Suspension setup in Hamilton

[2 wheel madness]

Ok so i have brought a new bike (dont have it yet but should have it under my ass some time sat morn).
Bike is an 2002 Aprilia RSVR (ohlins shocks front and rear).

I have heard all the talk about having the suspension set to the riders weight etc and think i should consider this as prevoius owner is probably around 110kgs and im only a light weight at 80 odd.

So this leaves me with a few questions,

1. do i need to do it? (i dont often ride with a pillion so im guessing yes)
2. who should i see about getting this work done?
3. how much should i expect to pay?
4. how urgently should i get it done?

I will be greatfull for any help on this matter.
Cheers.

[Sensei]

Have alot of setting from my RSVR 03 can give you them to try or can surggest some for your weight .

[2 wheel madness]

Yea that would be awesome man, the whole suspension setup thing is a bit new to me. Previously ive just jumped on and give it shit, but then last bike was setup for guy my size so didnt have to worry about it.

[Sensei]

Aprilias need to be set right or they can feel abit vage . Do you know where all the adjusters are & what they do to the bikes ? If so I can give you some base setting for your weight & ability

[TerminalAddict]

Shaun offered me an $80 deal a while back.

Trip to wanganui?

[2 wheel madness]

I dont really want to play with the unknown, so it might pay to leave it to the pro's.
$80 you say TA, that sounds way better than i was thinking, im guessing he hasnt seen Hamilton Motorcycles price list

[Sensei]

I'm in New Plymouth so not far to come & want take more than 20min to do

[2 wheel madness]

could be a good excuse to go for a ride, and a good means of testing setup out each way through awakino. 20 min aint long and 5 pints later it would still be cheaper than Ham motorcylce centre.

[HDTboy]

While I'm sure Sensei could give you good advice, there are others in New Plymouth too.
Robert Taylor is NZ's Ohlins distributor, and can be reached on (06)751-2100
Shaun Harris has won a few races here and there, and can be reached on (027)255-9143
Alternatively, I'm in Auckland, and can set the sag and damping within the boundaries of what's installed on your bike, and can be reached on (021)251-7356

[Robert Taylor]

I dont really want to play with the unknown, so it might pay to leave it to the pro's.
$80 you say TA, that sounds way better than i was thinking, im guessing he hasnt seen Hamilton Motorcycles price list

I dont wish to take the wind out of your sails.....indeed if the bike has been sprung for a 110kg rider you will need lighter springs to make it work properly and no amount of external fiddling is going to make it how it should be until you do just that. If you wish to take the numbers off the rear shock spring and pm me I can tell you straight away if that issue first needs addressing. Its not going to cost you a trip and $80 or whatever to first find out what the fundamental issue is.

[Shaun]

I dont wish to take the wind out of your sails.....indeed if the bike has been sprung for a 110kg rider you will need lighter springs to make it work properly and no amount of external fiddling is going to make it how it should be until you do just that. If you wish to take the numbers off the rear shock spring and pm me I can tell you straight away if that issue first needs addressing. Its not going to cost you a trip and $80 or whatever to first find out what the fundamental issue is.

True that Rob! The mobile work shop is on the road in 2 weeks from now!

[2 wheel madness]

I will check out the spring on rear tomorrow when i get the bike. This would mean the front would need to be re-sprung too wouldnt it?

True that Rob! The mobile work shop is on the road in 2 weeks from now!

Is this to pick-up, take to taupo wkshop, do work, return? How long would the turn around be? couple of days?

Im getting the idea that theres no one in Hamilton any of you lot would trust to set up suspension

[FROSTY:Me]

Dude -ffs take a ride to Taupo. See Shaun Even if its over sprung its a nice ride to taupo

[2 wheel madness]

I dont wish to take the wind out of your sails.....indeed if the bike has been sprung for a 110kg rider you will need lighter springs to make it work properly and no amount of external fiddling is going to make it how it should be until you do just that. If you wish to take the numbers off the rear shock spring and pm me I can tell you straight away if that issue first needs addressing. Its not going to cost you a trip and $80 or whatever to first find out what the fundamental issue is.

Thanks to the help of Mr Taylor here i have established that the springs are standard after all.
Have managed to clock up 5-600ks in the last two weekends and overall it is a nice handling bike, steering is very precise, tips in quick and changes direction effortlessly but does feel very firm over the the bumps, especially the nice big lumpy bits mid corner we have on our NZ roads. This makes me think while the springs may be suitable i might be able to benifit from a bit of tweaking here and there

[Robert Taylor]

Thanks to the help of Mr Taylor here i have established that the springs are standard after all.
Have managed to clock up 5-600ks in the last two weekends and overall it is a nice handling bike, steering is very precise, tips in quick and changes direction effortlessly but does feel very firm over the the bumps, especially the nice big lumpy bits mid corner we have on our NZ roads. This makes me think while the springs may be suitable i might be able to benifit from a bit of tweaking here and there

I am guessing that this issue is mainly in the front? If so external fiddling of clickers and spring preload will make only a small and not a huge improvement. The Italian test riders set the internal valving up very firm and they test on roads with rather less bumps than we have. Happily we have a well proven and relatively expensive revalve spec for these forks that doesnt involve changing pistons. Check with Sensei on this site, we did his just recently and in total have done about 70 sets over the years.