Fork tuning help needed??

[neevothespaniel]

08 WR450F with standard springs front and back. I am 83kg without gear so I assume that the standard springs are pretty close to being right.

Original oil has been dumped for Motorex 5W Racing oil and stock height was kept.

The issues I have are that the forks deliver a harsh ride and feedback way too much to the handlebars. I feel most bumps and on some of the bigger hits I get a serious jolt.

I struggle with this especially when going fast on the rocky stuff. On downhills especially the rocky variety, I nearly loose the front end which is not exactly confidence inspiring.

I am looking for a softer ride up front so any help would be greatly appreciated. I firmed up the compression clickers a bit last time I was out which helped a little bit, but the ride is a long way from the type of soft I am going for.

Clicker settings are currently: Comp 13 clicks out / Rebound 12 clicks out

What can I try to get these things working the way I want?

[FORMA MOTO]

08 WR450F with standard springs front and back. I am 83kg without gear so I assume that the standard springs are pretty close to being right.

Original oil has been dumped for Motorex 5W Racing oil and stock height was kept.

The issues I have are that the forks deliver a harsh ride and feedback way too much to the handlebars. I feel most bumps and on some of the bigger hits I get a serious jolt.

I struggle with this especially when going fast on the rocky stuff. On downhills especially the rocky variety, I nearly loose the front end which is not exactly confidence inspiring.

I am looking for a softer ride up front so any help would be greatly appreciated. I firmed up the compression clickers a bit last time I was out which helped a little bit, but the ride is a long way from the type of soft I am going for.

Clicker settings are currently: Comp 13 clicks out / Rebound 12 clicks out

What can I try to get these things working the way I want?

The WR comes extremely soft to begin with, so something is not right here. It is by far the softest ride of all the competition enduros sold.

I would check for bent fork tubes, or simply incorrectly installed front wheel which will cause fork binding.

I'm not sure I understand: you 'firmed up the suspension clickers for a softer ride'? That would be backwards, if I understand correctly.

To get a softer ride I would try turning the compression clicker (on the bottom of the fork?) out 6 clicks, and see if it is smooth enough, without causing it to wallow. You need to find a corner with rolling bumps, or a sandy corner to check the wallow. Or rocks. Too much wallow, try increasing the rebound two clicks. If it shortens the suspension stroke, decrease rebound and add compression. Now you have to check for bottoming issues too.

[neevothespaniel]

The WR comes extremely soft to begin with, so something is not right here. It is by far the softest ride of all the competition enduros sold.

I would check for bent fork tubes, or simply incorrectly installed front wheel which will cause fork binding.

That was what I thought and I have to say that when I first got the bike I loved the soft front although over time it got worse. I then changed the oil and it hasn't improved since.

The fork tubes are fine, no issues there. I am also aware of fork binding, I always release the right side after tightening the axel bolt and pump the forks, so I assume that isn't the problem either.

I'm not sure I understand: you 'firmed up the suspension clickers for a softer ride'? That would be backwards, if I understand correctly.

I did try winding the comp clickers out by about 5 and the ride got worse. thats when I decided to check going in (clockwise) and the ride got better. I have heard this will happen if the bike is riding too low in the stroke, however the confusing thing is that I know that the bike is not riding low in the stroke as I can see from the marks left after a ride (the bike never bottoms either except for big jumps).

To get a softer ride I would try turning the compression clicker (on the bottom of the fork?) out 6 clicks, and see if it is smooth enough, without causing it to wallow. You need to find a corner with rolling bumps, or a sandy corner to check the wallow. Or rocks. Too much wallow, try increasing the rebound two clicks. If it shortens the suspension stroke, decrease rebound and add compression. Now you have to check for bottoming issues too.

Is it possible to go all the way out on the comp to see how soft it gets and then go in from there? I assume that once I get the comp right then I can work on tuning the rebound?

I know I can get these things working much better ?

[FORMA MOTO]

You can set the clickers anyway you choose, without damaging anything: just be careful, as you will reach a point of very poor control the softer you get.

Basically, you have outgrown the stock suspension. Time for a revalve.

[tribalbc]

Try raising the oil height in the forks. I weigh 4 or 5kgs more than you and went to a 100mm oil level and one step up (0.48) on the springs. Went out (softer) a few clicks on compression and maybe one on rebound. Completely different fork now. It rides high in the stroke giving good plushness on rocks and it can take the big hits now.

The reason your suspension was feeling harsh but better when you went harder on compression is that the stock setting is too soft and you were riding lower in the stroke of the forks, hence the harshness.

Try raising the oil level for now, it's cheap, than maybe move on to new springs ?

[neevothespaniel]

You can set the clickers anyway you choose, without damaging anything: just be careful, as you will reach a point of very poor control the softer you get.

Basically, you have outgrown the stock suspension. Time for a revalve.

What does a revalve actually do? I definately think i might have outgrown the forks as the problem becomes more of a problem the faster i get.