The Offical Pachaug Trail Thread

[MATPOC]

Originally Posted by Bob Q

I'm kind of into suspension stuff, so I did the whole thing, broke them down, cleaned them and refilled them, I set the level at 170mm from the top, springs out, tube fully compressed, I do my own rear shock also.

Wow, got a nitrogen rig?
I moonlighted at the suspension shop for years, most people think it's voodoo magic but I got to see what makes it tick! Have not done much of off-road stuff, mainly race bikes, but I did pull apart few dirt encrusted forks an shocks.

[nobody]

Wow ,with all this forks connoisseurs who can service my suspension?KTM 2008!

[mrt10x]

Originally Posted by nobody

Wow ,with all this forks connoisseurs who can service my suspension?KTM 2008!

beat me to it suspension seems like black magic to me

[sledstorm1]

Originally Posted by nobody

Wow ,with all this forks connoisseurs who can service my suspension?KTM 2008!

I'd be willing to pay someone to watch and ...

[nobody]

Originally Posted by sledstorm1

I'd be willing to pay someone to watch and ...

Well,pay one of those guys while they service my suspension...we will all be soo happy!

[akarob]

All I know about service is to pour out the old oil and pour in the new oil. If I get fancy, I'll rinse it out with ATF before I refill. Admission would be extra to that show though.

[MATPOC]

I usually dismantle each fork leg, knock out the seals, inspect bushings, wash all the sludge out from the bottom of the fork, takes a good hour. Anyone wants to bring their pogo sticks by and watch me do it I'm all for it, I just need some advance notice and I can make time on a weekend or after work.

[Ken F]

Originally Posted by MATPOC

I usually dismantle each fork leg, knock out the seals, inspect bushings, wash all the sludge out from the bottom of the fork, takes a good hour. Anyone wants to bring their pogo sticks by and watch me do it I'm all for it, I just need some advance notice and I can make time on a weekend or after work.

Do you have the tools to drive seals in?your pretty far from me but I may take you up on your offer.I got to see if I can pull forks off.may be little hard working on bike with my broken knee.I will try this week. I also don't have manuals for my 200cc gas gas ec. So if anyone knows what they recommend for fork oil let me know

[akarob]

I wish I could say I was riding the loop today, it sure is nice out.

[Ken F]

Originally Posted by akarob

I wish I could say I was riding the loop today, it sure is nice out.

Me too.but still recovering from black Friday ride

[bomber1965]

Originally Posted by Ken F

I also don't have manuals for my 200cc gas gas ec. So if anyone knows what they recommend for fork oil let me know

I don't know the exact forks your running, you didn't mention year or MM size, but here is some reading.

http://www.marzocchi.co.uk/documents...hiver45USD.pdf

[Bob Q]

I do have the nitrogen stuff but don't have the fill adapter to do the KTM shock, I was never lucky enough to own a KTM. I would love to hook up with matpoc and share some info on the black magic part! I mostly take every thing apart and clean and inspect, or I can do the race tech stuff, I have allways been skeptical of the modified valve stacks, but that's just me.

I too would rather be riding! Instead I am painting my house :(.

[sledstorm1]

Originally Posted by akarob

All I know about service is to pour out the old oil and pour in the new oil. If I get fancy, I'll rinse it out with ATF before I refill. Admission would be extra to that show though.

I'll bring the beer! LOL and we'll watch Darius films afterwards!

I may try my own hand at it in the mean time...

[MATPOC]

Yeah I got some house/work related chores today, wish I was out on a bike....

Shim stack is the "black art" unless you know what you doing, it simply controls the oil flow at different speeds based on the size of the shims, different thickness and diameter shims deflect at different force applications, stack acts as a whole based on it's shape flowing the oil and controlling the fork/shock movement speed, with some understanding and enough testing you may dial it in somewhat for your rider weight, style and current conditions but once the temps shift or oil gets few miles on it, bike warms up... everything changes, couple hours of riding will change the way oil flows and with it the way bike handles! I just get it close to where it needs to be and leave it alone, rarely make any adjustments. I don't know enough about dirt riding to make any adjustments for that, as long as the bike is balanced I'm OK with it. For street riding it's easier since I have some track experience but I rarely get anywhere near the limit where "tweaking" the suspension will do any noticeable change. Once the geometry is set and preload/rebound/compression is adjusted it stays that way till the suspension gets serviced next time.

Most common term I hear is "compliance" which in my mind is simply the ability of the wheel to follow the road, stiffer suspension will give you better cornering ability by keeping the bike geometry same through acceleration, braking and cornering, essentially removing the suspension would make it ideal for glass like smooth surface, in reality not even the tracks are that smooth and what you are trying to achieve is the compromise between ability to stay firm but go over any bumps, rougher the road, softer the settings.

There are too many variables, everything from construction of the tire to wheel weight, spring rate and preload, oil weight and level, shim stack... and that's before you get to geometry of the bike, rider weight and style... There is NO Magic Bean, just some compromise settings and equally if not more important is the Riders Confidence in the bike. If you are confident in the suspension bike will seem better, you will be able to ride around the minor issues that may seem major if you lacking the confidence.

That's my .02¢ now back to housework...

[MATPOC]

And yes, I do have seal drivers. With modern forks the cap tool is equally as important and harder to find