Ok guys i'm relatively new to sport bikes. I have been riding dirt bikes since i could walk and have raced those quite a bit. I then started riding adventure bikes and just recently decided a sport bike sounded like a good time... So here is the issue i'm running into (havent made it to the track quite yet due to some other stuff going on but i will by the end of this year or early spring). I have the sag on my bike dialed in and i have been playing with suspension settings and i'm having issues with the front wanting to push quite a bit while leaned over coming out of a corner (normally only from lean angles exceeding 35-40 degrees) as well as a the rear tire wearing the front of the sipe very aggressively. I am on a 2015 R1 with ohlins cartridges up front and an ohlins ttx out back on Dunlop Q3's. Any insight would be great.
well u can just give me the bike .. thatll solve it.. .. thats the best advice i could give ya so what do ya say?
feelthetrack.com Dave Moss is a suspension setup guru and has a page on his sight that tells you how to read your tires to know what your suspension is doing. There are lots of pages to get info from if you google "sportbike suspension setup."
All you need to know here: http://www.r1-forum.com/forums/417-yamaha-r1-r1m-suspension-setup-tires-wheels/
I've looked there and i'm following those threads on there already. Wasnt sure if anyone had any sage advice that could magically fix the vaguely worded issues i'm having. I have a plan of attack and i'm going to make the adjustments tonight and hopefully get out and ride and see how it does.
You could have a couple of issues. 1) too much weight on the rear causing good drive out of the corners but not enough weight on the front to allow the front to dig in and keep the bike turning. 2) Too much rebound will cause the front to have a lot of chatter in the bars and run wide on exit of the turns. 3) Too stiff in general in the front in relation to the rear(by compression or geometry) that unloads the front too easily and overcompresses the rear of the bike. Those are some starting points. Hope it helps.
I'd at least try it on the track first. I don't think I'd ever be able to dial in my track bike's suspension anywhere else besides the track. There is no way I could duplicate those conditions on a public road. Heck, without the big straightaways and hard braking of the track, I probably couldn't even heat up the tires.
Alright, Well i went through reset sag, shortened the length of the shock, and reset all clickers. World of difference. Much better, may go a touch stiffer in the rear but i'll know more in a few rides.
well i got rid of all of my tire issues and the bike is feeling better than ever. MY only issue is a very slight push now in the middle of the corner. With that said i can now easily maintain 45-50 degree lean angles with about 1/2 the effort as before and the bike is extremely stable allowing for easy line changes mid corner. Finally starting to understand why ohlins is expensive but well worth it.
Where are you located Nate? Talking about corners... What corners? What track? My advice would be to get with a Qualified suspension tuner trackside and get their support... Qualified is the key word here....
I would have said too much weight on the front (lower the rear or raise the front) but it seems you have done that. It's a fine line that's for sure!
I have gotten to the point where i simply cannot do more without being on a track and unfortunately that is unlikely to happen this year with starting a new business and having my third child coming any day now. With that said i am so much happier with the bike now that i've made some adjustments...It made everything about riding the bike more fun. And at this point if i'll i'm facing is tuning out a small amount of front end push than i consider that a huge win considering where it started. If all goes well i should make it to 8-12 track days next year and i'm sure i'll have it sorted pretty quickly. Thank you for all the help guys!