We expect to get all the bells and whistles from our motorbike once we’re on the road. But sometimes due to the road irregularity, the suspension is not able to absorb the bumps which cause the bike to handle poorly. Making the right adjustment with the suspension damping fine tunes your bike and pushes it out in turns. Suspension damping twiddles the adjuster turning your bike into a pleasant machine. It improves your ride to the next level and you get the best out of your journey on the road. But the downside is that suspension damping adjustment might feel like a difficult thing to understand as the factory manuals don’t give you an idea of the exact method to make the changes and decide if the settings you’ve done are right or not. If you’re still confused in terms of suspension adjustability and damping then here are the steps to make the adjustment intelligently without the need for a masters degree from Caltech.
Set sag where you are comfortable
Whether you’ve lost the control due to a higher speed or the tires tend to chatter or the handlebar seems unstable your suspension needs to be set at different damping rates at different times. But you should come to the point of setting the damping only once you’ve made small changes to set the sag. Then start going back until your bike seems ready to take off. It can also be a great help if you know the OEM setting of your bike as it can make your ride pleasing by testing each setting. Remember to write down the settings that have worked out for you in the earlier turns and you can always go back to them if any such problem arises in the future. Don’t just accept the way your bike is set up. The different variables to set the sag can help you fit the mold of an excellent rider.
Check that your components are functional
Before making an adjustment to the suspension of your bike, you first need to check that all the other components of your bike are fully functional and are working properly. Ensure that the forks and shocks are working in the right manner and the seals should not have any leaks. Also check that there’s no wobble in the steering head bearing, wheel bearings, swingarm bearings and bushings. If there is any defect in these parts then it can adversely affect your bike’s handling and can make your bike perform poorly even when you have made the correct adjustments.
Properly set ride sag
Your suspension damping cannot be done properly if it doesn’t start with a suspension sag. It acts as the suspension for your bike when it travels over potholes or cracks. It extends the time frame of the shock and saves your chassis from being upset. It also improves your bike’s performance by handling the weight of the bike shifting. To measure the suspension sag you’ll need your bike’s manual, a measuring tape and a friend or two. You need to extend the rear suspension by lifting the bike or by tipping it on to one side. Now measure with the tape from the center of the axle to a point fixed directly above it. Record the measurement and take the measurement of the sag under a normal road. Now divide your first measurement by the second and if it’s less than30% then you’ll need to remove the preload on the shocks. But you cannot adjust the forks of all the motorbikes in the same way. Your bike might have preload adjusters which increase the preload when you turn it on and will decrease the preload when you turn it out. This way you can also make the necessary adjustments without the need to measure the sag every time you seem to encounter the same problem as earlier.
Ride and test
Once you’ve set the sag in the right setting it’s time to take a ride and check whether your bike is working properly or not. Take note of the performance of your bike every time you accelerate or decelerate its speed and corner it at a safe place. If your bike is still not performing in the same way as you expected before then you’ll need to adjust the suspension damping upgrading it to perform aftermarket components. You can make really good changes in the functioning of your bike by fine-tuning the suspension if your bike is preloaded with damping adjustments.
Damping adjustment
If you really want to fine-tune your bike for a better ride then adjusting the suspension damping can do wonders to improve your ride and make it easy to deal with the road hazards that we have to face every day. The upward movement of the suspension once it rumbles strips and potholes is controlled by suspension damping. It is important to make an adjustment in small increments as there is no magical setting that can instantly turn your bike into a super machine. Take notes on the performance of your bike and try to find an ideal balance in damping adjustment so that you can ride your bike like a superbike and handle it easily like a pro. But while making this adjustment you need to remember that every rider is different and the way your bike performs will also be different.
While you’re down on your knees and hands checking for the problem that has stopped your bike from functioning properly take a few minutes to adjust the suspension damping of your bike. You can easily transform your average performing bike into freeway cushy by adjusting your suspension damping by yourself. A few quick check up and clicks can make your bike super cool. Play around with the adjustment of your bike’s suspension damping and it’ll make your bike handle like a completely different machine.
