[TrX450rKiD]

Sorry if you were expecting me to tell you, I was planning on fine-tuning my suspension and was wondering if anyone could let us all know how to adjust all the components of the shocks and if they could give details on everything that these adjustments do! THANKS!!

 

[meanrhino]

i will get up on a few things it been a while what ajustments does the trx450 have

 

[TrX450rKiD]

rebound, preload, compression...i think thats all

 

[freeride]

the owners manual does a good job of explaining how to adjust the shocks. but, they don't explain what the adjustments do, they say"smooth terain=soft settings and rough terain =hard settings" (sorry if i'm spelling terain wrong). that's not what you should do, it's not that easy and not allways right.
i'll try to write this so it's easy to understand for someone that doesn't know how the shocks work, i'm not trying to be a know it all. compression is the upward motion of the wheel or the reaction to a bump. rebound is the downward motion of the wheel or the reaction to spring pressure. a hard setting is more resistance to movement and a soft setting is less resistance.
to setup the shocks do one thing at a time, like both front shocks compression only. go to a track or find terain that is most like what you normaly ride on and go ride on it with the shocks in the stock position (owners manual tells you the stock settings if you all ready changed them). this is for compression only, get a good feel for the shocks and figure out if your bottoming the shock. if you are, then tighten it up two clicks or half a turn. if your not bottoming, then soften it up two clicks or half a turn. repeat this until bottoming occurs or stops or until you run out of adjustment. if you reach the point that your bottoming, tighten in small amounts untill it stops and leave it alone, for now. if you were bottoming, your a fat ass, just kidding, but if you get it to stop then soften it up in small amounts until you bottom again, then go back till it stops. do this on the front's seperate from the rear.
now for rebound, find some whoops, ride though them and get a feel for the shocks. try to feel if the ride gets rougher as you go though them or if the shocks seem to bounce. if they get rougher you should soften them ,the same as you did for comression, because they are not letting the tire's return to the ground in time for the next bump, so every bump makes it worse for the next one. if it is bouncing, tighten them up until it stops bouncing or until you run out of adjustment. do all this the same way i described for compression.
now, go back and do the compression again and then the rebound again. this is because both adjustments effect the other, so one might change a little as you tune the other. you should try different settings, just to see if you like it. i have my rebound all the way hard and compression all the way soft on the front and rear because i like to jump and have a soft landing without bouncing. i plan on doing alot more tuning but i just need the time, i plan on tightening the compression til i think it's to harsh but i will leave the rebound were it's at because i like it. i'm just telling you this so you know it's ok to do what feels best to you, once you figure out what you like. sorry, if i didn't help.

 

[sethg]

Stock shocks suck...get them revalved.

 

[TrX450rKiD]

freeride thank you very much for your post! Welcome to the forums and that helped out a lot! If my back end is bouncing up too high over bumps, like it is trying to buck me off, what sould I do? Does this mean I should tighten the rebound on the rear shock?? Thanks again for the post!

sethq...please dont make posts like that man! If you dont like the stockers you can say so, but this post was simply asking about how to adjust the 450's suspension and how they work...just try to be civil next time

 

[freeride]

well, i would try to soften the compession and rebound all the way in the rear. then start tightening the rebound up til it stops bouncing. i would say that that's a good starting point, how much do you wiegh?
and in responce to "stock shocks suck", i don't know if they suck. i do know that they're a 100 times better than stock 400ex shocks. i like them, they seem to have a good range of adjustment.

 

[TrX450rKiD]

Originally posted by freeride@Apr 30 2004, 04:53 PM
well, i would try to soften the compession and rebound all the way in the rear. then start tightening the rebound up til it stops bouncing. i would say that that's a good starting point, how much do you wiegh?
and in responce to "stock shocks suck", i don't know if they suck. i do know that they're a 100 times better than stock 400ex shocks. i like them, they seem to have a good range of adjustment.

I weigh about 115...haha I'm so fat aren't I?? But I can handle this baby Seriously, it is funny the looks I get when I take off my helmet and people see I am a small 15 yr old...even funnier when they see me do hills none of them will

 

[trx480ryan]

I Hear Ya Kid, i was showin a guy how to hit the gap jump at the track, the owner wasnt hittin it but the kid that rode there for over a year hasnt hit it and i built up enough neverve to do it over the weekend so i showed um how to do it haha.

 

[sethg]

The owner of TCS told me that the 450r stock shock comes ready for a 300 lb MX rider, no joke. I got them revalved for someone of my size...makes a total difference.

I'm just trying to be realistic...I'm not sure what kind of valving you guys happen to get, but mine wasn't changeable. I could run the rebound all the way one way and it wouldn't change the characteristics if it were screwed all the way out. Seriously, revalving, especially for smaller riders is a low-cost alternative.

 

[freeride]

i know that my shocks have a good range of tuning but, i weigh 195, so i might just use more of the shock. as for you 450rkid, i would say you need to change your springs. they are way to stiff for your little ass, i don't know who to call but find a company that can tell you what rate springs you need. the rear will be most important because it carries most of your weight but if you can afford it change all the springs. when you change the springs then you will be able to tell if the shocks work good for you.

 

[freeride]

before you check into springs try taking all the pre load off the rear. it made a huge difference on mine, i haven't rode it yet but it is way softer now. when it was it the stock setting it only had about an inch of rear sag and now with it loosened all the way it has about 5-6 inchs of sag. you should try this for sure, i had no idea it would make that much difference. i also took the preload off the front and i'm doing this for tuning purposes, just to see what it's like because you never know unless you try new stuff.

 

[meanrhino]

if they are for a 300 lb mx rider then those must be riddin on a 50 track because i have witnessed watched and seen over and over a 450r bottem off descent sized jumps can it be tuned out maybe i dunno

 

[Herrmann102]

Trx450rkid, I know exactly how you feel! Im running the A class this year, and when were at staging the other guys are all staring at me like I was stupid or something. Then I beet them all!! Hahaha I love that feeling!! See, kids like us are still young and stupid, so we'll do anything.

Anyways, Im having a hard time setting my shocks up too. I weigh 130lbs., and I have the rear stup like I want. I have the preload backed all the way off except for one thread, and the compresion turned all the way up(stiff). I think I may go with that GT rear linkage setup because the Elka linkage is WAY too expensive for me even with a sponsorship discount. Right now on the fronts, I left 4 threads showing on the pre-load and turned the compresion all the way up. With the stock settings, there was one downhill triple table top that I would always come up like 2 ft. short and bottom out pretty bad. I may see if Elka has like a triple rate kit that they can do for them or something. I know Santo Derisi has a triple-rate kit for them. I also have a pair of herrmann racing plus 2's coming in the mail, so I'll probly have to re-adjust to those. I was gonna get some Elkas but i just remembered that I need a Truck!!

 

[lukester720]

Originally posted by sethg@Apr 30 2004, 06:03 PM
The owner of TCS told me that the 450r stock shock comes ready for a 300 lb MX rider, no joke.

I think he might have been exagerating (sp) some. I weigh 270 and bottom out on some pretty weak jumps. You can see a picture of me bottoming out on a small jump in the places to ride section under "Haspin Acres".