OK, I thought it best at this point to go ahead and start a new thread on this topic.
First off, the disclaimers;
I have no dog in this hunt, I am a Fire Captain working in a professional fire department so I have no connection, etc., etc.
I AM actively pursuing the idea of getting a solid foundation laid and a relationship built to hopefully provide a quality suspension shop for my needs as well as a place to go for all of us Super Tenere owners who would like to do some suspension work to improve the ride, dial it in for your personal use, set it up for your weight and style, etc.
As such, I have reached out to Super Plush Suspension located in San Francisco, CA.
Their link - http://www.superplushsuspension.com/
They are quite well known for their KTM work and in my discussions to date have expressed a desire to delve in to our world of Yamaha. First things first, they need to understand our bike a bit. To this end, I have arranged to go to their shop and spend the day with James on Monday, January 9th. James will be reviewing the bike, testing it, and otherwise going over it to ascertain if he can help us, what it would take, as well as get a perspective of where it is in terms of stock set up, etc.
I know what I like, I have a professional road race background from racing for Vance and Hines in the late 80s and early 90s on Yamaha FZR-600s so I can talk the talk as well as walk the walk which will either get me in trouble or help out. We'll see!!
My issues at hand are;
1. The bike is under sprung for my weight. I weigh 215 lbs and this is before I get dressed in all my riding gear.
2. The bike has too much hi speed compression on the front end. It is jarring on sharp edged, hi speed hits.
3. I am having a difficult time gaining a good front to rear balance. This is most likely starting with the spring issue but certainly is exacerbated with the damping issues.
What I am asking of this thread is to somewhat become a repository/documentation area of information that we can all learn from, I can take to Super Plush, and perhaps, we can all benefit from in the area of suspension.
To capture as much information as possible in as clean a format let's try to make sure you include;
Rider weight (be clear if this is dressed in gear or not)
Bike use (Style, percentage off road/on road, 2 up)
Tires being run (knobbie versus street does make a difference, for example as well as pressures)
Current set up (pre load, compression, rebound) Please use the terms and language of our owner's manual so it is consistent and clear without need for translation.
Issues (too harsh, wallows, perfect, too much/too little ______fill in blank) Details!!!
Any mods done to suspension (Traxxion Dynamic, different fork springs, different shock, oil weight/height change)
Additional loads carried, etc. that would affect your set up.
Anything else that could be of value to anyone reading this or Super Plush, etc. Yes, if you feel the stock suspension is the bee's knees then that is valuable information. All I ask is that this not denigrate in to a pissing match of good, bad, Silver Surfer, Captain America, Underroos are better. EVERY opinion that is offered has value and I would hope we could all respect others' opinions as well. Asking questions to get more information is encouraged. Just do it with an open mind, please. I don't want this to be a polarizing oil type thread.
I am forwarding this link to Super Plush. If this is something that works out I will invite them/ask them to post up in the Vendor section with any details of what they can do. I will also post up here on my findings (good and bad), how it is to deal with them, etc.
Again, I need to reiterate, I am receiving nothing for this from them (I will post up if they offer me anything for being a guinea pig, etc. to maintain full disclosure). I just feel that there is strength in numbers and if all our bikes can be improved in the one area that can net some of the biggest gains (excepting you becoming a better, more skilled rider) then why not? I will offer that Super Plush has an ongoing special that has been posted through their Facebook page that indicates they are offering a 10% off on all labor for work done prior to January 15.
Facebook link - http://www.facebook.com/SuperPlushSuspension
Ok, what ya got?
First off, the disclaimers;
I have no dog in this hunt, I am a Fire Captain working in a professional fire department so I have no connection, etc., etc.
I AM actively pursuing the idea of getting a solid foundation laid and a relationship built to hopefully provide a quality suspension shop for my needs as well as a place to go for all of us Super Tenere owners who would like to do some suspension work to improve the ride, dial it in for your personal use, set it up for your weight and style, etc.
As such, I have reached out to Super Plush Suspension located in San Francisco, CA.
Their link - http://www.superplushsuspension.com/
They are quite well known for their KTM work and in my discussions to date have expressed a desire to delve in to our world of Yamaha. First things first, they need to understand our bike a bit. To this end, I have arranged to go to their shop and spend the day with James on Monday, January 9th. James will be reviewing the bike, testing it, and otherwise going over it to ascertain if he can help us, what it would take, as well as get a perspective of where it is in terms of stock set up, etc.
I know what I like, I have a professional road race background from racing for Vance and Hines in the late 80s and early 90s on Yamaha FZR-600s so I can talk the talk as well as walk the walk which will either get me in trouble or help out. We'll see!!
My issues at hand are;
1. The bike is under sprung for my weight. I weigh 215 lbs and this is before I get dressed in all my riding gear.
2. The bike has too much hi speed compression on the front end. It is jarring on sharp edged, hi speed hits.
3. I am having a difficult time gaining a good front to rear balance. This is most likely starting with the spring issue but certainly is exacerbated with the damping issues.
What I am asking of this thread is to somewhat become a repository/documentation area of information that we can all learn from, I can take to Super Plush, and perhaps, we can all benefit from in the area of suspension.
To capture as much information as possible in as clean a format let's try to make sure you include;
Rider weight (be clear if this is dressed in gear or not)
Bike use (Style, percentage off road/on road, 2 up)
Tires being run (knobbie versus street does make a difference, for example as well as pressures)
Current set up (pre load, compression, rebound) Please use the terms and language of our owner's manual so it is consistent and clear without need for translation.
Issues (too harsh, wallows, perfect, too much/too little ______fill in blank) Details!!!
Any mods done to suspension (Traxxion Dynamic, different fork springs, different shock, oil weight/height change)
Additional loads carried, etc. that would affect your set up.
Anything else that could be of value to anyone reading this or Super Plush, etc. Yes, if you feel the stock suspension is the bee's knees then that is valuable information. All I ask is that this not denigrate in to a pissing match of good, bad, Silver Surfer, Captain America, Underroos are better. EVERY opinion that is offered has value and I would hope we could all respect others' opinions as well. Asking questions to get more information is encouraged. Just do it with an open mind, please. I don't want this to be a polarizing oil type thread.
I am forwarding this link to Super Plush. If this is something that works out I will invite them/ask them to post up in the Vendor section with any details of what they can do. I will also post up here on my findings (good and bad), how it is to deal with them, etc.
Again, I need to reiterate, I am receiving nothing for this from them (I will post up if they offer me anything for being a guinea pig, etc. to maintain full disclosure). I just feel that there is strength in numbers and if all our bikes can be improved in the one area that can net some of the biggest gains (excepting you becoming a better, more skilled rider) then why not? I will offer that Super Plush has an ongoing special that has been posted through their Facebook page that indicates they are offering a 10% off on all labor for work done prior to January 15.
Facebook link - http://www.facebook.com/SuperPlushSuspension
Ok, what ya got?