Steering dampener for pig which one????

[Carlisle1972]

Im not too interested in the scotts as I have herd problems with mounting and mostly the price, its just too much, looks like you can get a WER for 319 and a GPR for 385 or so, any one have these and any recommendations on these or any for sale???

[JackAttack]

I have a GPR with a front mount post. I like it very much. Customer service with them is A+. They have a new unit that is integrated into the bar mount. Raises the bars a little and is out of the way. I would not hesitate to buy from them again. ?

[Rockjockey]

I run the Scotts because I feel it is the best one IMHO.I have two friends that use the WER and both of them hate it,it just doesn't have the adjustability the Scotts has and they are constantly complaining about the performance falling off.If I had a problem with the cost I would use the GPR as they have excellent trackside support(they rebuild it for free).You should try them if you have any acquaintances that own any of them first(thats what I did).Best addition I have added to my XR650,made me go buy one for my XR440.I will never ride without one now,it's like cheating. :thumbsup:Just remember you get what you pay for.

[qadsan]

Here's some places to check out that have great prices on stabilizers. I bought mine from Hard Racing and they honored their low price guarantee they advertise without any hassles and were nice to deal with. I have a Scotts, but I probably would have been just as happy with the GPR. I was quite with the few bikes I rode that had the GPR and I understand they have first rate support. I've seen them doing trackside service on people's dampers at no charge and they've always been great to talk to at races. I wouldn't hesitate buying a GPR, but I'm happy with my Scotts. Also check out the TT 'parts for sale' section cause I've seen some used stabilizers sell for great prices and don't forget about Ebay.

http://www.barnumspro.com

http://www.steeringstabilizer.com

http://www.hardracing.com/Home.htm

I'm not sure what mounting issues you've heard with the Scotts system and the XR650R, but it bolts up rather nicely with the forward mount kit and you retain the oil dip stick. The standard kit uses the oil dipstick plug to mount from, but I wasn't too keen on that, which is why I went with the forward mount they offer. I heard that the Scotts damper also bolts up to the new GPR 2.0 mount if you liked the GPR mount better and found a Scotts damper instead. I don't know much about the WER damper other than the company selling it is top notch. I don't use all the adjustments on my Scotts anymore and find myself having the main adjustment knob either cranked up high when I'm riding fast & straight or I leave it about half way on for everything else. I believe it was Dirt Rider that reviewed all the dampers and compared them to each other in the last month or two, so keep an eye out for that at the news stand if you wanted to read what they had to say.

[irondude]

With genuine respect for my fellow TTers who like their Scotts dampner:

I gotta tell ya --I Hate Mine. Its a peice of unowhat. In fact its being rebuilt right now after only 18 months of use. It cost me close to $600 when ya add in the forward mount-and now another $40 to get it going. The thing is a hassle to adjust when you are doing 105 mph on a fire road and its about time to jump over to the single track. Plus its dangerous. Current Dakar racer Paul Krause broke his jaw landing on the poorly designed Scotts a coule years ago.

If i was doing it all over again i would go with the new GPR. They rock. They are fairly priced and support the sport. The Ohlins/Scott is yesterdays dessert.

Just my 2 peso's worth.

-Mike

[qadsan]

Well Mike, if anyone puts a product through a real world torture test, it's got to be you, especially with all the harsh off road miles you ride. It's good to hear your experiences ?

[irondude]

Just wish i knew 1/2 what you do about our bike! ?

[qadsan]

Just wish i knew 1/2 what you do about our bike!

Just wish I could ride 1/2 the amount you do at 1/2 your speed or better ?

[Dutch]

This works for me -

[FlyByWire]

I dont want to steal this thread, but is there a site that i can get some info about what these systems do? They look interesting, but I really have no idea how they work. ?:please dont flame me... lol:usa::

Brett

[scorch]

I ordered a mount adapter for my pig. I have the scots that I use on the r1.

