Suspension advice

[fane]

Suspension advice from more experienced guys like yourselves is needed

having only ridden my 2 dhz dpro 160s (bought the GF one aswell) i dont have any experience myself with improvements to the suspension can do - but obviously reading on here alot and about linkage etc i do find that i have the same issues with sand etc and getting bucked a bit that gets described when people talk about not having linkage.

few questions

can i get a new frame for my DHZ DPRO 160 that has linkage and everything else will line up?

if i get a better shock for the DHZ, eg. a DNM or Fastace will i notice the difference bigtime?

i weigh 73kgs can anyone suggest a a shock for me that will suit good - i dont know what im missing when it comes to better supension so its not a huge problem but for some reason i feel like i am missing out haha

thanks again guys

 

[thump*140]

Fane which model Dpro's do you have? the new ones, with CRF70 style frame and plastics, and the GPX/Fastace suspension, or the older ones based on the CRF50 midsize frame??
If you have the CRF70 style new ones, you'll probably have to spend a bit of money to improve on it...
if its the older CRF50 Midsize style, then you can upgrade to forks like GPX Blacks, which cost around $400 and are great value for money, and either DNM or Fastace shocks will be an improvement over the stock stuff....
obviously you'll notice a difference just by upgrading, but you'll also notice further performance increases by actually tuning the suspension, as the stuff mentioned above usually has adjustable compression and rebound on the forks, and adjustable preload, compression and rebound on the shock..
By tinkering with preload settings, and clicker adjustments, you can fine tune the "speed" at which the suspension compresses and decompresses, particularly to suit your weight and speed, and personal preference...
I'm not aware of any linkage rear frames to suit CRF style bikes, but that's not to say someone else doesnt...

Just remember the basic rule, that all the power in the world is no good if you cant get it to the ground, and this is nearly always ignored by anyone wanting to modify a bike.... good suspension will make for a quicker bike than more power will... to a point...

Basically, a set of GPX black forks, and something like a FastAce BS-62 or 66 RC shock would be the way to go....

 

[dub_88n]

i hav a dhz 140 outlaw and atm i hav the stock forks (waiting for funds to upgrade the the gpx blacks) and i have a dnm rear shock... straight away i could tell the bike was sitting taller in the rear and i was able to take on berms and corners better not to mention it was alot smoother to ride, cant wait for the gpxs

 

[I_THUMP]

Just remember the basic rule, that all the power in the world is no good if you cant get it to the ground, and this is nearly always ignored by anyone wanting to modify a bike.... good suspension will make for a quicker bike than more power will... to a point...

Well said. Too many people come here asking how to get more power but their bike still has the ****** stock pogo stick rear accompanied by a motionless front end. All the power in the world wont get them around the track any quicker and all there energy will be used up just trying to control the bike and keep it on the track. Suspension is always money well spent.

 

[sean01]

1 thing worth a mention is that before you go buying any suspension parts, make sure you measure the lenght of your current forks (fork top to wheel axle) and rear shock (bolt hole to bolt hole).

the reason i say this is because gpx forks dont suit all the pit bikes on the market.. they are pretty long (730mm) way to long for most crf50's

and the other reason is iv seen many people just think they can put longer shocks on and think it will be ok.. even 10mm on a rear shock change everything..

as for spring rate.. 1000lbs would be a good start.. springs are pretty cheap and changing them is a normal part of suspension tuning..

and at this stage there is no linkage upgraded frames available to suit crf50/crf70..

 

[DHZ_XR8cing]

Well said. Too many people come here asking how to get more power but their bike still has the ****** stock pogo stick rear accompanied by a motionless front end. All the power in the world wont get them around the track any quicker and all there energy will be used up just trying to control the bike and keep it on the track. Suspension is always money well spent.

Your very correct in saying the standard suspension uses up all your energy trying to control the bike. When racing its crazy how much it takes it out of ya wrestling these things around the track.

 

[Defective]

1 thing worth a mention is that before you go buying any suspension parts, make sure you measure the lenght of your current forks (fork top to wheel axle) and rear shock (bolt hole to bolt hole).

the reason i say this is because gpx forks dont suit all the pit bikes on the market.. they are pretty long (730mm) way to long for most crf50's

and the other reason is iv seen many people just think they can put longer shocks on and think it will be ok.. even 10mm on a rear shock change everything..

as for spring rate.. 1000lbs would be a good start.. springs are pretty cheap and changing them is a normal part of suspension tuning..

and at this stage there is no linkage upgraded frames available to suit crf50/crf70..

Good point.

I understand how changing the shock/fork length will impact on the ergonomics but I was just wondering if there are any bikes that came out with the wrong length shocks as standard? Its just that some bikes I've come across look wrong how they sit, either rear end too high or too low. Is that just a problem with some of the cheaper bikes?

 

[sean01]

yeah i know wat your talking about, i seen bikes with the top end of the motor pointing down instead of slightly up.. cant be good..

but im guessing this is where trial and error comes in to it to see if the bike will handle the correction..

 

[dub_88n]

the reason i say this is because gpx forks dont suit all the pit bikes on the market.. they are pretty long (730mm) way to long for most crf50's

i hav dhz140 and im bout to thro the gpx's into it, i know there and extra 30mm but sliding the forks up the clamps accompanied bar risers would help over come this wouldnt it?? (if the rider wanted to remove the extra 30mm)

but yea i agree with even the extra 10mm is a big diff, e.g my mate just bought some fast ace as02 forks and they were 30mm to bigger then his stock forks... and now it sorta sits leanin bak...

 

[Defective]

Sliding them up the clamps might gain that 30mm back as long as the forks on it now aren't already through the clamps.

 

[sean01]

yeah with 700mm long forks you will get away with the gpx's. just slide them in the clamps to the correct height..
but most crf50 style are 645mm

 

[dub_88n]

yeah with 700mm long forks you will get away with the gpx's. just slide them in the clamps to the correct height..
but most crf50 style are 645mm

oh true, did not know this cheers champ

 

[fane]

brilliant, thanks for all the advice guys this is exactly what i needed and yep after being car mad for many years with my 33 i know the importance of good suspension and many people left that out of their car upgrades aswell - god knows why

when measuring the rear shock from eye to eye should it be off the bike or can i leave it on there?

 

[dub_88n]

when measuring the rear shock from eye to eye should it be off the bike or can i leave it on there?

i spose u could leave it on there, i would find it easier to take it off for a more accurate measure, its not hard 2 take off a rear shock.... but then again sometimes u cant be botherd