Scotts Dampner Weld or Bolt?

[PMAUST]

I have decided to take the plunge and get the Scotts stabelizer. I ordered the kit including the triple clamp, pro-taper bars, and stabelizer. I searched through the archives and read everything I could find. Since I am not a welder I ordered the bolt on version. Has anyone had bad experiences with the Bolt vs. Weld? What if anything should I watch out for either during installation or for post-installation maintenance? Thanks, Paul.

[This message has been edited by pmaust (edited 02-14-2001).]

[RAZOR]

I bolted mine on. It's like night&day.

My advice is very straight-forward and simple; READ and UNDERSTAND EVERY WORD of the instructions... BEFORE you do anything.

The instructions are quite detailed.

They will tell you what,where, and how much to file off your crown.

[Dougie]

My bolt on developed a stress crack and snapped right at the base of the two bolts. Scott's was cool and replaced it for free. They said they had a bad batch of machined stabilizer bars. The replacement bar has been fine.

The only other issue I have had is in severe wrecks. I've crashed a couple of times so hard that when the bars slam into the ground it rips the stabilizer bar off of the steering head. Yeah, I know, don't crash. That will fix that.

[Hick]

I haven’t tried the weld-on version, but I’m not sure if I would. I’m a pretty good welder but I don’t like the idea of welding around the oil reservoir tank.

Plus, the welds are more permanent, harder to repair, and more work to make look nice.

For the bolt on collar to fit flush I had to do a little dremel work on the welds around the steering tube, this will vary across bikes but was definitely necessary on mine. With the bolt snugged I can whack the side of the post with a baby sledge and it won’t budge.

BTW the older bolt-on mount kit secured to the oil filler tube. When they shortened the frame in ’00 this mount would not fit so they came up with the steering tube collar type. IMO the latter is much better but I don’t know if they make this type for the ’99 and older WR/Yzs.

Dougie,

Is your top clamp contacting the damper post before the bottom clamp hits the steering stop? This happened with my stock ’00 top clamp, I cartwheeled the bike once and the post and collar did get spit off (I now have a Scott’s clamp which clears the post).

[This message has been edited by Hick (edited 02-15-2001).]

[Brian_in_Long_Beach]

I've seen Dougie toss his bike away trying to cross 'The Crack - aka Dougie's Crack' at Moab. Not a pretty picture...

Not crashing is definately not an option - especially now that he only gets 2-3 hours of sleep per night. How's the newborn treating you Dougie?

I have the bolt on post that mounts to the oil filler tube on my '99 - I haven't had any problems so far. Didn't require any grinding to install.

Brian

[ButtonFly]

I have a 99 with the scotts bolt on. They do have the collar type bolt on mount for the scotts. Not sure if it is the same as the 2000 style mentioned earlier. The only disadvantage to the collar type was that you have to take off the top trip clamp to put it on and take it off. Consider it motivation to grease the stem bearings.

[c2]

I mounted the Scotts on my 2k. It was pretty easy and the bolt on collar fits perfectly, no grinding on the frame or trimming seals at all. The bolts on the collar are small and kind of a pain to get at. Use a T-handle allen for the final tightening, it would be ugly to strip them. Oh yeah, the triple must be mounted at the same time as the bolt-on.

[Dan_Lorenze]

My bolt-on slips!! But I have the old school one that bolts around the oil-filler, the new one should be good though! Dan

[Guest Guest]

Originally posted by Dan Lorenze:

My bolt-on slips!! But I have the old school one that bolts around the oil-filler, the new one should be good though! Dan

I was given a Scott's Stabilizer from a guy that got out of riding, and the mounts are for a KTM, Not even close. Does anyone know where I can get the proper mounts for my 99? Sounds like I want the one that doesn't go on the oil filler. Any help would be great. Ron S.

99 WR, standard WR timing, IMS seat and YZ seat,7oz.flywheel weight,PC racing vent kit,soon to have Scott's Stabilizer.

[ButtonFly]

www.scottsperformance.com should have it

[This message has been edited by ButtonFly (edited 02-15-2001).]

[Dave_VanBrocklin]

I have the bolt on Scott's damper also, I tacked the bracket in 2 spots on the head, just to be safe. If I have to remove it I can easily grind those 2 spots away.Don't feel bad Doug, I find my way to the ground quite a bit also!!