I too would like to hear how they help out off road. Any examples? Are they handier in places with alot of rocks? How about sandy stuff? In which position do you guys keep your dampers?

[AZ Thumpdaddy]

Another opinion -

I have the Scotts forward mount on my piggy, Scotts on my CRF450, GPR on my TRX400 and my son's KLX300. I also had a GPR on my KX500 I blew up a month ago. The bottom line is that they both work well. I think the Scotts is better for those high speed partially submerged rock hits in the sand washes as it seems to true the bike. On the other hand, I like the GPR for slower speeds in sand as it seems to be a little more sensitive and is also easier to adjust. It depends on the kind of riding your doing and how much money you want to spend. Customer service is good at both places from my experiences. I look at the stabilizer as more of a safety addition and it is one of the first things I buy when I get a new scooter.

Thumpster

[irondude]

Just my 2 pesos worth--I am sure others have had different experiences.

First: I dont know of any websites that have comparisons-although a dampner shoot-out would be nice to see. I think one of the magazines did an article on 2-3 of the dampners, but as usual they were to chickenshite to really say what worked the best.

Obviously RTT, GPR and Scotts have websites with detailed info. Heres some random thoughts on them:

The Scotts does have the advantage that it can be quickly unbolted from one bike and put on another. The 2nd generation dampners (RTT, GPR) cant easily be moved from bike to bike.

The Scotts suffers from a dangerous mounting position-they have tried moving the unit out in front of the number plate-but then its to hard to reach over and adjust. The newer dampners from RTT and GPR are a second generation in that they have been more integrated into the bike, positioned under the handle bars, above the triple clamps.

The point of the units is of course to minimize high speed instability. At speeds above, say, 40-50 mph the steering dampner really helps with keeping the bike straight, even if the trail conditions want to move the bike around-sand ruts, mud ruts, rock hits, mounds of dead fish...whatever you hit-the bike will be considerably more stable. Curiously- at slower speeds the dampner also contributes to stability when for example you plow thru a stream bed, only to find its got a rocky bottom.

The problem is there are essentially three settings you use when riding. Very stiff-for those runs between 50-100mph, soft--for those grand prix courses with quick back and forth moto cross turns, or 'happy medium' that will work ok at high speed, and ok in the tight stuff.

I have learned to crank it up for 4th-5th gear stuff, and then crank it down when going up tight arroyos or woodsy stuff or when the Grand Prix course gets into the MX section. Many others dont do this- they just find a moderate setting that will help with the rock deflections enough, but not interfear with the tight tight tight stuff to much. Its up to you.

The RTT design can be controlled with your thumb and is the easiest to quickly change back and forth-soft to hard to soft again...and you dont have to reach out with one hand and turn the dial while braking hard at 92mph with a 90 egree turn coming up in a few seconds...i havent ridden with one-but i have heard mixed comments in the race community aobut other aspects of the unit.

The GPR has a nice large knob that can be easily reached with a goved hand, and the number of positions is appropriate. Again it is safer-mounted under the handle bars-and finally it comes with great support from the factory.

The Scott unit has i tiny little knob that is hard to find with a gloved hand-and it has about a gazillion positions-when really it would be most helpful if it had 7-10 different clicks available. Scotts has zero support-and they seem to think they are doing you a favor by allowing you to buy one of their units. ANd they are the most expensive! Even most pro racers had to pay full price for them...becouse for several years they had the morket more or less cornered--

But that has changed with the WER, GPR, and RTT units. There are a couple other minor brands that i dont know much about.

SO for sure its a GREAT thing to put on your bike. It will let you ride faster, safer, for longer-no matter what kind of riding you do.

Judging by what the guys have at the starting line in recent races, I would say the GPR is now the racers' dampner of choice. I have raced the Baja 1000 with both Scotts and GPR units-for me its a no brainer. GPR (2nd generation) is the best choice. ?

OK- her show is over. My turn with the clicker!

