Suspension and springs

[thorns]

After some advice on changing springs on my K8 RM250.

Had my first ever motocross day in the weekend, and did a pretty good job at making the other slow riders feel like Ben Townley, but had an absolute blast and am well and truely hooked!
Speaking to a few of the other riders, they suggested the best thing to do for a start would be to get the correct springs for my weight, and get the sag set correctly.

I have jumped onto the race tech site and used the calculator to work out the best springs for my weight.
Now, the bit where I am not sure is, is it worth getting them re valved, oil changed etc for now, or would I be okay to just put the springs, set the sag, and get busy riding and improving technique?

Also, have looked at some online vids of changing the front springs without removing forks, is this possible on late model motox bikes?
Rear shock look easy enough to replace from i have seen.

Trying to avoid paying a workship if I can as wanting to keep things as cheap as possible for now.

[ktm84mxc]

To be honest unless you weigh more than 95kg the standard springs will be more then capable of handling your weight, esp as your a newby to MX and wont be attempting big jumps etc.
I'm a slow vet who occasionally gets the wheels of the ground over a jump and still run standard springs on my EXC as I like a soft ride to nanna me when the track gets rough , just set the sag and compression/rebound and learn to stay on the throttle longer and brake latter into the corners to go faster.

[Haggis2]

After some advice on changing springs on my K8 RM20.

Sell it and buy a 250 then work from there

[thorns]

To be honest unless you weigh more than 95kg the standard springs will be more then capable of handling your weight, esp as your a newby to MX and wont be attempting big jumps etc.
I'm a slow vet who occasionally gets the wheels of the ground over a jump and still run standard springs on my EXC as I like a soft ride to nanna me when the track gets rough , just set the sag and compression/rebound and learn to stay on the throttle longer and brake latter into the corners to go faster.

OKay thanks, may try that for a start and see how it goes. Would it be best to set them all as hard/stiff as possible for a start?

[thorns]

Sell it and buy a 250 then work from there

whoops

[ktm84mxc]

I'd advice against setting them hard go to the middle settings and start from there, set the shock sag at 95mm bounce the bike and see how it comes back up you want it to return in a level balanced way.
Set your tire pressures to 14psi and take it for a ride around a track write down the settings now adjust the setting after each ride say 10 minutes to see what changes work for you and only move the clickers 2 clicks at a time , within the day you'll find a set up that works for you.
Set the bars to your preferred angle and levers and enjoy.

[scott411]

To be honest unless you weigh more than 95kg the standard springs will be more then capable of handling your weight, esp as your a newby to MX and wont be attempting big jumps etc.
I'm a slow vet who occasionally gets the wheels of the ground over a jump and still run standard springs on my EXC as I like a soft ride to nanna me when the track gets rough , just set the sag and compression/rebound and learn to stay on the throttle longer and brake latter into the corners to go faster.

I disagree somewhat, getting your suspension set up for your weight is the best thing you can do, you do at 85kg i would put heavier springs into a RM250 for someone, if you want to learn you need to have the bike set up well, at the very least you need to set up the sag,

A revalve might be a better option than just springs, talking to a suspension expert and seeing what they reccomend would be the first step,

spending money on suspension is the single best thing you can do on a dirt bike for added performance,

[gwynfryn]

If money is a bit tight i would aim to get the most out of your stock suspension first.Talk to people and read up on suspension tuning.
I think the best thing you could spend your money on to go faster at this stage would be petrol.
Have fun.

[Crisis management]

Lots of good advice above.

I've heard very good things about DAS (dirt action services) in christchurch from other dual purpose riders, you do need someone that knows the local conditions for advice. If you can afford it (I realise you probably can't) the best thing is to get all the suspension set up by a professional, failing that just re-spring to suit your weight. Be carefull of using websites overseas for spring info (Racetech is a good product), for example I am re-springing my 450 and the springs recomended by the Racetech calculator were advised against for my riding by a local suspension expert (who I trust), the fronts were too soft and the rear a progressive rather than straight rate spring. I ended up buying a second hand rear locally and using the correct rate Racetech fronts to stay within my budget.
Seeing as this is all new too you, there is some merit in just riding the bike for a month or two but I suggest go and talk to a local expert, explain you have no money and take it from there.

[Brian d marge]

As has been said , set up sag correctly Those online calculators are ballpark only , ( Linton DAS? is good to talk with )

I tried an enduro in NZ and has the suspension set up for my local ( Japanese) track and I needed to go softer as I got NO ( and I mean NO) traction up hills and out of corners . So local knowledge really helps

Robert Taylor ( on here) is really accessible and helpful bounce him a few pm s


at the end of the day springs are a good investment ...and will make your day a whole lot better

Stephen