. Instead of the front end compressing and rolling over obstacles, it feels like it’s bouncing off things and pushing the bars hard into my chest and sending me flying in directions I don’t want to go. Hey’ I’ve done the Roger DeCoaster cross up a few times, but not intentionally This doesn’t seem right to me. My husband softened up the compression and rebound settings and this helped some, but not really. He also thinks just putting lighter oil in the forks will help. From what I’ve read, I’m not so sure about that.

I had the forks for my KX100 revalved for my weight this year and the bike handles very smoothly and I can crank through the same areas that I have to slow down to get through without killing myself on the Husky. The KX is also the only bike that has been properly set up suspension wise for my weigh, so my well of information to draw from is pretty shallow.

So my questions for the lighter Husky riders is did you have your suspension revalved and if so, how does the bike handle? What type of riding are you doing?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Stacey,

I think you already know my feelings on this issue, but for the benefit of other 'lightweights' such as you and I, I'll elaborate a little.

You and I have the same bike. They come from the factory sprung for a rider somewhere in the range of 170-180 lbs, depending on ability/aggressiveness. Since I'm only 140-145 lbs, I was getting beat to death by the bike.

For a good understanding of whether your spring rate is correct, read this webpage, especially the last paragraph. http://www.tootechracing.com/Static Sag Suspension Tip.htm

This is the companion page: http://www.tootechracing.com/suspension_tips.htm

Don't get hung on the term "race sag". It doesn't matter whether you are racing or not, it's simply "rider weight, ready to ride" sag. "Static sag" is how much the rear droops under it's own weight.

Rick Tannenbaum of Cogent Dynamics, (motocd.com 828.628.9025) a suspension tuner and genuine nice guy near me, suggested we start w/ simply changing the springs -no revalving just yet, since it was obvious they were way too stiff for me. The stockers are 4.8 front and 5.2 rear.

We went with a 4.2 in front and a 4.8 in the rear. He put in the minimum amount of 5 wt. oil he dared in the forks.

The transformation was nothing short of amazing. it went from brutal, to plush, and now I was actually using all of the available travel, where I could never get to the last 2" of travel on the forks, despite my best efforts of landing wrong off killer supercross track jumps w/ the stock springs. I run the forks w/ very little rebound damping, and only 3 to 4 clicks of compression damping, depending on where I'm riding.

I'm very happy w/ the forks and don't plan to revalve them. The shock on the other hand, has some harshness as it goes past roughly the 1/2 way point of compression. We put it on the dyno last week and found out some interesting data, but I'll put that story in a different post.

BTW, when Rick ordered my springs, he ordered two sets of each, so he has a 4.2 fr, and a 4.8 rear in stock.

AFAIK, changing the springs was the single most influential performance gain I've made. It was a major 'bang for the buck'. It not only doesn't beat me any more, but the bike simply rides better, turns better, and I can loft the front wheel easily to leap obstacles now. I highly recommend it.

Thanks BentAero! I'm aware of how you feel, but it's helpful to read it again. Are you able to touch any better with the softer springs? I guess I need to first decide who I want to send my suspension (forks and shock) out to and hopefully they can help me determine exactly what I need done. I'm unclear if replacing the existing springs will be enough for me.

You'll be able to reach the ground easier once you are on the bike, but the softer spring won't help you get on or off of it any easier. It will still sit pretty high even with an 1" to 1.25" of static sag, as Huskys' by nature sit pretty tall.

My pal and rookie rider Darrel bought a CRF250X used that had had the shock reworked and lowered, but sadly the company screwed it up somehow. After riding the bike several times, I finally convinced him that he had to have the shock 'fixed' and the lowering 'removed' and put back to normal height. (He wasn't excited about having the bike raised at all.)

Rick at Cogent removed the lowering spacer and softened the shim stack a whole bunch, as the previous builder had it waaaaay too firm, despite having the correct spring for Darrell's weight. The first ride on it and Darrell is raving about it on how much better it is, and the bonus, now that the shock compresses like it should, he can touch the ground just fine. -though I'm afraid his legs are a lot longer than yours.

You may want to consider the softer spring and having a spacer put internally into the shock to lower it a little bit. I've got a Kouba 1.5" lowering link that I'd sell you cheap, but I'd only use it as a last resort if other avenues aren't satisfactory for you.

Ah, that's what I was looking for! I can get on and off okay, it's when I need to dab that I sometimes can't touch sufficiently.

I should have clarified that further by noting that seat height is the same no matter what spring rate, it will only change if you have a different sag amount adjusted in, and since static sag should always be within a narrow range, a 4.4 rear spring is going to be just as tall as a 5.4 spring. The difference is having a spring rate that suits YOU. No matter whether a rider is 125 lbs or 225 lbs, the bike should sink the SAME amount for both riders when they get on the seat, IF both riders have the proper spring for their weight. That's why nothing happens when you climb on your trusty Husky. The rate is way too high, so it doesn't compress.

I'm going through the same issue with my 510. Harsh ride, barely touching the balls of my feet (even after sliding forks up 4 lines in triple clamp) and not using the last 3 in. of fork travel. I'm 5'10" 160lb with gear and am not getting the most out of the suspension just like you all talk about. Was told the fork springs on this TE are 5.0's and I believe it. Was also recommended to do exactly what Bentaero did and respring plus go with lighter oil before having a whole valve job done so...... Just got to figure out what size of boingers to get now.

Well late yesterday I forwarded an inquiry email to Les, Bottones Jo-Bet Cycle, MX-Tech, and BentAero’s guy at Cogent Dynamics with information on me and my bike, so guess I’ll wait and see what they recommend and how much it's going to set me back.

Response from LT Racing:

It doesn't look as if you need it lowered.[I forwarded a picture] For some people it makes riding a little more confidence inspiring and if you get into very difficult single track on a regular basis it is much easier to navigate through the tough sections. If you are confident and comfortable with the stock height, leave it standard height. These seem to sit pretty nice height wise, and you do loose suspension travel when lowered. Its really your call, getting the suspension set up properly for you will make riding much nicer by itself. For your weight I would recommend the correct fork and shock springs with a re-valve, this would be right in the $500 range. Add $75 for lowering front and rear if you choose to go this route.

Thanks for the points coffee. Inseam is 29". Who did you use to do your suspension work? I posted LT's answer because I thought it was interesting and touches on my concerns about lowering it and some of BentAero's comments. I'm waiting to see what the other shops say - I've got some time before snow flies yet!

Les included some shipping instructions and suggested insuring for $1000 to $2000 for the forks and $600 to $900 for the shock. Also had a comment about gun cases working well but costing more to ship.

I’m sold on doing it believe me!! I’m alright with the seat height and I’ve been doing okay with occasional and short stretches of tricky stuff. I’m not above just getting off the bike and walking it through/around some stuff either! Live to ride another day is my motto.

WoodsChick, thank you so much for the information!

Thanks. I think he’s finally on board with having the suspension done, now we’re going to duke it out over who does it. I don’t know which of us is more stubborn and bullheaded. I’ve pretty much made my mind up to go with Les Tinius, he’s thinking MX-Tech. If I lived local to Cogent Dynamics I would be willing to try that shop. Received back a very detailed and very nice email from Rick Tannenbaum and I feel confident he would do a good job. However, he has a conservative approach that may involve a couple of tear downs to get it right. With the possibility of multiple shippings and time involved to install and possibly reinstall the suspension, not sure this would work well for me.

Les, has a reputation of getting it right the first time. I could'nt be happier with what he did for my forks.