2012 kx250f suspension

[motodadjlg]

who are you guys getting to do your supensions and what results are you getting?Coming off a crf 250r the bike does'nt handle as well but we used MB1 to set it up for 175 lb pro rider any help appreciated thanks

[Trashrider]

I have a '12 as well with 40 hours on it now. I'm sending my suspension to Factory Connection. They did my '11 KTM SX150 with great results.

Mark

[nozz3857]

Just sold my 09 KXF 250 and bought a 2012. I only have a couple hours on it, but I know I'll need to send the susp in for mods.

I weigh 150 and it's way stiff.

Sent my 09 susp to Pro Circuit and it was really good.

I'm going to have them do my new one as well.

But I have 2 buddies that used RG3 and they're very satisfed too.

[dmm698]

Just sold my 09 KXF 250 and bought a 2012. I only have a couple hours on it, but I know I'll need to send the susp in for mods.

I weigh 150 and it's way stiff.

Sent my 09 susp to Pro Circuit and it was really good.

I'm going to have them do my new one as well.

But I have 2 buddies that used RG3 and they're very satisfed too.

With only a couple hours on it you really need to ride it some more before you do anything. My 11 was SO bad the first 6 or so hours in the suspension department it made me want to give it away. Once everything breaks in it gets more plush and then you can decide if you want to stiffen it up or soften it up via valving as well as spring rate. The average rider cant break a bike in in a hand ful of rides, myself included.

[imfasterthanyou]

everybody, the way the forks are set up from the factory is weird. my friends 2011 ran like crap in the rough stuff till i decided to take it out and play with the clickers, it helps more than you think! go out and play with the clickers. the rebound is where your gonna notice the most difference in rough stuff. the 17mm nut on the shock is for high speed adjustment (say hitting a rock that jolts your suspension to cycle at a very high speed) is another one that helps a lot. compression is probably the least helpful clicker but can help some people. faster riders would enjoy the high speed nut ALL the way in. thats where i was most happy with the 2011 and my 2010. rebound is best for me around 8 turns OUT (from fully seated in) the preload nut is like setting sag for your forks. it controls where your front end sits at dont expect too much from the suspension companies right now if you send your forks in. SFF is brand new and suspension companies are still learning how to tune it. the forks that come on every other conventional bike have many many years of testing and development and they can dial it in real good. try my specs and it might feel good. im a 150lb nov/int rider

high speed 17mm nut- all the way in (3 turns might be good)

compression-10-12 clicks out

rebound- 6-8 clicks out

preload- 18 clicks out

[moto367]

I gave my suspension to KRW Cycles in Dayton, Ohio. They did an awesome job at a fraction of the cost of FC or PC.

[DMauro]

did you ride it yet, the rear shock is better than my FC revalve 2010.

[drzadam]

pro circuit did my '11 recently. they install several new parts in the fork and shock (pistons, spring seat, bottoming cone, high speed spring, pressure spring, etc) and I told them to change springs if they thought I needed to. I am 162 w/out gear and I am about an low intermediate MX rider. I got it back a week or so ago and have ridden a couple of times in it. They did not change springs, so I have the softer springs compared to the '12, and it is more than firm enough for me. Where it used to blow through the stroke on small or continuous hits, it stays up now. At first it feels a bit harsh, but now that I am more used to it, I realize it has much better traction than the stock setting. It follows the bump contours really well and does not deflect on side hits much either. All in all I am impressed. The handling has improved, which I did not think that would really happen. I can keep a turn going in the right path without having to correct over and over again, I guess because it is following the terrain and getting great traction. It is harsher than the '11 stock, I know I've said that already, but I will repeat it anyway. I went out a click on rebound and comp on the fork, and also a click on slow comp on the shock. That took some of the harshness out, but it is more in the high speed stacks that the firmness is so only a small amount of softening is possible...

I am still tuning with it and playing with preload, but I am happy. IT cost about $750 including the quick-adjust fork preload cap.

[grunkthump]

DMauro are you saying the 12' stock shock is better than your 10' with FC revalve?? That is AWESOME!! Seems Kaw. is doing ALL the right things this year.

