Suspension Settings Recommended by Dave Moss

[A41Billy]

I just wanted to report back after I finally got my bike suspension dialed in. Dave Moss adjusted the forks best he could and the shock was spent. The bike was much better after this adjustment, but the shock was ruining the experience.

I replaced the rear oem shock w/ an Ohlins YA707 with a 190 lb rider spring. It has remote preload and remote compression. What a huge difference this made! The bike felt much more solid in the back and now wouldn't collapse under hard acceleration or during hard cornering.
Now the problem had moved to the front of the bike. I had just flushed and changed the fork oil to a synthetic 15wt as Dave suggested. What an improvement! Now everything was fixed, but the geometry did not feel right as I was now fighting the bike to tip into corners and it wanted to stand back up.

A message back from Dave Moss with some suggested settings:

Forks: Set fork rebound at 8 clicks out from max, and compression at 7 clicks out. Have 4 lines showing on fork preload.

Shock: Open up the preload 3 turns and call that good. Set compression at 8-10 clicks out from max and rebound at 12 clicks out. The shock must have 8-12mm free sag and 25mm rider sag.

After a 70 mile test ride to Applegate Dam and back revealed a new bike! It now feels and handles like a dream. She turns in much easier now and holds the lean effortlessly. Front end dive has lessened and feedback from the bike seems more sensitive.

 

[MCRIDER007]

Lets see, 15wt oil in the forks for valving that is designed for 5wt oil.....I can understand why the feedback would be more sensitive.

 

[A41Billy]

Lets see, 15wt oil in the forks for valving that is designed for 5wt oil.....I can understand why the feedback would be more sensitive.

From Dave Moss: "...many of us know we have to change fork oil reasonably regularly now through my teachings and in some cases from the shop manual.

However, most cannot afford a revalve nor springs, so there is a band aid available of using heavier oil than stock in the summer months and stock or slightly thinner oil than stock in the winter months, or making that change year round based on how the fork performs.

Why consider this?

Several reasons:- cold weather keeps the forks at ambient temps so thinner oil would help with supple suspension action in those temps. Similarly, in very hot weather thicker oil would take some of the speed/harshness of fasts suspension travel out of the forks.

Many stock forks can be improved in suppleness especially on the street/commuting/touring by evaluating different oils for the forks.

Is it worth the experimentation? Only you can decide that....."

 

[MCRIDER007]

Lets see, 15wt oil in the forks for valving that is designed for 5wt oil.....I can understand why the feedback would be more sensitive.

From Dave Moss: "...many of us know we have to change fork oil reasonably regularly now through my teachings and in some cases from the shop manual.

However, most cannot afford a revalve nor springs, so there is a band aid available of using heavier oil than stock in the summer months and stock or slightly thinner oil than stock in the winter months, or making that change year round based on how the fork performs.

Why consider this?

Several reasons:- cold weather keeps the forks at ambient temps so thinner oil would help with supple suspension action in those temps. Similarly, in very hot weather thicker oil would take some of the speed/harshness of fasts suspension travel out of the forks.

Many stock forks can be improved in suppleness especially on the street/commuting/touring by evaluating different oils for the forks.

Is it worth the experimentation? Only you can decide that....."

I'm not disputing these comments but I am NOT reading a recommendation for 15 wt fork oil. Street bike forks, such as the FJR, have a very large volume of oil cooled by outside air, and the fork oil temperature rarely exceeds more than 10 degrees more than the ambient temperatures......so the normal operating fork oil temperatures are usually between 40 and 110F. The total variance in viscosity for fork oils in that temperature range is about 25-30 percent or about 15 percent variance from the normal valving design temperature range of 65-85F. If the valving was designed for 5wt oil at 65-85F then you would expect 6wt oil to have the same effective viscosity in 100F temps and 4wt oil to have the same viscosity in 30F temps.

The FJR OEM springs are under sprung for most riders and lack sufficient oil flow in the high speed compression circuit for all riders. Increasing the oil viscosity may give a firmer ride over smooth surfaces but it will also give a much harsher ride on rough surfaces. I helped a friend change his fork oil and he insisted on using 10wt oil.....it increased the feedback on his forks, I could feel every little bump or imperfection in the road. My forks in comparison, with the GP Suspension re-valve (that increases oil flow), just soaked up the bumps and imperfections and stuck to the road at the same time.

 

[A41Billy]

I understand a revalving would be a better route, which I plan to do next year. A heavier weight oil makes for slower damping compared to stock, which helps the front from diving and under more aggressive riding provides me a better feel. Out of curiosity how does the FJR cool it's fork oil?

 

[MCRIDER007]

I understand a revalving would be a better route, which I plan to do next year. A heavier weight oil makes for slower damping compared to stock, which helps the front from diving and under more aggressive riding provides me a better feel. Out of curiosity how does the FJR cool it's fork oil?

I assuming you have OEM springs and valving, you could do the springs now for about $90 from Sonic Springs and pretty much cure your front end dive. The fork oil is cooled by the outside air rushing past the lower aluminum fork legs, its going to be a bit warmer than the fork legs but not much. The fork oil in a street bike has a pretty easy life since there isn't much travel involved.

 

[A41Billy]

Yes,all stock up front. I have more than exceeded the motobudget this year with that Ohlins shock and 2 PR2's that were replaced early due to punctures. I will get springs and valves next year and drop the fork oil weight back down. For now, it is much better than it was.

 

[dcarver]

So, who is Dave Moss?

 

[A41Billy]

So, who is Dave Moss?

https://www.facebook.com/davemosstuning

https://feelthetrack.com/

He is a suspension guru, a road racer and a teacher. Race teams hire him to help adjust their bikes, including MotoGP bikes. I had the opportunity to spend some time with him and my FJR.

 

[eg23232]

So, who is Dave Moss?

A suspension, tire, racing authority. Well known in the racing, track, suspension community. Dave is a professional and he knows his shit.

 

[eg23232]

Yes,all stock up front. I have more than exceeded the motobudget this year with that Ohlins shock and 2 PR2's that were replaced early due to punctures. I will get springs and valves next year and drop the fork oil weight back down. For now, it is much better than it was.

Get a hold of the guys up at KFG Racing (aka GP Suspension) when you decide to do your forks.

 

[A41Billy]

Yes,all stock up front. I have more than exceeded the motobudget this year with that Ohlins shock and 2 PR2's that were replaced early due to punctures. I will get springs and valves next year and drop the fork oil weight back down. For now, it is much better than it was.

Get a hold of the guys up at KFG Racing (aka GP Suspension) when you decide to do your forks.

That's who I planned to go with. Thanks for the input!