Suspension Setup recommendations.

I'm 5'11" and the stock 300 felt too tall and top heavy to me. Proper springs, sag and plush settings helped make it a keeper. It does still outweigh me by about 75 lbs though.

Just an update for anyone who may be interested. I've made some changes to the bike and that made it a keeper.

I installed a Lectron 38mm HV carb on it and that took care of the carb tuning hassles.

With regards to the suspension, I got in touch with Les at LT Racing and had them set up the suspension as well as lower it 1". They did end up changing to softer springs in the forks and shock. It's very comfortable to ride and the suspension is working like it should.

Yup, had the forks on the 165 revalved by Cogent Dynamics in nearby Asheville and it's a huge improvement. Gonna do the shock next

Hello, I've read most-maybe all the suspension post in the 2T section here and some great info.
Just looking to consolidate the overall picture on how I can approach setting up my 2008 WR250.
The bike felt okay on my first ride, I liked it, but the tighter and more technical terrain I began to ride the more funny the front end felt.
It didn't feel too soft, just that the rear would "push" the front when cornering hard, like the rear would struggle for traction but then when it got it would almost push the front out almost. Aside from that it was a tad hard to steer and not feeling very planted on the front tire.

I will consider maybe investing in going to a tuner over the winter and doing the full suspension re-valve and all that, but would like to try and improve it first before spending all that money since the entire bike cost me only $2000. So what can I do before sending it all off to a tuner?
Here is a list of things that I have come across on this forum and just looking for the real suspension pro's here to comment and possibly fill in some of the number on the setup. Thanks in advance for any replies and info and I really appreciate the help.

I am 170lbs without gear and ride hard in gnarly single track mostly (slick, rocks, roots, un-even ground and lots of elevation).
Please comment or confirm the list below:

-Fork seals (have very small leak and will replace soon)
-Lower the fork oil height from manual spec <add number here> (some say reduce by up to 30mm?)
-Less torque on the lower fork clamp (18lbs on the top and only 11lbs for the bottom triple clamp) also make sure properly aligned forks
-Set Sag <add number here FRONT SAG> <add number here REAR SAG>
-Slide forks up the triple to next bar (some have 2-3 bars showing?)
-Full Set-up/Re-valve: Ian at Rider's Edge suspension in Canada/BC. He has a new valve that flows more oil/new shim stack. My last resort I hope.

Any idea what the previous owner did to the suspension?

If it were mine I'd do this first:
1. Check the clickers, start with stock then back the comp out a couple clicks.
2. Play with the tire pressures.
3. Set the sag.
3. Try a new/different front tire.
4. I'm assuming the forks are the 50mm Zokes, when you fix the seals, pull the forks apart and clean the crap out of the compression valving if it hasn't been done. I always used BelRay 5wt in mine.

If the bike was ridden hard and not maintained try and get it to the original baseline, make sure everything is straight, bearing, bushings are all in good shape.
I'd start with the easy stuff then move on to the more expensive solutions.
I'm sure there are a million different opinions but like I said this is what I would do.

When my 2009 was new cleaning out the forks and getting the assembly lube out of the valving made a huge difference in mine.

If none of this works, sell it and go buy a 2018 Beta 300RR.

Hope this helps

Thanks for the reply Rob578.

Not sure what was done to the suspension previously although I do know the owner and will try and find out.
From what I know on all his other bikes he always keeps everything bone stock. There aren't allot of hours on it (maybe 60-70 hours max) and he does his maintenance.

I put a brand new front tire (startcross 5) and ran 11psi pressure.
The forks on my 2008 are the 45mm Marzocchi. I don't think mine have any compression adjustment only rebound (I could be wrong though).

My friend is helping me with changing the leaky oil seals and I'll ask him if he knows how to clean out the compression valving.
We will be using either BelRay 5 weight or Motul 5 weight which ever my local shop has in stock.

Any recommended settings for:
Front SAG?
Rear SAG?
Fork Oil Height?
Fork tube height in the triple clamps (how many bars/rings showing on the top of the fork by the cap)?

#1 Spring it for your weight both front and rear
#2 set sag
#3 use SKF fork seals
#4 check front fork spring preload while they are apart (my 09 wr250 had zero preload on the front springs)

Once you have done this you can ride a bunch and play with the clickers and you might be satisfied with the performance, if not you will have much better feedback to share with who ever does your re-valve.

