Loan of an SV?

[Little Miss Trouble]

Hey all,

I'm looking at a few options of what to do with my SV650 and have been reccommended to have racetec emulators put in to sort out the front suspension.

Does anyone in Auckland have a late model road-going SV that has had this mod done that they could possibly lend me so I can feel the difference for myself before I commit to having it done on mine?

:apint: involved for the kind person who helps

[FROSTY]

Tell you what young lady I'll do you better than that. Heres a deal for you.
YOU get Shaun/ RT to sort you with emulators/oil etc as we discussed.
If it doesn't transform the bike I WILL PAY for the work you had done.
Thats how confident I am.

[Morcs]

Is there any point though unless you ride hard?
Waste of money otherwise.

However, money very very well spent if put to good use ;)

[YellowDog]

Tell you what young lady I'll do you better than that. Heres a deal for you.
YOU get Shaun/ RT to sort you with emulators/oil etc as we discussed.
If it doesn't transform the bike I WILL PAY for the work you had done.
Thats how confident I am.
Hey Miss L, it's probably a good idea then and not much of a risk :)

[Morcs]

Even springs alone make a huge difference if your forks are really poo.

[FROSTY]

Is there any point though unless you ride hard?
Waste of money otherwise.

However, money very very well spent if put to good use ;)
Mate you need to taks a standard SV650 for a ride. As a commuter the suspenders are ok more that and they are terrible.Even with the preload cranked right down they dive like buggery.

[Slyer]

Tell you what young lady I'll do you better than that. Heres a deal for you.
YOU get Shaun/ RT to sort you with emulators/oil etc as we discussed.
If it doesn't transform the bike I WILL PAY for the work you had done.
Thats how confident I am.
I've bought racetech springs and emulators for the GPX and installed them myself. While that was a large improvement I'm sure they could be tuned a lot better!
Will have to see when I can get someone in the know to take a look.

[Devil]

Tell you what young lady I'll do you better than that. Heres a deal for you.
YOU get Shaun/ RT to sort you with emulators/oil etc as we discussed.
If it doesn't transform the bike I WILL PAY for the work you had done.
Thats how confident I am.

...and I would agree like i've said to you before, Lisa!
What do you think half the pro-twins guys use! (and plenty of F3 guys for that matter).

[slofox]

I have had the job done - emulators and springs.
Even though I am by no means a demon rider, I would never want to be without them again. Whenever I hit rough surface in a corner, I remember how much better things work with the kit installed. As long as I let the bike do the work, all is sweet...

[megageoff76]

A few weeks back Drew changed the standard fork oil 'water' in my SV to a 20 weight grade.

This has made a significant noticable difference to the way the front end feels, and it only cost $17 for the oil.
For my general riding and occasional spirited weekend ride, i cant say that id really need it to be any better than it is now.

Now theres no doubt that new springs and the emulators would take it to another level again, but how much better do you really need it to be?
I suggest you try this cheaper option first and see if it suits you and your budget before going further.

[CookMySock]

Is there any point though unless you ride hard?
Waste of money otherwise. Not so. Emulators can be set soft for lady tourers who want an opulent ride. Gone will be the bash and twitch of the mid-corner nasty bump. Finally you can relax and enjoy your bike. Just do it.

Steve

[Morcs]

Id just throw some srad 750 forks in though, you get adjustability without having to extract the emulators and remove the oil every time...

[Pussy]

We put emulators and Traxxion Dynamic damper rods in a K5 SV650S.
Worth every penny!
The Traxxion rods are machined, not stamped, meaning the emulator seals properly, as it is concentric with the centre.
It's not just a mod for racers, it makes your road going forks absorb sharp bumps while remaining controlled

[Little Miss Trouble]

Thanks for the comments guys, your suggestions are much appreciated :)

Frosty, thats a mighty big offer there, one of many that makes you a good bastard!

I guess I just really have to make a choice on the question thats been bothering me for a while - do I still want THIS bike?

