rear spring advice

[Doug Pippin]

mikeypep First off suspension improvements are not what I'd consider a farkle. I purchased and installed a Big Gun spring on my 2002 KLR650 because the stock spring was too weak and the suspension would bottom out often. This only occurred when riding off road which is about 90% of my riding on the KLR. When I ride on the road except to get to an off road area I use a road bike. I weigh 185 lbs without my riding gear and with the Big Gun Spring I could not get the proper amount of sag even with the pre-load set on the lowest setting. So the Big Gun spring was too heavy of a spring for me. It did however stop the rear suspension from bottoming out on the rough stuff. I purchased a Cogent Dynamics "Moab" shock that replaced the stock shock and has a spring that is proper for my weight so I can now dial in the proper suspension sag. It also has a rebound damping setting that you can change to make the suspension work for your preference. I also installed Cogent Dynamics fork spring and Race Tech emulators in the forks that now work great and doesn't have the excessive dive when the front brake is applied hard. This is by far the best improvements I've made to the KLR and I'm very happy with the front and rear suspension set up. It's like a total new bike as far as suspension is concerned. In your case since you happy with the stock shock I'd suggest that you just dial the proper sag into the stock shock (if you can). You'll likely end up with the highest pre-load setting to even come close to the proper sag and save your money for gas. If you want the bike to handle really well then both the front and rear suspension will need work. You can see information on the Moab shock at: http://tinyurl.com/moabshock Doug ---------- At 10:47 AM 8/6/2008, you wrote:

>Rear spring advice. > Posted by: "mikeypep" mikeypep@... mikeypep > Date: Wed Aug 6, 2008 5:07 am ((PDT)) > >I'm looking for advice on replacing the rear spring on my A15. >Here's the statistics; I ride strictly street, solo. Weight about >230 loaded up. Bike is lowered 1 1/2 inches, front and rear. I keep >the spring set smack in the middle of the tension setting. Ride is >great and only rarely bottoms out. Handling is fine. >In a recent posting most of the riders, on and off road, brag up the >Top Gun rear spring with reports of improved ride and handling. >What's the consensus on this "farkle". I'm inclined to follow the >"if it ain't broke, why fix it" rule and spend my $100 on gas, but I >do love to farkle up my KLR!

---------- Doug Pippin 828-684-8488 d_pippin_89@... ---------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]