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2010 F4 Suspension Adjustments...one last question

4K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  Head Tomcat 
#1 ·
Guys,

This weekend I got out the manual to see what the suspension settings were on my 2010 F4. You might recall from an earlier thread that I bought the bike as a demo unit and it already had a bit over 400 miles on it. So....I was interested in restoring all settings to "factory standard" and start from that known point in order to fit it to my riding style.

To begin with, not one setting was "standard". In fact, most of them were pretty far off. After some carefull reading and maybe ten minutes of tool time, all settings were back to what the manual described as standard.

Now, one thing that I could not find was how to set the correct ride height. Let me explain this one.

I wanted the tail to go a bit lower in order to more easily get my leg over it...old war injury you know! But, I have no idea how to set the front forks so they compliment the lowered rear. If I lowered the rear height setting to go almost as low as it will go, about how many lines should I raise the front forks...1 line, 2 lines, etc,?

Is there some datum point I can measure at the front and rear to determine if they are complimentary to each other? In other words, the rear is pretty low...yet the front needs to go a bit lower in order to "match" the lowered rear?

The manual does not say anything about this at all other than the minimum lowered height of the bike can be 115mm. Nothing on how to measure some datum point on the front/rear and adjust from there.

Thanks!

The Tom
 
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#2 ·
Not of much I fear, but I have a brief appointment with the leading Dutch suspension specialist tomorrow afternoon. He helped me out for next to nothing last year with my F4 1078, and he'll do the same tomorrow on my 312R.

3 coffees for me, 15 minutes at best for him. But then this is Holland, it's only an hour and a half ride for me. I don't dabble in that sort of thing myself, I leave it to the specialists.
 
#3 ·
Ride height

Hi. You will need the ride height tool to properly measure the rear.
The front is quite easy, by moving the forks up or down in the triple clamps.
If you want to lower the whole bike a bit, you need to lower back and front equally to preserve the qeometry of the suspension.
Set the bike to standard, and go from that point. Not too much, as you may have clearance issues with the front wheel/radiator under heavy braking
Hope that helps.
 
#5 ·
Good question!

Since I did not have confidence that my suspension settings on my 2010 F4 were at "factory as-delivered" standard, I went by the owner's manual this past weekend and got all the clicks, turns, etc. put back to what is standard. The issue is the manual does not state what the rear height adjuster rod should be set at to achieve standard nor how many lines should be showing on the front forks.

Thus, I do not know what "standard" is for these two items and measuring the rear height at this point is not going to produce any information of value.

From the looks of things, I suspect the front forks are probably at "standard" as there are absolutely no indications the clamping bolts were loosened and the legs pushed up/down any distance. if this is true, the question then becomes "what is the standard setting on the rear height adjuster rod"?

Any thoughts on how many threads should be showing above/below the rod for a factory standard setting? Once I get this sorted out then using the ride height tool and dropping the front forks will become a lot easier to sort out.

Thanks!

The Tom
 
#7 ·
Since I did not have confidence that my suspension settings on my 2010 F4 were at "factory as-delivered" standard, I went by the owner's manual this past weekend and got all the clicks, turns, etc. put back to what is standard. The issue is the manual does not state what the rear height adjuster rod should be set at to achieve standard nor how many lines should be showing on the front forks.

Thus, I do not know what "standard" is for these two items and measuring the rear height at this point is not going to produce any information of value.

From the looks of things, I suspect the front forks are probably at "standard" as there are absolutely no indications the clamping bolts were loosened and the legs pushed up/down any distance. if this is true, the question then becomes "what is the standard setting on the rear height adjuster rod"?

Any thoughts on how many threads should be showing above/below the rod for a factory standard setting? Once I get this sorted out then using the ride height tool and dropping the front forks will become a lot easier to sort out.

Thanks!

The Tom
Hi Tom
I do not mean to alarm or insult you in any way, but measuring the ride height adjusting rod is not how it is done. You need a ride height measuring tool to start with, not sure how the older and newer models compare but I suspect they will be different (the tools I mean).
The best you can do is find another forum member, who has not touched his new suspension, ask him to check his pre-load settings, then measure the ride height rod, adjust yours to that and you should be back to spec or at the least very close.
The reason for this is that adjusting your pre-load also affect's your ride height.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I just got home from a visit to HK Suspension (google them). It's amazing what Edgar (one of the owners) can do in 15 minutes, and he didn't want to charge me either. The man's a wizard. My 312R now rides as it was meant to, as one bike, giving immense confidence in its handling. Front and rear are nearing the limits of their adjustment range though... TTX anyone? :-(


:f4: :f4: :f4:
 
#8 ·
Not insulted at all...good comments!

Donsy,

No offense taken as when it comes to suspensions I know just about zero...only what I can read from the owner's manual - and it does not cover the preload setting on the rear shock, how many rings are showing on the front forks, and, the standard setting on the ride height adjuster.

I do have a friend near me with a 2010 F4 and it is time for me to give him a ring and see if his settings are still at the factory level. I know he bought his bike as new (mine was a demo unit with 400 miles) and perhaps he has not touched anything yet. If in luck, I should be able to quickly get mine to factory standard...and then start properly from there.

Once again, thanks for your comments as it got me to thinking "now who do I know with a bike like mine"?

The Tom
 
#9 ·
Tom, all I can tell you is that my ride height adjuster was set at equal distance from the ends as standard, I have since lowered the front on ring and the rear adjuster by 5mm, handles the same but just leys me get the flat of my foot on the tarmac rather than just be on tip toes!
 
#10 ·
Good information!

Thanks for the comment about the ride height adjuster having equal amount of threads showing at the top/bottom. Makes sense they would set this in the middle of the adjustment range as "factory standard" in order to give the widest range of adjustment to the riders.

Also, I have very carefully checked the pre-load rings on the rear shock and they look untouched since leaving the facgtory earlier this year. By looking at the MV website and carefully focusing on the 2010 F4's they are showing...it looks like my pre-load is still at factory standard.

Pending any other information...and assuming my pre-load setting is untouched....I will set my ride height adjuster so the same number of threads are showing top/bottom and then proceed from there with setting the bike up.

The Tom
 
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