Steering Dampener- Top or Bottom mount?

[1buck]

Looking to invest in a steering dampener for the 450EXC-

Trying to decide on a top mounted or bottom mounted- what are the pros & cons?

Preferred brand?: price-function-customer support

Thanks

[marine89]

I'm only 5' 9" tall and i run the submount and CR high bars on an 06' 450 exc. i'm mostly a stand up rider. it just depends on your height and style of riding really. plus you need to feel comfortable. with your current set up do you feel your bar height is fine or would you prefer them a little higher? if you want them taller go with a submount if not go with a top mount. I only use scotts dampers and i have not tried any other one so i can not compare them to the others out there.

[jgiachino]

I have a scotts on my 450 and just got a motosportz submount for my 530....cant go wrong either way, motosports was cheaper, smaller, simpler, easier to install and for the 20 hours i have on it, it's just as good.

[cr rabbit]

I'm only 5' 9" tall and i run the submount and CR high bars on an 06' 450 exc. i'm mostly a stand up rider. it just depends on your height and style of riding really. plus you need to feel comfortable. with your current set up do you feel your bar height is fine or would you prefer them a little higher? if you want them taller go with a submount if not go with a top mount. I only use scotts dampers and i have not tried any other one so i can not compare them to the others out there.

At 6'1" I need the height a sub mount offers. I use a GPR dampener, they are local for me and the customer service is top notch. However I think the scotts is better unit overall. The GPR dampens all the time, sort of like the steering head is to tight, and the steering input can seam heavy. But you get used to it.

[creeky]

I have a WER damper on my 450EXC, very happy with it.

[8675309]

i run motosportz sub and also have scotts sub on my yami, both work well. i like tall bars.

[wvdualsport]

I have a Scotts Sub mount laying here in the box waiting for the weekend to mount on my 450 EXC. I already have bar risers on it, so the mount will not be an issue for me at 6', I like my bars pretty high and forward ( really long arms).

[lopaca]

I went with GPR (my dealer had it in stock).

I chose to go with the sub mount because I wanted the bars higher anyways.

I sure love having it. I was on a dry lake bed and heavy sand this past weekend out at Johnson Valley and had the thing cranked way up. It made the high speeds on the lake bed comfortable and the sand was much more doable because I wasn't fighting the front wheel.

Get one.

[Canadian K]

I've been very happy with my GPR underbar stabilizer (KTM orange - from hardparts catalogue). I bought it in 07 with my 450EXC and it is still working great. I'm 6' and the additional bar height was perfect for me (especially for standup riding).

Once you ride with a stabilizer you won't want to go back to riding without one.

[1buck]

Thanks for all the good input-👍.

I prefer a taller set up- Im 6'1" and it helps my standing riding. I have taller bars arriving today and plan to install these before I pull the trigger on a dampener. I have two bars to try one is 13mm higher than stock and the other are 20mm( pastrana FMX) higher than stock, so I guess I would be leaning towards the top mounted stabilizer-because I dont think there will be enough cable to go any higher. It kooks like some had problems with cable length- throttle- brake lines- ect.

Does anyone know about how much rise you can add before you run into problems: 10mm-15mm-20mm+?

Thanks

[Canadian K]

I am still using the stock cable length with the GPR raising the bars 20+ mm.

That is about max for the stock cables, though.

Note - I have also cut the stock bar width down by about an inch on each side.

[Jonnoh]

I've only used a scotts, but I can say the quality is excellent. I have had the same scotts since 2001. I had it on my 01 YZ250, 03 KTM 300, 05 CRF450, and I am planning on getting the mount to set it up on my new (to me) 08 450EXC. I am going with the top mount because I kept my CRF and I can swap it back and forth. I have had it serviced once and probably need it again just for peace of mind. I use the adjustment quite a bit. I usually set it at one full turn out for desert and 2 for the tighter stuff.

Anyone have issues with the throttle cable routing with the stabilizer on the EXC's as the cable routes to the front of the bars... right where the stabilizer meets the post?

[1buck]

Looks like I'll to go with the Scotts top mount set up. From the input here(many thanks), and several other riders Ive talked to, Scotts seems to come out on top be the benchmark for dampeners: quality- durability-performance-support.

FYI- regarding cable length and how much height you can add before changing to longer cables: I've swapped out the OEM Nekken (95mm high) and put on the ProTaper Contour Pastrana FMX(121mm high) which puts the rise about 26mm higher than the OEM Nekken bar- cables are fine- theres no binding- but there isn't much more free play left so I wouldnt imagine going to a higher set up with out going to longer cables.

[cr500at53]

if you happen to oun a 450 or 530 08 munn racing has a GPR for 299.00 if they have any more.

[PBDBLUE]

I have had Scotts on all my bikes for years. When I bought the '07 450 EXC the po had installed the GPR submount. I like the submount setup but not really sold on the GPR stabilizer. As mentioned earlier it dampens in both directions and is felt more by the rider than the Scotts. The Scotts seems to have better hi-speed dampening while maintaining more of a "free" feel during normal turn of the bars. If I had it to do over I'd go with Scotts but the GPR gets the job done.

[Captain Dogmeat]

I just installed the Scotts stabilizer on my 09' 530 today, took it out for a ride...

I'm running it pretty soft right now, but I do like the additional height on the bars ... I'm 6'4" ....

The complete scotts kit was $490 .... not too bad of a price for an adjustable unit.

[chrisford4x4]

I've got a GPR submount on mine and love it. It is the fist stablizer i've had on a bike and won't eber go with out one!! I was riding over some large rocks with a friend that was struggling with out one while i was flouting over them on mine.

[Danco]

Scotts on a BRP triple clamp and sub mount.

[kawasakimx8]

go with RTT, its built into the top triple clamp and they do not raise ur bar heighth at all, and its not sticking out the top.

[mikeythefokker]

The rtt has been a problem for a friend of mine ever since he got it. It needs to be serviced much more frequently than a scotts. The design is pretty slick though, and the on the fly thumb adjust is really cool. The scotts is a better stabilizer, but it doesn't mount as slick as the rtt. If you are getting a scotts and starting from scratch, I'd get the undermount. You can always get lower bars if you do not like them raised.