-Mike

[tp3dxf]

I have never used the Scotts but I hear they are good. I run a GPR. There customer service is great. They installed mine for free and even rebuilt it once for free.

[Old_Man_Time]

I use GPR on my XR650 and my KX500. They have both been upgraded to the latest changes and rebuilt while they were upgrading them. All it cost me was shipping the rest was free. I will be putting GPR on my KTM 525EXC. They work great in all conditions. ?

[Rockjockey]

Ironmike,they make a big knob for the Scotts and the one I put on my xr440 fits under the crossbar with pad installed.I'm one of those "find a happy medium" c riders you spoke of.I dont see where you get the nads to take either hand off of the handlebar at those speeds,imagine doing that with the WER. :shocked:I had a friend that tore his scrotum on his damper on a mx track bailing over the bars on a CRF. The RTT seems cool but I cant fathom having more things on my handlebars to tinker with,but it should be more safe than removing a hand at those speeds.Anyhow keep your knuckles up and knobbies down especially at those speeds and good luck in the desert. ?

[qadsan]

I still remember the first time when I knew for certain that my damper saved me from going down, but until then I though the damper was OK, but not great. I was riding with some friends down a very long stretch of a rough rocky whooped out narrow trail. There were stretches of this trail that had a lot of sand, sometimes deep sand and there were rocks everywhere with sharp desert brush on the sides of the trail. I was dead tired, numb & plain worn out so I was getting ready to slow down. As I was slowing down and getting out of the rythm, the guy in front of me crashed hard and all of a sudden there was an irregularly spaced whoop in front of me with a large uneven rock sticking out of the sand, which is what the guy in front of me hit before he was thrown from his bike. I hit it too and felt my bars jerk hard, but they didn't move very far thanks to the damper keeping them straight and I made it through with just a scare, but there were a few people who hit this thing wrong and ended up going down. A guy on a quad blew the bead on his tire and bent his wheel from hitting this same rock, but getting his quad out of that area was the worst of all ?. I became a believer in my damper after that moment.

[Kritter]

ORC review

http://www.off-road.com/dirtbike/projects/crf450/gpr/

"GPR Stabilizer

Prices as tested: $375.00

DH 1 Triple Clamp

Price as tested: $174.95

Holeshot

Provides extended feeling of control though nearly any off-road situation; rocks, whoops, washes, sand, etc.

Adjustable on the move with a dial on top

Damping can be adjusted from the setting with the most resistance to the lowest resistance with one click

Fit and finish is excellent.

Great track-side support at numerous races all over the West coast, along with a few select GNCCs.

Not just for off-road; device works great for any MX track also.

Endo

Some people may prefer a stabilizer with a "zero to center" characteristic. This means when the bar returns back to the straight position, there is no resistance in damping; or damping only results in a deflective action. You should just ride both styles to determine which feels best.

Not really an "adjust on the fly" device. The dial is difficult to grab and turn while riding aggressively. It forces the rider to slow considerably before making an adjustment (but on the contrary, most riders set the damper to a position and leave it there).

The little device does truly instill that much more confidence in the rider. There is a reason why almost all off-road motorcycles, if equipped properly, are setup with a stabilizer. While they are not the cheapest bolt-on product available in the motorcycle industry, they are one of the wisest investments any rider can make. Coupled with a DH 1 triple clamp, it is a great way to attack the unexpected. Either way, just buy a stabilizer....it is highly recommended. Its nothing more than an excellent preventative product which can help you go faster."

Seems like it was not worthy of a hands down winner.

I am buying a damper this week and am stuck between scotts and GPR...both are same price after triple clamp, post, bars, stabilizer.

[FlyByWire]

Can you run standard 7/8 bars, or are you stuck with the Pro Tapers? Ive got some Jimmy Button bars that I use for my height... (6'7")

[Rockjockey]

You can use 7/8 bars. Scotts offers a Renthal bar with a bowed crossbar,or you can bow your own. ?