suspension Settings Advice

[sp0okz]

Hey All,

I passed my test around a month ago and jumped into the deep end and got a Multistrada but it was a bit much for me so i traded it for  tracer 900 GT im a chunky monkey and the suspention seems to be very soft as on the ducati it auto ajusted it's self and i dont know too much about the ajustments yet on bikes.

Im 252lbs i feel when i back off the throttle i slide forward or when breaking also front end seems very soft and also i feel like im getting bounced all over on normal roads with few bumps in them

any help i will be good thanks

[dmanteigas]

Add preload and compression to fronk fork to reduce softness and bouncing on the front.

 

But after doing anything, set the sag for your weight both front and rear. Also note that the Tracer 900GT has progressive springs in the front meaning that by adding preload you're also affecting the spring stifness.

[BBB]

Put a cable tie around the front fork leg, just tight enough so it can slide when pushed. Set it at the top of the stanchion, just below the seal. Go for a ride where you brake a lot and then check where the cable tie has slid to. If it has gone to the bottom of the stanchion you need to add preload until this cable tie routine gives you about 10-15mm of travel left (for the day you hit a massive pot hole or pull a huge stoppie). That sets the front preload. 

If after doing this the forks are too bouncy, add compression damping until it calms down.

For the rear, you’ll need to measure static sag (lots of references on youtube) and again, once that’s done, add damping until you lose the rapid bouncing feeling.

 

 

[sp0okz]

5 hours ago, BBB said:

Put a cable tie around the front fork leg, just tight enough so it can slide when pushed. Set it at the top of the stanchion, just below the seal. Go for a ride where you brake a lot and then check where the cable tie has slid to. If it has gone to the bottom of the stanchion you need to add preload until this cable tie routine gives you about 10-15mm of travel left (for the day you hit a massive pot hole or pull a huge stoppie). That sets the front preload. 

If after doing this the forks are too bouncy, add compression damping until it calms down.

For the rear, you’ll need to measure static sag (lots of references on youtube) and again, once that’s done, add damping until you lose the rapid bouncing feeling.

 

Thankyou ill give this a try

 

[norcal616]

For that weight- suspension upgrade is needed(cheap solution is fork springs and oil and a decent aftermarket rear shock or a basic fork kit from like Stolec and a decent aftermarket rear shock)... It's barely enough for my 180# geared up weight... 

[betoney]

12 hours ago, BBB said:

If after doing this the forks are too bouncy, add compression damping until it calms down.

 

Don't you mean "rebound damping" to slow the bounce?

Setting your Rebound Damping

[BBB]

Yep, typed in haste @betoney. Good catch.

[mike]

I weigh 250 lbs and have the bike set up with the stock suspension well enough for me. I am not a racer but do ride spiritedly and usually wear out my front tires on the sides not the center. Unfortunately the rear wears out in the center due to my obsession with that thing  my right hand is operating when riding.

I have the rear shock preload a couple of clicks below max and the rebound set a max. The front rebound is set with three rings exposed including the top one. Compression is set about at midpoint and the rebound is at max.

I had a little issue with minor headshake at speed, 80-90 mph, in sweepers but it seems to have been corrected with the settings I have now along with the removal of the bags and the addition of a Puig race screen.

The ride is fairly plush when hitting a dip but does not bottom out with hard hits and bumps at mid corner don't upset the bike at all.

I'm an old fat guy and I know that there are people out there that ride better and harder than I do who will tell you that the springs aren't up to the task. They may be dragging the footpegs and I only drag my boot on occasion. This bike is without a doubt is better than I am and has pulled me out of a few OH SH-T moments in corners without a hitch.

I love this bike

Mike

Quote

 

 

[wordsmith]

On 6/25/2019 at 8:36 PM, dmanteigas said:

Add preload and compression to fronk fork to reduce softness and bouncing on the front.

 

But after doing anything, set the sag for your weight both front and rear. Also note that the Tracer 900GT has progressive springs in the front meaning that by adding preload you're also affecting the spring stifness.

And make and keep a note of every alteration you make so that you can track what works, what doesn't, or return to OE settings if necessary.   Also only make one change at a time - with more than one you'll never know what works and what doesn't.

Edited June 28, 2019 by wordsmith

[StealthAu]

23 hours ago, mike said:

I weigh 250 lbs and have the bike set up with the stock suspension well enough for me. I am not a racer but do ride spiritedly and usually wear out my front tires on the sides not the center. Unfortunately the rear wears out in the center due to my obsession with that thing  my right hand is operating when riding.

I have the rear shock preload a couple of clicks below max and the rebound set a max. The front rebound is set with three rings exposed including the top one. Compression is set about at midpoint and the rebound is at max.

I had a little issue with minor headshake at speed, 80-90 mph, in sweepers but it seems to have been corrected with the settings I have now along with the removal of the bags and the addition of a Puig race screen.