[Pussy]

I guess I just really have to make a choice on the question thats been bothering me for a while - do I still want THIS bike?

Get the front end sorted properly and you'll love it again!
Talk to Gassit Girl... it was her bike we had done

[slofox]

do I still want THIS bike?

Same question has occurred to me in recent times.

I have had the fronts done but not the rear - yet anyway. I have also put a Two Bros slip on on it. I am tempted to look at a power commander as well.

Just now I think the answer to that question, for me anyway, is "yes". I will hang onto it for a while yet. So far, nothing else has ticked all the boxes. Besides, I am yet to realise all the potential of this bike. I like its stability, I like the light weight and its flickability. It goes fast enough and is damned economical to boot.

I'll give it another year and then ask the question again...

[Pussy]

Hey Miss L.... be wary of the cheap crap Taiwanese emulators available, too.
They're made of aluminium, and get eaten in to by the springs very easily. They also have very soft poppet springs, which once compressed, don't return to their original length.
They are a cheap copy of Racetech ones.... avoid them like the plague

[Jacko2]

Hiya Girl.
"Forkoil" may still have his. It had the front work your talking about done.
Give him a PM, he's on the shore, nice guy.

[erik]

I've got emulators in my sv, but its got 0.90kg/mm springs for me (80kg) on the track so it probably wouldn't be a good comparison.

If you get the correct weight springs for yourself and set the sag and change the fork oil, it can make a huge difference. I'm quite happy with my bandit with just new springs and oil.
You could try that and then install emulators later if you're still not happy. Even just setting the sag and changing the fork oil can be an improvement.

[Gremlin]

If you're going to keep the bike, get the work done, the front suspension in the SV650 is terrible.

However, if you're not going to keep the bike, you'd be surprised by how basic they are, once you have ridden some other bikes. Ask Zapf, he found the same thing when he rode a SV650 after several other bikes in between.

[Robert Taylor]

I've got emulators in my sv, but its got 0.90kg/mm springs for me (80kg) on the track so it probably wouldn't be a good comparison.

If you get the correct weight springs for yourself and set the sag and change the fork oil, it can make a huge difference. I'm quite happy with my bandit with just new springs and oil.
You could try that and then install emulators later if you're still not happy. Even just setting the sag and changing the fork oil can be an improvement.

Disagree. The Bandit is not a good comparison because at least it has cartridge forks and the oil flow dynamics are quite different. At least the damping makes an attempt at being speed sensitive within the constraints of budget build.
With bikes such as the SV ( with damper rods ) 60% or greater of the problem is VERY POOR HYDRAULIC CONTROL. There is simply next to no low speed ( fork velocity ) damping control giving that soggy feel and a propensity for almost uncontrollably blowing through their stroke on especially aggressive application of the front brakes. But yet when you ride over something abrupt the fixed orifice damping holes choke off in flow rate and that manifests itself as a jackhammer feel coming straight through the bars at you.
This whole issue is exacerbated by standard fitment progressive springs which are too soft in their start rate meaning that the forks will ride lower in their stroke. In the later reaches of stroke they ramp up in rate too aggressively.
Simplistically: Springs are about position, damping is about controlling rate of change of position. A lack of ability to properly control rate of change of position is the number one issue here.
Given a choice I would fit RACE TECH EMULATORS ( and not shonky poor performing Asian copies ) BEFORE fitting springs.
There are settings for road use and there are settings for track, they are quite different. As I have also mentioned in another thread there is a lot that can get overlooked when fitting emulators, they are best fitted by technicians ( not parts fitters!!!! ) that have a LOT of experience with such work.

[erik]

Disagree. The Bandit is not a good comparison because at least it has cartridge forks...

The bandit 400 has damper rod forks, very similar to the sv.

[Robert Taylor]

The bandit 400 has damper rod forks, very similar to the sv.

Apologies, assumed it was a 1200 but the content of the post is still 100%relevant. I would still choose to fit emulators before springs, in most cases.
Properly fitted and tuned emulators and springs are the very first and very best mod you can ever do to an SV650.