not the typical tire question...

[kdxkawboy@aol.com]

In a message dated 3/26/2005 12:17:23 AM Pacific Standard Time, judjonzz@... writes: How bad do you need them to be? I am a fan of the K270, for reasons of price, durability, and offroad performance. Trust them? You can lean them over well past the point where I am comfortable with them without falling down. But they do not inspire confidence on the street, and the front tire is the greater culprit, IMO. The Cheng Shin 858 is almost as cheap, works better on pavement, and about the same off-road. Don't know if it lasts as long, but CS858 on the front, K270 rear is not a bad combo. I liked the 270 off road, but not on the pavement and so the dealer that sold me 270 said try the IRC GP1. I did and they are as good as a 270 off road while being confident inspiring on the street. I have no problems leaning the bike over so the outermost edge of the outermost knobs are scruffed. They have a predictable feel when heeled over - IRC didn't make their knobs as tall and uses a softer rubber. Pat G'ville, NV [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[trevorirons]

Hey Guys: I've been lurking on this group for a while and wanted to say hi. My 98 KLR-650 is my first Motorcycle and I had a few questions about suspension setup. I know it can really make a difference and was hoping to get a jump start on the learning curve. I did a search of past posts and came up empty. Yahoo kills the history pretty quick, huh. Sorry for any redundancy or stupidness of questions. Have pity on a new guy. The manual states that the rear end is getting 230 mm of travel but doesn't really specify setup. How much sag do you all think is ideal? Most people say about 20% generally, so about 45 mm of sag, is this about right? Also as far as for the fork, what weight oils and heights what do most of you all run? Anyone have anything but ambient pressure in the legs? The previous owner installed a progressive rear shock and spring but I've still got the stock, way too soft, front springs. Besides getting stiffer springs what do you think about the Cartridge upgrade for these forks? I guess what I'm really asking is how do YOU set up YOUR suspension, primarily for off-road? Thanks for your help and opinions. -Trevor