The ride is fairly plush when hitting a dip but does not bottom out with hard hits and bumps at mid corner don't upset the bike at all.

I'm an old fat guy and I know that there are people out there that ride better and harder than I do who will tell you that the springs aren't up to the task. They may be dragging the footpegs and I only drag my boot on occasion. This bike is without a doubt is better than I am and has pulled me out of a few OH SH-T moments in corners without a hitch.

I love this bike

Mike

 

Any rough roads, traction must be a serious issue with that much rebound damping. If you push down on the rear of your bike, how many cups of coffee can you make before it resets?

 

[StealthAu]

On 6/25/2019 at 8:36 PM, dmanteigas said:

Add preload and compression to fronk fork to reduce softness and bouncing on the front.

 

But after doing anything, set the sag for your weight both front and rear. Also note that the Tracer 900GT has progressive springs in the front meaning that by adding preload you're also affecting the spring stifness.

I checked the part number for the gt fork springs, 0.75kg/mm fixed rate.

On 6/25/2019 at 11:24 PM, BBB said:

Put a cable tie around the front fork leg, just tight enough so it can slide when pushed.

Good idea, but for it to be useful, you need to know where bottom out is. 

Lift the front wheel off the ground, measure the exposed fork tube. Check manufacturer specification for fork travel, subtract this from the tube length. What you are left with is the distance from the bottom of the tube to where bottom out is.

It's 13mm from the bottom of the tube on the tracers, if unaware of this, you could be touching bottom out and think you have more available travel. 

[betoney]

On 6/27/2019 at 3:18 PM, mike said:

I have the rear shock preload a couple of clicks below max and the rebound set a max. The front rebound is set with three rings exposed including the top one. Compression is set about at midpoint and the rebound is at max.

The ride is fairly plush when hitting a dip but does not bottom out with hard hits and bumps at mid corner don't upset the bike at all.

I don't know how you can possibly have a plush ride with the rebound circuit completely closed.  @StealthAu is correct, it would take an eternity for your suspension to return to a neutral position after compressing, you wouldn't feel the spring at all.  Compression set at mid point and rebound completely closed?, something is horribly wrong there.

[StealthAu]

For suspension setup, first set sag.

Ideally, you want to be in 25-30% of travel sitting on the bike. I'd aim more towards the 25% on this bike for a little more clearance. 

At 100kg/220lbs this isn't achievable with stock springs in the front. Can get it there in the rear, but the amount of preload required results in zero static sag. I've ordered new springs.

For the time being, I have the preload in the front maxed out giving me about 36% sag. Bike needs to be balanced, so the rear is matched to about the same. 

 

Next is rebound. Start on the forks. Take it all the way out, push down on the forks and release. note how it behaves. It will shoot up, then bounce a few times before settling. Adjust the rebound all the way in and repeat. Note how slowly it comes up, no bounce. 

Get a feel for how the rebound damping effects it.

Now, you want to set it to where the least amount of damping that when you push down on the forks and release, it comes back up and settles. No bouncing. 

Repeat for the rear. 

 

With sag and rebound damping setup, we move to compression damping. 

Personally, with compression damping adjustment only available on the front, I just set it to where the front and rear are uniformed. Push down on the handlebar and seat, release, the front and rear go down and come back up consistent to each other, balanced. 

What you can do to get an understanding of how compression damping effects suspension travel, back it all the way out and go for a ride. Then, adjust it all the way in and repeat. You will then have a feel for what too much and too little compression damping is. From there, chuck the compression damping to factory settings and adjust to your liking.

 

If your forks bottom out, or getting close to bottom out, you can add more compression damping as a band aid while waiting for new springs.  

Edited June 28, 2019 by StealthAu

[mike]

29 minutes ago, betoney said:

I don't know how you can possibly have a plush ride with the rebound circuit completely closed.  @StealthAu is correct, it would take an eternity for your suspension to return to a neutral position after compressing, you wouldn't feel the spring at all.  Compression set at mid point and rebound completely closed?, something is horribly wrong there.

You seem to think that setting the rebound on maximum will literally stop all movement in the forks and shock. If you think about it, Yamaha has designed the rebound circuit to work in a range they feel comfortable allowing a rider to use. If they designed a system that would not allow sufficient movement when set to the max or gave no resistance when set to the minimum, the layers would be lining up for a piece of the pie. The shock and the forks have max and min settings that can be used or that range of adjustment would not built into the design.

For someone my weight, the shock and forks move quite a bit in compression when riding and the slower rebound prevents the pogo effect. When custom suspensions are set up one thing that is often added, as I understand it, is more dampening in the rebound circuit. As long as the rebound does not cause the spring to pack up and will allow the spring to unload before the next compression, all is good.

[wordsmith]

As a skinny bugger I mean no disrespect here - but aren't some of you 250lb-plus guys expecting too much from a bike of this size and weight and just plain ornery suspension ex-factory?