Thanks lankydoug.
I think for right now I was looking at 2 avenues, the cheap just get it in the ballpark range and then if this bike calls to me and ends up being a keeper long-term then I will drop some bigger $$ on the suspension. I ended up already buying the all balls seals, not sure how to set sag on these other then maybe the shock with the adjuster, and also not sure about the front spring preload I only saw one adjuster on the fork and it's rebound (can't find any compression or preload adjusters).
For the shock there are 2 clickers at least, I think the big knob is compression and the tiny clicker in the middle of that is rebound? (no rebound on the bottom that I can see as one would expect).

The front spring preload can only be set by installing a spacer internally while forks are apart... 3mm preload is a good place to start. (put the inner rod together on the bench with the spring and measure)

The shock rebound is on the bottom of the shock the upper knob and screw is high speed and low speed compression.

LTR did a great job on my forks and shock and if you're on the western side of Canada they are close to you.

thanks again lankydog.

might be a winter project, "learn how to work on forks" and get the seals changed and maybe a spacer installed. Don't know where to get the spacer though and what size. Being 170lbs before gear for almost all the bikes I've had I'm usually within the stock spring rates (not to say that I am for this one, I don't know).

for the life of me I cannot see a rebound adjuster on the bottom of this shock .. lol
I can see it on my other bikes, just not finding it on this one (2008 WR250).

I called LTR and wanted to use them but I'm east coast and probably looking at $300+ shipping round trip to send it off for the work. There is a local shop here that is familiar with these bikes (relatively local, 3 hours drive each way). he said can re-valve and service front and rear for $600 range all in with the cost of parts and everything. Will see if want to invest that much in this bike because by the time I clean carb and re-jet, do all the bearings that need to be replaced and add that suspension bill that adds up to what I've paid for the entire bike lol.

Also noticed green colour in the bottom-end oil that I drained out recently. I only had 3 hours on that oil and just drained it more for a flush since the previous owner had the bike sit for years and when I bought it recently I put fresh Motul Transoil and drained it quickly with only 3 hours for good measure. Now I'm un-sure if it's coolant in the oil or just some of the slightly green colouration of the motul (when you pour it in it's slightly green in colour).

On the last paragraph, the water pump impellor shaft can be a hard to notice problem. It will develop a hardly discernable groove at the brass bearing into the case. Wont notice a coolent drop but will turn gearbox oil into a thin green milky goop.

Thanks for the reply.
This sounds like it, my coolant lever not noticeably dropping but there is definitely green mixed in with the oil.
How can I fix this? The shaft needs to be replaced or does it just have a seal on it?
Thanks again gaz.

http://www.cafehusky.com/threads/co...-to-do-this-waterpump-seal.25198/#post-226842

I mainly relied on the above thread along with an exploded diagram from husky parts.com to work out how to fix it. I did need to remove the clutch to get to the pump. I also needed to replace the brass bushing that had a faint groove. All parts came from Halls who got them here to West Oz in good time. I’m not much of a mechanic but didn’t have too many dramas.

Thanks again gaz, I'll be looking into doing this as a winter fix, among other things on the bike.

Going to tackle the seal tonight.
Noticed something pretty wild, and stupid on my part. The previous owner had compression full out and rebound full out on the forks.
No wonder was scary to ride with absolutely no damping at all.

Working on the seals, I'm not experienced with suspension so just a few questions.
- Use 5 weight oil? I've read folks are doing this.
- What oil height should I go? I've read folks going little lower then manual.
- Was told to clean the compression stack from factory grease (not sure I even know what this is .. but will try).
- I don't know how to shim preload (or what to use, some washers?) although that was a good recommendation.
- Anything else while I'm in there?

Seems there was a pretty extensive thread about the 45mm Zokes, maybe in the old 2 stroke forum.
Do you have the shop manual? Stock amount of oil is probably a safe place to start, 5wt is usually good unless the Zokes like something else.
To clean the compression stack thoroughly you need to disassemble the fork. Or get some extra oil and flush as best as possible by pumping the rod up and down.
People use all kinds of stuff for preload spacers: washers, plastic pipe, etc. If you buy some RaceTech springs they usually come with a couple 1mm spacers.
It helps to look at pictures and vids, youtube is your friend. This place has parts and pics for your bike:
http://www.motosport.com/dirtbike/oem-parts/husqvarna/2008/wr-250/front-fork-assembly?fam=Other
Unless the springs have been replaced recently you can bet they're sacked to some degree. Can't really be too picky without the proper springs, especially in the forks. Shock you can add preload easily to get bike sag right, but more than @ 10mm preload and you need a stiffer spring.
Also, disassemble, clean and lube the shock and linkage and torque to specs or your sag numbers will be off.

Agreed, I'd get it working in current stock condition, then decide if you want to invest more.