[DMauro]

i only got to do one moto on the 12 but the suspension blew me away! i even liked the forks. im 165lbs top b rider

[imfasterthanyou]

DMauro are you saying the 12' stock shock is better than your 10' with FC revalve?? That is AWESOME!! Seems Kaw. is doing ALL the right things this year.

you have to remember valving is speed and weight sensitive. what works for dmauro might not work for you. unless your the same weight and speed and same type of riding?

[grunkthump]

VERY true, but i have heard the 12' is SO stiff (I know spring rates are correct for my 175lbs). Dmauro did you back off the clickers at all, or running stock settings??

[imfasterthanyou]

VERY true, but i have heard the 12' is SO stiff (I know spring rates are correct for my 175lbs). Dmauro did you back off the clickers at all, or running stock settings??

im a 150lb (in clothes) intermediate rider and its pretty good for me. the SFF is very versatile compared to the twin chamber showas. theres more adjustment room available i provided a good clicker setup for MYSELF. you might try those and see what happens. if your pretty good mechanically then you can play with your suspension valving o your own. theres only a handful of people here on tt who valve their own suspension and i also do (with help from thedogger) go into the crf450 forum and theres a sticky about how to revalve suspension by yourself. suspension is very confusing untill you take it apart. then it all makes sense?

[DMauro]

it wasnt my bike si i didnt have time to adjust. im 165lbs. they uped the spring rates to 5.4 in 2012 i would need to go back to 5.2 and at 150 you would need a 5.1or5.0

[RSS - SPI Europe]

for sure up front they fixed a few bugs for the 12 over the 11, and the shocks decent, it needs a little more l/s and less mid speed damping, reb is not far off though this yr. a little more bleed and 1 more face shim.

im looking for someone to make a new low friction piston band setup for this shock - at that point i think it will be real good.

the forks can still be improved quite a bit though.

[moto367]

Not to hi-jack the thread, but in regards to the sff fork, do you feel there could be or is any flex transmitted through the wheel with this set-up? I anticipated the axle to be much larger diameter than what it is to compensate. My '11 works really well and I don't notice any issues.

[imfasterthanyou]

it wasnt my bike si i didnt have time to adjust. im 165lbs. they uped the spring rates to 5.4 in 2012 i would need to go back to 5.2 and at 150 you would need a 5.1or5.0

im on a 5.1 and im at 150lbs. also remember that each KG is equal to the weight of a pineapple. most people pay the $100 to get the extra .1kg but the difference would only be that of a pineapple in your backpack as you ride. the bike just happens to come stock with the perfect springs for me?

[Pr1malR8gw]

Not to hi-jack the thread, but in regards to the sff fork, do you feel there could be or is any flex transmitted through the wheel with this set-up? I anticipated the axle to be much larger diameter than what it is to compensate. My '11 works really well and I don't notice any issues.

The axle is the same 04-12.. Confirmed this with parts fische for a 2010 and 2011 and I know that the front axle works 04-12.. So no there was no changes to increase resistence to flex in 2011

[drzadam]

The question about flex in the SFF fork: It should be very close to the same flex properties as the previous fork design with two damping rods and 2 springs. The outer and inner tubes are the same as '10 and maybe even further back, as are the dropouts, bushings, axle, etc. There is going to be some moment created by the spring force not being equal to the damping force, but the bushings will take that load. What would be interesting to see is if the bushings are wearing out more quickly. They may have more side load as in parallel to the axle. The fork always has had a big side load in the direction travel and that is what wears bushings out, the side load. As far as the feel of flex goes, though, I like the feel of the SFF fork, but all I have to compare it to is 48mm WP forks and a 47mm KYB fork. For the weight and motor torque of this bike, I think it is pretty good. However, as I am sure you already know, the Pro Circuit riders use a 49mm SFF Work Showa fork. It definitely has less flex in the tubes. But for the average rider, that little bit of flex we have in our 47mm forks is not a problem. If you are really fast, you might be ready to move on to the next level as in a works showa or an ohlins fork kit with 48 mm tubes. They make a full fork kit for the '11-'12 KX250F now, which is much cheaper than the showa works fork. Now that I have paraphrased every magazine that has written about this in the past year or so, I will stop.

[Rambo747]

Ok - make me feel bad. So how much better is the engine on the 2012 as compared to the 2009? I love my 2009 but am getting the itch for the 2012 since I hear it is a beast......... ????