Suspension Help

[Yorick]

The suspension on the GSXR was awesome at first, soaking up every little road bump. But the last ride wasn't as comfortable as normal.

I'm useless at sussers set up as always had it done for free during my time on track.

One simple question. Does suspension get harder or softer with age?
Once I know that I can have a little fiddle with the turny things.
No point in setting off in the wrong direction.

PS, I might get the forks overhauled by the lad who sorts out the enduro bikes.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

Suspension usually gets softer with age as everything wears, but when the weather is cold, the oil is thicker and every thing gets firmer.

Try moving the high speed compression damping to one notch softer and see if it's better, if it isn't move it back.

Also check the tyre pressures.

[Yorick]

Tyre pressures always spot on. And never cold enough to worry the oil.

[Skub]

As teh cheese says,suspenders can be an ever changing picture depending on lots of variables. When the oil becomes less effective the action can be softer and more vague,but also if the oil has lost it's viscosity,then the suspension will be less effective at damping the bumps,so this can be translated to the rider as harsh and confused with being too stiff.

If you are going to fiddle,take a note of what settings you have now,so you can go back if you get lost. Also,only change one thing at a time and try to use the same road where you thought the suspension didn't feel right.

[mangocrazy]

Bit of a strange one, really. As others have said suspension normally gets softer and soggier with age. Is the harshness coming from forks, or shock or both? Are there any tell tale weeps of oil from the fork seals or shock? And how long ago were your suspenders serviced, missus?

[Yorick]

Bit of a strange one, really. As others have said suspension normally gets softer and soggier with age. Is the harshness coming from forks, or shock or both? Are there any tell tale weeps of oil from the fork seals or shock? And how long ago were your suspenders serviced, missus?

Bikes only 3.5 years old. Everything looks OK. Just wanna see if there's an easy route to improvement.

[Skub]

Do you use the same settings on the road as the track?

[mangocrazy]

How many miles has it done? I guess you use Enduro bikes a lot more than the GSXR, so probably not a lot. I'd go out on it again on the same stretch of road and engage analytical mode, try to figure out what it's doing that you don't like and whether it's the forks or the shock that's not quite right. It may just need a change of fork oil.

[Yorick]

Do you use the same settings on the road as the track?

I used to get the bike professionally set up for track and used those settings on road.
Not had this on track so not had it set up.

[Taipan]

Yorick earlier...

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

If you weigh about 14 stone in your riding gear the suspension should be about right standard, this is the weight European and US bikes are specced for, though with my Suzuki they seemed to think I'd be carrying a 14 stone passenger at all times.

[Yorick]

If you weigh about 14 stone in your riding gear the suspension should be about right standard, this is the weight European and US bikes are specced for, though with my Suzuki they seemed to think I'd be carrying a 14 stone passenger at all times.

John Reynolds was the UK test rider for GSXR1000s for many years.
Awesome rider but about 11 stones

[A_morti]

If it's a sudden and noticable change, there's always a chance someone tightened all the damping screws right down when they walked past the bike, just to fuck with you. More likely that or something is wrong than something is just aging.

If I had to guess, I'd say the linkage bearings are getting tight and could use a service, this would keep the suspension from reacting nicely to small bumps as described.

Are you a fair weather biker these days, or still riding all weather? Is your shack near the sea (I guess your island is like Malta, and everything is basically near the sea)? Have you stopped for a day by the sea and left the bike on the promenade, etc?

BTW - this is the kind of maintenance that can become necessary on a bike after it's three years old. Must be time to chop it in

[Yorick]

If it's a sudden and noticable change, there's always a chance someone tightened all the damping screws right down when they walked past the bike, just to fuck with you. More likely that or something is wrong than something is just aging.

If I had to guess, I'd say the linkage bearings are getting tight and could use a service, this would keep the suspension from reacting nicely to small bumps as described.

Are you a fair weather biker these days, or still riding all weather? Is your shack near the sea (I guess your island is like Malta, and everything is basically near the sea)? Have you stopped for a day by the sea and left the bike on the promenade, etc?

BTW - this is the kind of maintenance that can become necessary on a bike after it's three years old. Must be time to chop it in

It's kept in safe garage. So no tampering or weather damage. And I'm not selling it

And in the service manual there are no linkages to grease.

[A_morti]

Probably teaching you to suck eggs but here goes.

The bike has linkages on it, it's the triangle part in centre of the image and the silver "dogbone" below it. The dogbone has 2 bearing inside, the hole in the swingarm where the top of the triangle mounts has one, the bottom of the shock may have a spherical bearing inside, or maybe a needle bearing, or maybe just a rubber bushing.

Any bearings will require disassembly and regreasing at a certain interval and if they don't get that maintenance then eventually they can seize, resulting in loss of reactivity to small bumps. I've had that long ago on a 955i Daytona. Even if the bike is kept in the garage and away from weather and sea, if you often jet wash the bike that can wash the grease out.

If it is that, you "may" be able to diagnose it from a squeaking/squealing noise coming from around there when compressing the suspension.

On a bike without a centre stand it's not easy to work on that. If you don't have an ABBA stand or similar, you'd be into that sketchy territory of trying to prop the bike up from a roof beam or putting axle stands either side of it and a rod through the swingarm pivot bolt or long bolts into the footpeg threads.

[Skub]

Those doofers in there dangling down have little bearings like wee ends on a stroker.

[Yorick]

I need a new rear tyre soon, so will look around the pivots and linkages etc when the wheel is out

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

I need a new rear tyre soon, so will look around the pivots and linkages etc when the wheel is out

If the tyre is getting down it's going to make the back end feel a little odd

[A_morti]

I need a new rear tyre soon, so will look around the pivots and linkages etc when the wheel is out

There's not going to be much to see unless you can take it apart, which means pulling the bike apart as far as Skub's pic shows. They can look 100% fine on the outside, but have no grease and only dry/rusty needles which are not able to move nicely on the inside.

You may be able to use a pick to extract a seal from the dogbone and give it a visual inspection that way? But if you damage the seal then replacing it means pulling the bike apart as far as Skub's pic shows. If you're not up for that, maybe have your suspension guy take a look, as presumably he'll have the right stands to lift the bike safely.

[Yorick]

I have an ABBA stand





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