Basic suspension set up

[BlackdogGS]

Im warming up to my new to me 2010 M1100S.  I weigh 185 with gear.  What settings would be a good starting point?  Can you point me in the right direction to get some good info? 

I ordered an owners manual but it haven't arrived yet.  Thanks

[SDRider]

Im warming up to my new to me 2010 M1100S.  I weigh 185 with gear.  What settings would be a good starting point?  Can you point me in the right direction to get some good info? 

I ordered an owners manual but it haven't arrived yet.  Thanks

You won't find anything in there on properly setting the suspension for your weight or riding style.

[Slide Panda]

At 185 with gear, it's likely that you'll need stiffer springs. Though I'm not totally sure about how the newer monsters are sprung.

What's your background on working with suspension? If Zero, I'd suggest taking it to someone who does it for a living.

You need to have the sag properly set for you before working on the damping settings. If the sag isn't right no number of clicks will make things right.
But rule of thumb base line clicks are
For rebound, set the damping so that the bike takes about 1 second to fully, 100% return to the top of it's suspension stroke after being compressed. The key is that full 100% return. The start of the return will happen relatively quickly and that last bit things move less. The graph of distance over time would be a curve, not linear.

For compression, which is the the harder to set and get close initially, the rule of thumb setting is dead in the middle. You find the full range of turns/clicks available to you from the least damping to the most and set it in the middle initially. So if you have 30 click range of adjustment you would select 15 and work from there.

Remember that tires, tire pressure and a couple other things can effect how the bike suspension is working so be sure you're keeping as much constant as possible when you're in your tune phase. If you're hunting for the 'right' settings and do something like change tires, or wheels... you're back to square one or nearly

[BlackdogGS]

Thanks SP.  I'm ok with setting a bike up as I've done it on my other bikes.  The problem is after their set up I rarely adjust anything again so I tend to forget.  I suspect the sag is way too stiff.  I'm showing about 10 threads on the bottom of the shock and it only sags 1 inch with my full weight on the seat.  Please refresh my memory, what's the proper way to set the sag on this bike? 

This is the "S" model with the yummy Ohlins shocks.  I don't want to mess them up with a screwdriver,  where can I get the proper spanner for it?

I understand the importance of suspension tuning, I go through this procedure every time I get a new bike.  I'll keep at it until I can rail again.

[Slide Panda]

The manual *should* tell you the proper un loaded and loaded sag numbers. I really don't know what it is off hand, especially for the new monsters. Only wrench turning I've done on an 1100 was on a buddies, helping with brake bleeding and using my smithing skills to pound out the clutch cover.

As far as the technique for setting sag - just run a search. The basic procedure is common to all bikes with normal fork/shock set ups. To do it, you'll need a buddy handy to keep the bike stable when you climb on. And remember that you should be wearing your gear, or have a pack with the same amount of weight on when you measure the loaded sag

[ducpainter]

I don't think the manual does give sag numbers.

A good place to start is 25-30 mm front and rear.

As SP said you'll need someone to help.

Don't forget to fully extend the suspension when you take your first number so you'll get a 'total' sag measurement.

I suspect you have too much compression damping. That will cause harshness before a bit too little sag will.

A soft spring over preloaded will feel harsher than a stiff spring with the correct amount of preload. The 'ideal' preload # is roughly 14-15 mm. You never want a spring with 0 preload.

[Slide Panda]

Don't forget to fully extend the suspension when you take your first number so you'll get a 'total' sag measurement.

MMmm yeah - forgot to mention that one. There's three measurements for sag. Unloaded (see if you can get a couple buddies for this, one at each end), bike load only, and rider loaded.

Have a look in your gas tank before you start if you want to be detailed. You should estimate for around half to two-thirds full tank weight. A gallon of gas is about 6 pounds.

[ducpainter]

I never pay much attention to bike only numbers. Those usually just show problems with 'stiction' and don't really affect street bikes too detrimentally.

[BlackdogGS]

I just ordered an owners manual and 2 Ohlins spanner wrenches from Pro Itilia.  Ya, I'll continue to search.  Thanks for all the info so far.  I have zero confidence entering a turn at this point.  As a matter of fact I'm way faster on my WR250R.

[BlackdogGS]

I took some preload out and checked the tires ( they were both around 28 lbs).  I took it on a 30 mile ride of mostly twisties.  The bike handled so much better.  I felt way more confident going into turns. 

I ordered some Ohlins spanners today.  I'm making progress.

[Armor]

Check out the Ohlins site http://www.ohlins.com/Checkpoint-Ohlins/Setting-Up-Your-Bike/Underrubrik_1/ .
Set the sag as instructed first.

[BK_856er]

I never pay much attention to bike only numbers. Those usually just show problems with 'stiction' and don't really affect street bikes too detrimentally.

Agreed, but the free sag (fully extended/unloaded length minus bike only length) can help tip you off to an improper spring rate, at least at initial setup where there may be more unknowns.

BK

[ducpainter]

Agreed, but the free sag (fully extended/unloaded length minus bike only length) can help tip you off to an improper spring rate, at least at initial setup where there may be more unknowns.

BK

I use the preload required to achieve desired sag to decide if the spring is wrong.

Less than 10mm too stiff...

more than 25 ish too soft.

I works out about the same.

[IdZer0]

Except it's easier measuring free sag than full spring length.

[ducpainter]

Except it's easier measuring free sag than full spring length.

point taken