Intiminators installed: I'm underwhelmed.

[R650R]

I think a lot of forks would improve massively just with fresh oil, right grade or not as it goes off after awhile and im sure many riders overlook it.
The forks on the 750 had the birthday treatment at 50000 and 100000km and both times felt like a new bike afterwards.

[NordieBoy]

For reference, on install of the intiminators (I am so tired of that stupid name), I used Spectro 5w. Which apparently has a higher centistoke rating than that called out by Ricor. Even so the forks were ridiculously underdamped.

Then there's something wrong. A higher rated oil should mainly affect the rebound.
How much dive are you getting by grabbing the front brakes and pushing?

What shims are in your 'naters.

[Robert Taylor]

Then there's something wrong. A higher rated oil should mainly affect the rebound.
How much dive are you getting by grabbing the front brakes and pushing?

What shims are in your 'naters.

Did I hear right? You are calling those thick unyielding washers shims? Please explain how such washers can credibly deflect and allow a compliant ride ( truly rather than imaginatively )when hampering things further the ratio of shim ( washer ) outer diameter to clamping diameter is obscene and defies the well proven logic ( and practice ) of credible suspension manufacturers in both the motorcycle and automotive world?

[Robert Taylor]

I think a lot of forks would improve massively just with fresh oil, right grade or not as it goes off after awhile and im sure many riders overlook it.
The forks on the 750 had the birthday treatment at 50000 and 100000km and both times felt like a new bike afterwards.

Would you leave your engine oil in and change it only every 50000 kilometres? The oil inside forks and shocks is not only there for damping its there for lubrication. And by implication to minimise wear. The suspension units should ideally have their oil changed at least every 20000 kilometres but that interval forsehortened by as much as half for severe usage. Theres also a very strong argument to say that it should also be changed on the first service ( for units that are servicable )

[NordieBoy]

Did I hear right? You are calling those thick unyielding washers shims?

Because Fox sell them as suspension shims?

A .2 and .3mm shim gave a little too much brake dive on the TT350 (still better than stock) and adding a .12mm bought the dive back to similar levels to the DR650.
Doesn't this indicate they do yield?

[NordieBoy]

Would you leave your engine oil in and change it only every 50000 kilometres? The oil inside forks and shocks is not only there for damping its there for lubrication. And by implication to minimise wear. The suspension units should ideally have their oil changed at least every 20000 kilometres but that interval forsehortened by as much as half for severe usage. Theres also a very strong argument to say that it should also be changed on the first service ( for units that are servicable )

That's one thing I like about the TT350 forks.
The drain hole at the bottom of the leg.

[400sm]

Furthermore, still no reply from Ricor regarding the correct shim dimension/configuration.

chopper,

Have you considered telephoning them directly?

(I have had great results with companies using this method in years gone by)

[Robert Taylor]

Because Fox sell them as suspension shims?

A .2 and .3mm shim gave a little too much brake dive on the TT350 (still better than stock) and adding a .12mm bought the dive back to similar levels to the DR650.
Doesn't this indicate they do yield?

Brake dive is primarily controlled by bypass bleed with a little assistance from the shim stacks, in a system that is properly engineered. In all respects that ''shim stack'' setup on those Intiminators is very crude and badly engineered, period.

[Woodman]

They improved my KLR.

[Robert Taylor]

They improved my KLR.

Improvement is a term of relativity. What they have achieved and what could have been achieved at similiar or not significantly greater cost are two very different things. For what they clearly fail to achieve they actually are a rip off

[chopperT]

I pulled the intiminators out of the forks this morning, and stripped the valves down. Excuse the inch measurements, but hey you measure as it was built.

The packaging calls out the shim spec. as " 4x 0.012, 1x 0.015 "

I have all shims at 0.012" (10 shims total).

9 of the shims have an OD of 0.917", 1 has OD of 0.950".

Only the 0.950" shim completely covers the ID of the rebound check valve which acts as the seat for the shimstack. The ID of the rebound check valve is 0.920", so the smaller shims are leaving an annular gap, which is just a big orifice.

Added to that is the thicknesses are all at 0.012". None of the shims are 0.015". The difference in stiffness between a 0.012" and a 0.015" is significant (thickness cubed).

Somehow these shim packs have gotten all messed up.

I'm going to try to put together the correct shims, and give them another try. And hey if they are still bad then I'll call them junk and buy some Racetech emulators, but I want to see the Ricors work like they should first.

NB: Shim dimensional details as above. How do they compare to the shims you set up your 'haters with?

[Padmei]

Improvement is a term of relativity. What they have achieved and what could have been achieved at similiar or not significantly greater cost are two very different things. For what they clearly fail to achieve they actually are a rip off

Soooo..... it is possible to manufacture a relatively low cost suspension upgrade for these type of forks? if so how come we aren't seeing them?

Also how could one definitively test the effectiveness of said devices on a bike? When I queried the Intimator groupies about how to effectively test brake dive they replied with some kind of particle deaccelator machine.

[Robert Taylor]

Soooo..... it is possible to manufacture a relatively low cost suspension upgrade for these type of forks? if so how come we aren't seeing them?

Also how could one definitively test the effectiveness of said devices on a bike? When I queried the Intimator groupies about how to effectively test brake dive they replied with some kind of particle deaccelator machine.

You are seeing them but they dont work! Its like comparing Sue Bradford to Claudia Schiffer. John Key to that appalling union appointed Labour leader. Chalk or cheese.

Race Tech emulators or better still the new Cogent Dynamics valves. Great value and they actually work.

[Robert Taylor]

Soooo..... it is possible to manufacture a relatively low cost suspension upgrade for these type of forks? if so how come we aren't seeing them?

Also how could one definitively test the effectiveness of said devices on a bike? When I queried the Intimator groupies about how to effectively test brake dive they replied with some kind of particle deaccelator machine.

There are low cost Emulator copies but the issues with them have been well documented. Cheap always comes at a cost and you'd think that a lot of people are gunshy about the cheapest goods, given the large volume of not fit for purpose rubbish that comes out of China.

If you want dirt cheap then you are being totally unrealistic because dirt cheap and an acceptably good result just dont go hand in hand.

[Robert Taylor]

Any update from North Mexico? Were they ever forthcoming with a reply?