Suspension setup for '07 FE650 rallye ???

Hi, looking for some advice from those who know.

I now have my '07 FE650 rallye all built for the Australian Safari in 6 weeks time, just need to get the suspension set up now and she is done.

With all my riding gear, bumbag with tools, full Camelbak etc, I weight in at 110kg

The bike will have pretty close to 20kg extra weight on it over a stock one when when all the fuel tanks are full.

I think it would be best to set it up for 50% fuel capacity so that means say 10kg over stock.

The suspension is dead stock at present havent touched it.

1) what rear spring is recommended :?:

2) what fork springs :?:

Any tips on compression & rebound settings etc :?: :?:

thanks for any help. Cheers

is that 110kg in riding gear?

what is a kg anyway

cypher said:

is that 110kg in riding gear?

what is a kg anyway

Click to expand...

= 2.205 lb

so yes that makes me 242.5 lbs in all my riding gear and everything else I will be carrying on the day

and the bike will be approx 24.5 lbs heavier than a stock one when its loaded with 50% fuel load of 13.5 L

I'd be thinking in terms of a 9.7 or 10 kg straight rate rear spring and 46/47/48 fork springs. With these rates the standard rebound stacks won't be too far out and if riding rock there'd be too much compression, not sure about sandy stuff at high speed though, it may be OK too.

Good Luck
Steve

Thinking about this a bit more, probably a 10 on the rear and 48 up front. You then can try 46 by replacing one 48 with a standard 44 to average 46. Likewise if you also get 46s you can use one of each for average of 45 and 47. With the weight and speed though I'd guess 48. Correct sag is imperative. The valving is important too, and standard, for east coast rocks, there is too much initial compression damping and then it falls through the stroke. Get it right and it floats.

I find that you need to test, and it helps greatly if someone who knows what is happening can watch the wheels work. When riding it is not always easy to tell whether compression is too hard, or rebound is too soft, both will result in a harsh ride, whereas someone watching can see what is going on, if they know what to look for.

Dunno whether you've got anyone on the west coast that knows what they are doing with suspension. There are a lot of guys over here now doing suspension, but most of them just sell stuff and really don't know what they are doing.

My mate Frank Pons at Biketek, 02 4620 9020 woiuld I'm sure be happy to discuss. He has a CV going back over 30 years in Enduro, MX and raod racing, including GPs and has done bikes for guys like Mladin, Gobert, Merriman, etc. Dunno whether he has done many rally bikes, but he is no ******** and tells it like it is. He currently is on a retainer for Yamaha Oz in road racing and works occasionally for Pirelli and Yamaha in SBK. His 600 supersport Yamahas currently hold virtually every lap record in Oz with Mark Aitchison last year and Jason O'halloran this year.

We've got setup guides in the Doc here for further assistance. These were contributed by Frank.
http://www.husaberg.org/wiki/index.php/ ... etup_guide
http://www.husaberg.org/wiki/index.php/ ... etup_guide

If you get the susppension right, its a much easier and less tiring ride and for a rally would be an absolute must.

Steve

gazza

are you the first aussie that was so tightly wrapped that he missed a joke!!!!!! well there's a first - tell us you're only second generation from england - right?

so much for the personal help as well .....

ok my first question is to myself to ask why i'm still here.

ok here we go. the rear spring wants to reflect the weight of you in the nuddie and then all your other stuff as well. so 260-270LB back to kilos is 120KG so you need a 12.0 straight rate which luckily is what the rear shocks are set for.

as for the front well i'd say at least 50's.

follow this link: http://ktmtalk.com/index.php?s=b60492d5 ... owforum=11 it's the ktmtalk forum and at the top in pin-it is a section on springs for big guys! you need to treat the extra bike weight as your weight for the purposes of this demonstration ok?

the katoom and hours are sufficiently similar for you to get a true grasp on what you need.

good luck

regards

Taffy

Thnaks Taffy & Steve, any thoughts on using a progressive spring like the PDS3 ?

Gazza,

I've never used a multi rate spring. Frank reckons that on KTMs he could never get them to work and has always replaced them with straight rate. Others here seem to think that they can work for lighter riders but that straight rate is the go for more weight. Dunno what the crossover is. OTTMH the Bergs have always had straight rate on their PDS rears. My PDS experience is as old as my 650, ie 6 months

As an aside, I believe that it is almost impossible to get a spring heavier that 9.4 in Oz at the moment. 9.4 will be too soft for you I'm sure.

Steve

steve

the huseys were set for progressive until recently - in the doc when they changed specifically to SR.

as for a PDS3 gazza? i'm afraid you're all over the show fella and i don't think you're even listening now. you need the heaviest progressive and even that wouldn't be enough. the PDS4 is 8.5 (to 111) and we're talking 12.0 and you're talking about 8.

i think that's enough from me, my teeth are starting to itch.

regards

Taffy

the heavy rear is the go

50 fork springs with gold valves , i was impressed with the gold valves on my 650 .

i had the 48 spring on mine , but you carry more weight , yeah go the 50 .

