My review of XR 400 springs

[mnnthbx]

I have a 03 200. I" right at 200lb., and ride a moderate pace of very rocky / rooted terrain.

I just installed 400 springs, pre-loaded 8mm., 7wt. oil at 110mm.. Rear sag is correct.

The bike does indeed feel better balanced. It feels more solid on down hills due to less squatting. It seems to jump better as well, I assume because the front actually rides up the face of an obsticle rather than plow through it.

I checked my tire pressure just before the ride (10 hours of nasty trails) , and had 8-9 lbs. in each. I put 12lb. in and hit the trail. Early into the ride I pulled quiet a few leg saves, as the bike was very loose and "skatey" over the rocky terrain. I'm not sure how much of this was my increased tire pressure, or how much were the springs.

I have yet to play with the clickers, so that might help. Which end of the spectrum should I go with the clickers for very rocky terrain to tame the suspension a bit, and make it less "free"?

Bottom line, I'm very pleased for $80. Just need to tweek a bit.

 

[canyncarvr]

There are procedures written up a number of places for clicker settings. Try google with a few appropriate key words. I'm at home right now and dial up is too slow to give you any examples.

I have this bookmarked:
http://www.mx-tech.com/tuning.asp

Don't know if it's still there or not......check it out.

Basically you want things as soft as you can get them and not bottom out the forks. This is assuming the spring rate is correct for starters. Setting the clickers on the oem springs to suit a rider of your size isn't going to accomplish a whole lot because the oem springs are so out of whack to start with.

That said for example..It goes for both ends, forks and shock.

Things that let you know your fork clickers are too 'high' or set to too much compression:

Your front end washes out of corners often.

You can't pick your track as well as you'd like...try to move out of a rut on an uphill and the front tire just skates on the edge. The fork's stiffness is not allowing the fork to soak up that impact. It fights you.

On downhills when you try to steer out of much of anything, you land on your head. That's the same sort of 'wash out' idea noted above.

On the shock, set the compression so it rarely if ever bottoms. On a slow bump your butt shouldn't get knocked off the seat when the rear end goes up and over. On the downhill side of that bump, your suspension should keep the rear wheel in contact with the ground. It's important to notice whether the wheel is getting off the ground because the compression is too stiff, or the rebound is too slow...or too fast.

Successive slow bumps should not 'pack' the rear suspension. 'Packing' is when successive bumps cause an improperly set shock to get increasingly shorter. Hit a bump..compress 4", rebound 3.5", hit another bump for another 4" compression, rebound 3.5"...you see what's going to happen? Pretty soon you won't have any shock action at all.

You will be surprised at what a couple of clicks, even ONE click on a serviced shock can accomplish.

.....get those bleeders........;)

 

[JasonWho]

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[tim_from_az]

I'm just about to put in a set of XR springs myself. Tell me, is this a pretty simple process? Now that you've done it can you think of things that you should have done to make the process go smoother? I've got a service manual that make reference to needing special tools. Are they truly required to get the job done or can we get by with just the basic tools? Oh, and what about initial clicker settings? Right now I've got them all the way in so I'm guessing I should back them out a few after switching the springs out.

I've never had a set of forks apart so I'm a worried that I'll mess something up.

 

[Braahp]

Tim you don't need any special tools. Use a 7/16th open end wrench to hold spring down under nut. A piece of hose works great to put on rod to pull it back up or hold it up when reassembling. Make sure you take forks off bike......much easier. Once you take them apart you'll see just how easy the whole process is.

 

[canyncarvr]

Jason:
Basically, 'Yes.' My clickers work better (have more effect) on the MX-Tech setup than the oem setup. The oem setup for me goes back four years and about a ga-dozen different suspension setups. I've paid more attention to the changes after MX-Tech than before. I did have the opportunity to ride an oem kdx frontend after my MX-Tech changes. I was surprised at how flat-out frightening the oem setup was!


For a good look at changing fork springs, take a look at Matt Disher's How-To page:
http://www.dishers.com/hobbies/Repairs/

It is a simple process. I prefer the oil level method opposed to the volume measuring method. Use a big vet syringe (your local grange type store) and some tubing to set your level. My last service I set the fluid to 110mm. I've been running the forks with a 'negative' air shock (use the bleeders at 'some' fork compression) of late, so next service I'm going to use 120mm. That figure (120mm) is what a local tuner-guy recommended, too. With the bleeders, it's not that big a deal...I can 'adjust' the frontend to whatever I prefer at the time.

Set your clickers to where you like 'em. Pretty much as soft as you like with very seldom or no bottoming going on. The valving is important, but you won't be messing with that.

BTW...you aren't taking the forks apart, right? Just changing the springs?

I took only a quick lookie at MadDisher's page..but did not see a reference to the clipped-on washers on the bottom of the springs. Make sure you get those out with the oem springs AND put 'em back on the new springs.

Piece-o-cake.

 

[Braahp]

I'd stick with the 12lb tire pressure. I'd get flats all the time if I ran 8 lbs. Only use it that low if its really really really muddy. It makes a major difference in the overall fell of your suspension between 8 and 12 lbs.

 

[billc]

Tim from AZ re:special tools

Tim, do some searches on this site.There is alot of useful info available that will help you work on your forks.Just spend an evening surfing through it all and you will have lots of tech tips from guys who have done it. Don't rush through the job.Take your time and do it right.