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00 WZ400

01 Yamaha Raptor

99 Kawasaki ZRX1100

99 Yamaha Warrior

[SFO]

I have heard of the bolt on bracket popping off, even the new redesigned one.

When I finally pony up for one it will be welded on.

Anyone?

Ferris?

[PMAUST]

Thanks for all the imput. I probably don't ride quite as aggressively as some of you do(partly old age/partly no work no pay) but I do crash from time to time. The unit I ordered does mount on the column and not the oil post. I will give it a try just bolted at first to see how that works out. I appreciate all the input on this subject. I think future readers will benefit as well. Thanks, Paul ?

[Dougie]

Yeah Brian, I guess not crashing will never be associated with me. Thanks for asking about the little one. She is keeping us full of laughs as well as up at night.

Hick, I have the Scotts triple clamps also. I 'm sure it is just a case of crashing too hard. The bars dig into the ground and it puts so much torque on the post it just comes right up. It's only happened to me three times (and believe me, I have crashed much more than that). The big pain in the butt about it though is that the top clamp has to come all the way off to get it back on. Still, it is all worth it.

[Bruce_in_Phoenix]

I am selling a Scotts Dampner and Oil Filter mount post for a 99WR400. It was on my bike for a little over a year and probably a little over a thousand miles. Works great. $300 including shipping anywhere in the U.S.

They go new for $400ish i believe.

[Vincent]

Ive got the bolt on around the oil filler neck version on my 99 WR.

I've had absolutely no problems what so ever with it. Bolted right on, never slips, no cracks, etc...

Riding with the dampner makes you think your riding slower, until you reach down, feel the shifter and realize your tapped out in fifth gear over terrain you never would have done that on before!! It makes that big a difference. Enjoy!!

[Dave_VanBrocklin]

I agree that we have to give credit where credit is due. I haven't heard of, or had one bad thing to say about Scotts products. I called them with the concern that my head clamp slips when I wrench the bars, and the customer service rep was more than helpful.

Another company that deserves recognition is the company that makes the harness for the Topeak Panoram.( Sorry I can't remember your name). They are extremely easy to work with. These companies have my business for life.

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00 WZ400

01 Yamaha Raptor

99 Kawasaki ZRX1100

99 Yamaha Warrior

[overthebars_again]

Hey guys,

All too often I see posts from people complaining about poor products or services rendered. This ain't one of them. When I ordered my Scotts Dampner from my local shop, it came with the bar clamp in the #1 position. Needless to say, this was kind of cramped. Well today I decided to get off my butt and order the clamp for the #4 position (forward). A very nice lady at Scotts informed me that I could send mine in for an even exchange. I don't know about you guys, but this was totally unexpected. A simple phone call saved me $64.95. I don't ride or work for 'em, I'm just a happy customer.

OTB_A

[PMAUST]

Hi all, the Scotts stuff arrived and I have installed it(bolt on). I guess I was lucky because the frame bracket went right on without any filing or grinding of welds, burrs, etc.. Per the instructions I just put it on with out tightening everything up to check fit. I have decided to ditch the head light and ODO and just put a number plate back on. The only thing I am a little concerned about is that the distance between the frame bracket post that leads up to the stabilizer is really close to the oil dipstick post. I can still screw it out but have to pull the dipstick out at an angle towards the gas tank instead of straigt up. Is this normal? My WR is a 2k model. Other than that everything else seems fine. There is still room to add oil with the funnel I use so that is not a problem. I just didn't expect it to be that cramped between the steering post and the oil resevour intake. What are your thoughts on this? Thanks, Paul.

[This message has been edited by pmaust (edited 02-22-2001).]

[Hick]

Originally posted by pmaust:

The only thing I am a little concerned about is that the distance between the frame bracket post that leads up to the stabilizer is really close to the oil dipstick post.

You should still be able to get the dipstick out, you just have to flex it a bit on removal and install, but it will still be functional, more or less.

I’ve seen other guys ditch the dipstick for an aftermarket billet aluminum cap, I forget who makes them though. I haven’t used the dipstick since I bought the bike, I just measure out 1.7 liters when I change the oil.