Ny clues about setting up suspension on my Ducati?

[duckman]

No its not that number plate ,why you ask ??

I just sold my 2000 750SS ... so I was curious

[Quasievil]

I just sold my 2000 750SS ... so I was curious

Okay cool, so how did you find the 750ss, ie handling cornering etc, how did you have it set up?
Im keen to know your thoughts .
Hope the TL1000 is treating you well !

[duckman]

Okay cool, so how did you find the 750ss, ie handling cornering etc, how did you have it set up?
Im keen to know your thoughts .
Hope the TL1000 is treating you well !

Hi,

When I first got my 750 the first thing that bothered me was the front fork setup. it was waaay too hard, so I changed the fork oil to a lighter grade and this helped a little. (but not much).
Theres really not much you can do as the bike doesn't have adjustable front forks. I can suggest that you pay attention to your riding position. Make sure you lean waaay forward and keep your elbows bent. This will help with some of the "feedback" you get from bumps in the road.

BTW - The TLR is an absolute dream. A much nicer bike to ride than 750. (IMHO)

[Quasievil]

A tweak up from Hamilton M/C, big difference, the problem was in the front steering bearings, they were a bit seized up ,it was fixed and now its completely different. Hopefully now I can enjoy it a bit better, for now though on that note Im of to Raglan !!!!!!!

[Quasievil]

A tweak up from Hamilton M/C, big difference, the problem was in the front steering bearings, they were a bit seized up ,it was fixed and now its completely different. Hopefully now I can enjoy it a bit better, for now though on that note Im of to Raglan !!!!!!!

What a difference that made, went through to Raglan and back and it was the first time I have felt good on the Ducati, now my confidence is coming back AWESOME

[merv]

Seized head bearings would feel a whole lot different than stiff suspension so I guess you had two problems.

Someone has already mentioned changing springs and they would be a good idea, so just get some lighter springs even if you have to get them made they are not that expensive. e.g. hundreds of $$ not thousands of $$$. The other thing is check if it has spring preload spacers inside the top of the forks as you may be able to either remove them or put smaller ones in to get a much plusher ride on small bumps.

Kickaha said these Ducs were oversprung and underdamped, so that means get softer springs and use thicker grade oil to fix that.

If you need to alter the rear an Ohlins shock could be a good idea but I bought one for my WR and I guess price was typical it was just under $1,500 so not cheap.

[Quasievil]

Seized head bearings would feel a whole lot different than stiff suspension so I guess you had two problems.

Someone has already mentioned changing springs and they would be a good idea, so just get some lighter springs even if you have to get them made they are not that expensive. e.g. hundreds of $$ not thousands of $$$. The other thing is check if it has spring preload spacers inside the top of the forks as you may be able to either remove them or put smaller ones in to get a much plusher ride on small bumps.

Kickaha said these Ducs were oversprung and underdamped, so that means get softer springs and use thicker grade oil to fix that.

If you need to alter the rear an Ohlins shock could be a good idea but I bought one for my WR and I guess price was typical it was just under $1,500 so not cheap.

Thanks Merv
Im really happy about the changes so far, I will see how they go on my next long ride, I may need to do other things, but hopefully not

[merv]

I've posted more stuff on suspension tuning here http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=2914 which gives links to the Ohlins site with many pdf files available describing the principles of tuning their units which in general applies to any suspension.

[LB]

My Ohlins papers have completely disappeared from the face of the earth.

Look at Merv's posting directly above, apparently the stuff I had is all available via .pfs on www.ohlins.com - if you get stuck, give Robert Taylor at Hawera Motorcycles a ring - he's the Ohlins importer and he's a great guy.