Hey racers, need suspension setup help

[Doogster85]

Hey ya'll, got a couple questions for ya as I've been dealing with mood swings with my suspension. Fox podium RC3 rear with stillwell built forks. 

 

First off, the question everyone asks, SAG. I've generally gone for a 1/3 setup which has been great for when I just trail ride and I'm not pushing it, but when I take it XC racing, it's been miserable. Lot of tighter track racing requiring a lot of steering with the front end, and all I've been doing is washing the front end out, causing me to tip toe even more. 

 

So far ya'll that race enduro/xc/hs etc, can ya'll at least point me in the general direction of a better setup as I'm really struggling to get this bike figured out

[FORMA MOTO]

110/35 for slow

100/25 for fast

Drop the clamps to the second line before setting sag

[Retromlc]

With the right F&R springs I run 35 MM static( with full tank)which gives 105 MM rider sag.center of from axle to top of triples is 935mm, seems stable and turns well,I find raising forks and 25 MM static is unstable at speed and front wants to tuck, but it's all personal

[sixdaysoffun]

Running 115sag on pds and its perfect

[sixdaysoffun]

As for wash out push your forks down and slow down reb on fork, works for me

[kbro45]

You would actually want to speed up rebound (less rebound damping.)  If your rebound is too slow your forks will not extend quick enough keeping the front end too low.   

Raise the front end of the bike a little (lower the forks) and take out a couple clicks of rebound.

[ccullins]

If your running stillwell stuff I would really contact them for setup. 

However when we where running stillwell with a fox I think is was 102-05mm on the sag. Also forks at the first line. 

[motoxgiant]

4 hours ago, sixdaysoffun said:

Running 115sag on pds and its perfect

And this relates to setting up a Beta exactly how? ?

[moto9]

I struggled with pushing in the turns too.

I spent a lot of time testing, which is what I suggest you do.

I had RT suspension frt rear and springs slightly stiffer for my weight.

That with a softer LS comp stack allowed the right amount of dive in the corners to get the front wheel to bite.

I also ran a tighter sag at 90mm, fork height at 7 to

15 mm depending on conditions.

Rider position, rear sag fork progression, fork height all effect front tire traction.

It's helpful to know when and where the tire is breaking loose.

For instance

Is it entering a turn

Exiting a turn

At the apex

What can happen with a poorly set up bike ... Let's say too much rear sag, rider throttles out of a turn, bike choppers, riders weight is transferred rearward.... Little or no weight on the tire and so it breaks traction and pushes.

90% of a push is lack of weight on the front end....other is crappy tire ...poor design.

In Beta's case the 300 can carve like a slot car if it's set up right.

You should first discern where your issue starts when turning.

plan on how and what you're going to try to solve your problem.

Track everything on paper, take good notes and you should be able to narrow in on the cause and how to fix it.

Video tape yourself so you can see what's going on.

Is the fork diving enough, are you forward enough.... Rider position.

What's the rear of the bike doing.

 

[GP]

Assuming the Fox shock is the same length as the Sachs, lengthening it 4mm will solve all your problems and make setup a lot easier.

[Doogster85]

Hey guys, thanks for the input. I'll take ya'll's numbers and run with them. I did forget to mention that the forks are at the first line. So dropping the forks might help. I'm a converted street rider who's used to riding with a harder suspension setup and just more or less wrangling the bike to make it work for me, that's just my preference, but I'm quickly learning that that doesn't work on dirt at all.

 

As far as front end wash out, it's primarily corner entry and mid corner, and it will go without any notice. Running Starcross 5 Mediums with varied pressures (tubliss) so I have a hard time putting it on the tires unless I'm rolling the sidewall. 

[mlatour]

I forever had corner entry / front end washouts issues on my MX track ridden YZ125 (soft/sandy tracks)

experimenting with different tires, valving, spring rates etc. (I have RT Gold Valve and experiment a lot)

washout were less frequent but still occurred at the worst possible moments.

 

The last thing to try is what cured the problem:  reducing the fork spring preload

In stock form it had about 7-8mm which is considered a lot,

reduced to the common recommendation of 4mm, the front now sticks = a more confident rider.

[BassMan]

If you are new to off road you are probably not nearly far enough forward.

[Doogster85]

1 hour ago, BassMan said:

If you are new to off road you are probably not nearly far enough forward.

As in my riding position?

[BassMan]

Yes. Now that I know your speed and terrain. 2nd line, 95 sag, ride forward, crank in the rebound/slow it down. Call me after 6p. Indiana time. I will send you a pm.

[Doogster85]

11 minutes ago, BassMan said:

Yes. Now that I know your speed and terrain. 2nd line, 95 sag, ride forward, crank in the rebound/slow it down. Call me after 6p. Indiana time. I will send you a pm.

Awesome, will do, thanks

Edited May 26, 2017 by Doogster85