So my friend that I ride Beta's with came over last night and we tackled the fork seals.
He's done them once on the Beta Marzocchi's and has the bit of experience, was a huge help to have someone here with a few tips.
Took 4 hours to get both done, but it wasn't a bad job at all and really no snags or issues and we were in no hurry.
Fork oil came out surprisingly clean but the level looked low (didn't measure but way down in the tube compared to where we set it at -100).
Bushings were very good shape, oil seal clips and the washer above the seal were perfect too. Cleaned everything thoroughly and re-assembled wit new seals, fresh BelRay 5W oil, and set the oil height to -100 instead of the manual recommended -90 (from recommendations here on the forum, thanks).

It's pouring rain here today and a whopping 3 Celsius so not gonna test it out today. Hoping to get out fter work tomorrow if can beat the sun going down by the time I drive out to the forest. Will post up how things feel with the fresh seals/oil/oil height. Cheers!

Hi Guys, I have read through this thread and picked up a lot of good tips but I just wanted to get some opinions on a rear spring upgrade. I am riding an '09 TXC 450 which I have had from new and have always been fighting the front end feeling stiff and deflecting which sounds pretty common for these bikes. I have made sure the front wheel is not causing binding and I am using the whole travel with most riding sessions giving me 1 or 2 soft bottom outs. I ride mostly single trail and some more open trails with some slippery hills with roots and ruts and find that is often where I am deflecting. I have just serviced my forks (50mm cc Marzocchi's) and used 5w fork oil in them as well as ensuring the air is bleed out properly. I thought my rear rider sag was pretty close but when I checked the actual weight of me riding gear I had drastically underestimated the extra 13-14 kgs! When I increased my preload to get 100mm rider sag I am only getting 20mm static sag and that is using around 24mm preload. Obviously this spring is too soft and I am guessing that some of the harshness in the front end is being transferred from the rear.
Using some of the online spring calculators is a bit confusing, some say to use rider weight without gear but come back with spring rates very different to others. My stock spring is either a 5.4 or 5.6 depending on where I look (nothing on the spring). With gear the rider weight is about 97kgs. I am not sure if I should get a 5.8 or a 6.0 spring. Whats worse is that the couple of suppliers I have contacted are pretty hesitant to swap springs over and keep referring to the online calculators. I am planning to get the rear sorted then look at the front, which I am expecting will need some softer springs. I think I would be close to the upper end of the range for the 5.8 or the lower end of the range for a 6.0 so I guess I am asking is it better to go for, the upper limit of a soft spring or the lower limit of a harder spring if I have to make a best guess at which should be closer to the ideal sag numbers? If I end up slightly off but close will the harder spring be more likely to give softer initial travel?
Thanks for any advice!

I'm familiar with the 09 and the Marzocchi fork and Sachs shock. With sag of 20/100, get the 6.0. Try to get closer to 35/105, then begin to assess the fork. The stock Zoke CC fork is a bit harsh, both from the massive 50mm tubes and the valving, but I bet you will find an immediate improvement up front with a firmer spring that is not trying to push so strongly to the top of the stroke. There is a condition that people describe as "the shock driving the fork" and I'm pretty sure thats at least some of your issue. And you just need a firmer rear spring so start there. Doubt you will need a softer fork spring, and probably will need firmer, but start with the shock.

The other problem with the 08/09 is that it had a long swingarm that tended to drive the front end down. They shortened it a few (10?) mm in 2010 and that helped the chassis balance. While it's not worth the $$$ to swap swingers, you might see if you can juggle sprockets and chains to run the rear axle as far forward as possible. Axle forward, and a firmer spring with less preload and more free sag will be a great start.

Thanks Picklito, that is pretty much what I was thinking with the shock driving the fork idea, I found a similar effect on a KTM that was sprung for a much heavier rider that I had years ago, getting a softer spring made a big difference to the front end. I know that bleeding the forks properly made a noticeable difference the last time I serviced them (which was when I had to shim the bushes to allow the seals to seal properly which, from what I hear, was a problem with some of these forks) I was extra careful when shimming to make sure I didn't cause any binding problems. At the time I checked static heights and there was hardly any restriction to the fork movement.
Good idea about looking into the chain and sprockets to shorten the wheel base a bit, I will do that next time I replace them. Meantime I will order a spring on Monday and get the proper numbers. Using Vinduro's formula by memory the numbers were 32 and 100. Thanks again

OK, an update.......
I have just put in a 6.0 spring and set the numbers best I can. They came back at a static sag of 30mm and rider sag of 103 which is the lower limit for static and upper limit for rider according to Vinduro's formula. That would suggest the spring is only just stiff enough for me, is that correct? Is that likely to change once the spring beds in after a few rides? Now I just have to find some time to get out and test it.......