Steve/Taffy etc after talking with a couple of suspension people here in Oz, seems like a good option is the Racetech P30 9-14kg rear progressive spring and going for .48 on the front.

Any thoughts ???

Hi Gazza,

I really can't comment on the PDS springs, I have no personal experience of them. I know that Frank doesn't like them, and I have a great deal of confidence in what Frank says and does. If you talk to him again, make sure he understands the weight and speeds involved. He does know the safari. I am also aware that when KTMs all had PDS springs the Racetech catalogue listed SR springs and quoted their superior performance. Now that KTM has SR, Racetech supply progressives and nominate their superior performance. Go figure!!

Do you know whether you are dealing with mostly sand, or rock, as that will also influence the spring valving combo? You have lots of both in WA AFAIK.

Steve

the 48s are in my forks and i have a lightened 400. thaey are a little on the harder side/just right and will get better so i'm happy. if your bike is going to weigh 30kg more (you weigh a few less than me) and you're racing you need 50's.

as for the rear well i've seen it said at ktmtalk.com - suspension that those P30's are as stiff as hell. you see them for sale. it may even be right for your bike. BUT i run a 8.5-111 PDS4 and that was an improvement over the PDS8 (8.1 - 9.9) my sags are still a little on the soft side so i know that i might need the 9.0-12 that MxT sells.

so that's a 9.0 for me! for you? forget it. if i'm right in saying that you'r rear shock is set for a straight spring then i would stick with a straight spring again. i think you need a 12.0 straight. you might settle for a bit less but that is getting close.

i personally weigh 95kg and i need about a 95 straight rear. you need to add all the weight of your extra gear to your body weight and you won't be far off with the spring. how's your maths?

regards

Taffy

clicker help we can't give you till you've got it all.

you need to do a shakedown test and keep that screwdriver handy!

you'll need to simulate the weights so that you can reach the preload ring i should think. then you get your sags and then test the high end rear preload (90mm sag) and the low end (105mm sag).

regards

Taffy

Hi All, Im tacking onto the end of an old post, and hoping for some conformation or further input from Gazza, Steve or Taff.

I am planning on taking my '05 550 accross the wide brown land (supported) in 2011 to raise money for charity, and will set up with a OS Clarke (BOSS) tank and a large 'over the back end' saddle bag and tank bag made by Giant Loop.

I expect to carry in the order of 10 - 15 kilos extra in that pack, and the extra fuel brings the weight up by about 7 kilos (estimate) as I'm yet to get the tank and luggage to check.

I am around the 80kg mark + about another 7kg with kit (again guesing - havent got scales). so lets be generous and say total weight will be between 110 and 120kg (somewhere between 220 and 240lb.)

Gazza has a whole lot more hours on the bergs in the desert since this thread was started, so I was wondering if the 48 or 50 fork springs and SR12 or PDS8 shock were on the mark.

My ride will not be race pace.

hi I'd go .48 max, even .46 would be ok, better to have it a bit more forgiving, on the back I'd run a 88 or 90, again given you are not hitting stuff hard, better to be a bit plusher and save the kidneys

on my Safari 650 I ran .46 & 90, I was 85kg plus gear at the time with 17L clarke & 10.5L on the back/saddle

sounds like a great ride :cheers:

Awesome, Thanks Gazza, now to source a set.

Cheers!

I'd say that 48s are good. but you have to set the suspension for half full right? yellow clarke tank for sale on ebay Uk at present. if you get it and they won't send it down just get it here....

regards

Taffy

I'm about 110-115 with gear. I've recently been running with a Clarke I got on ebay last year. I only fitted it to do my desert trip last month and have decided to leave it on as it doesn't worry me riding it and you don't have to fill it. I'm using 46s up front and a 9.6 out back. With most of your added weight going out back, (when its all in the rider you can move it about a bit) and your total weight ending up about where I'm at, my suggestion is the 46 and 9.6 that I'm using. If running tank panniers too, then maybe go 48s, or consider 47s which can be had with a 46 and 48 combo. I couldn't get the sag set when I tried a 9.2, and in my experience, without the correct sag, the rest is in vain.

Steve

Thanks Gentlemen,

I think the 48s will be the go as I reckon there could be a little bit of heavy stuff on top of the tank and there will be more instrumentation such as 2x GPS's, and anything above 9.0 in the back end in a straight rate, I will get onto Walter Presig, the guru at YSS suspension in SA as there dont appear to be any bargains on fleabay at present.

Thanks for the offer on the tank on ebay Taff, I am sourcing one from BRP Moto in Colorado Springs, I brought a Scotts damper there a couple of years ago after they threw some support at the Aus force ride, and their service is second to none, and US cost to Aus currency ratio makes it verrry feasible, they have done a lot of legwork to source my saddle pack and tank bag.

Cheers again, I'm sure I'll be back with more questions.

Cheers!
Azza.