PACIFICMAN Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 I am going to Streets of Willow in early September. It is a fairly tight 1.5 mile track in Southern Cal. I am hoping to get some input on setting up my suspension. I am 5'10, 220 lbs and an experienced street/canyon/freeway rider. I ride a 2002 VFR, Dunlop Sportmax tires, Staintune exhaust, K&N air filter. I have the rear shock at position 3 on pre-load and I am 1/2 turn towards firmer on dampening(2 turns out from closed) this seems correct on the street . I would like some input/opinion on my rear settings and some coaching on setting the front shocks(I have not fiddled with them yet). Thanks guys, I'm no expert and would really appreciate the help... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marid2apterbilt Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 Cant help much with the track setup but I do see where you mmay be missing info in your original post.. Are the front and rear Springs/Shock Original ? Or aftermarket, IE Ohlins, Racetech, Wilbers etc.. Not much you can do to the OEM stuff and @ 220lbs your going to be pushing the limits of the OEM suspension no matter what you do.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer tyrroneous Posted August 25, 2009 Member Contributer Share Posted August 25, 2009 For a tight, short track it might be beneficial to raise the forks in the triples a few millimeters. That will quicken the steering and allow for easier direction changes. I'm a lightweight and so can't help ya on preload settings other than to remind that sag needs to be set correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rice Posted August 25, 2009 Member Contributer Share Posted August 25, 2009 I would max out the preload in the front and measure the sag. Then set the same sag in the back using preload. You'll not be in the 35mm sag range, but at least front and back will be balanced and that's about all you can do with stock suspenders @ 220lb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer johnmark101 Posted August 25, 2009 Member Contributer Share Posted August 25, 2009 In the future you may want to spend some money on suspension upgrades. Will make a very noticeable difference in the way the bike rides and handles!! The stock VFR bits are decent for general riding, but a good rider can reach the limits of the stock set up pretty quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Ryanme17 Posted August 26, 2009 Member Contributer Share Posted August 26, 2009 I am going to Streets of Willow in early September. It is a fairly tight 1.5 mile track in Southern Cal. I am hoping to get some input on setting up my suspension. I am 5'10, 220 lbs and an experienced street/canyon/freeway rider. I ride a 2002 VFR, Dunlop Sportmax tires, Staintune exhaust, K&N air filter. I have the rear shock at position 3 on pre-load and I am 1/2 turn towards firmer on dampening(2 turns out from closed) this seems correct on the street . I would like some input/opinion on my rear settings and some coaching on setting the front shocks(I have not fiddled with them yet). Thanks guys, I'm no expert and would really appreciate the help... We'd need to know what kind of shocks and forks you have. If you have damping (not dampening) then they obviously aren't stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum CEO HispanicSlammer Posted August 26, 2009 Forum CEO Share Posted August 26, 2009 For track riding you will want the bike to sag about 1/4 of the total travel, 120mm is the total travel on a 6th gen. 30mm is about right. If you dont know how to set sag then read this article http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.p...;showarticle=30 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 For track riding you will want the bike to sag about 1/4 of the total travel, 120mm is the total travel on a 6th gen. 30mm is about right. If you dont know how to set sag then read this articlehttp://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.p...;showarticle=30 If you've never been on the track before the most important thing with respect to suspension set-up is to 1) make sure your tire pressures are correct for the track, and 2) do the basic set-up (sag, rebound damping) for the street, then 3) avail yourself of the services of the suspension tuner (assuming there is one) that is present at the track day. When I took my VFR to the track for the first time last fall the rider's meeting included a quick pitch from Dave Moss (http://www.catalystsuspension.com/) about the benefits of spending $40 on his services for the day. Best $40 I've ever spent on a mechanic's services. He worked with me to first set up the bike before going out on the track, then by asking me questions about the handling of the bike following several sessions during the day, making tweaks to the set-up. By the first session after lunch the bike was completely dialed in and felt like it was on rails. I did the same when I got the RC-51 and it, too, now corners like it's glued down. And it doesn't tear up tires, either, which saves big $$$ over time. I don't know which provider your going to be there with, but if they have a suspension tuner there, definitely plan to spend a couple of bucks with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rice Posted August 26, 2009 Member Contributer Share Posted August 26, 2009 When I took my VFR to the track for the first time last fall the rider's meeting included a quick pitch from Dave Moss (http://www.catalystsuspension.com/) about the benefits of spending $40 on his services for the day. Best $40 I've ever spent on a mechanic's services. He worked with me to first set up the bike before going out on the track, then by asking me questions about the handling of the bike following several sessions during the day, making tweaks to the set-up. By the first session after lunch the bike was completely dialed in and felt like it was on rails. Boy, that sounds like the best $40 one could spend. I sure wish there was someone like that in my area. I wouldn't think twice about handing over my 40 clams for such service! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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