Suspension setup
 

Hi guys.

I need to set my suspension up on my F4.

Is there any formula to setup front and rear preload, rebound and compression based on a riders weight??

I am 105kg or 230 pounds.

Any thoughts or advice?

the maunal
 

in the manual on page 3-24 and on the following pages show the stock settings and how to set them. i have been told to start at the stock settings as a baseline for adjustment. dont quote me on this but i believe the average sport bike is set up for a 165 to 175lbs rider. so us larger guys(6' 1" 220lbs here) need more preload, compression and rebound are things you will have to play with to get them were you want them. i run 5 preload rear and were the top of the second groove is barley showing on the front adjusters. but those are were i like them you maybe different. start at the factory settings

I am your height and weight as well. I also have the same problem as the OP, rather confused on suspension settings. If it is not too much trouble, would you mind posting all of your current settings?

Thanks

ive also been reading up on this and dunno if i want to adjust the ones on my 99. how does one know when they should be adjusted? should the bike squat so far when the rider is on? should it be a real smooth ride? should it be stiffer for better corner handling? so far ive been riding around on whatever the other owner has them set at, its a lil bouncy but nothing bad.

factory settings(alittle long sorry)
 

like i said in the other post set you bike at the factory settings. i'm no expert at this. i have read many articles and books but experience means alot more. i have only messed with my bikes and a few others. mostly just to undo bad things. one thing to remember is that when you adjust one you must adjust the others accordingly. but not all bike have adjustments on the out side or at all. to adjust any thing on a ex500 you must do it fromt the inside. our f4's have 3-way adjustment and rear which make it lot easier let me tell you. but you could have aftermarket spring and valving in the front. which would change how much your adjustments are. adn also the age and condition of the fuild front and rear also change the amount of you adjustments. when i find someone who sells the rear valve and rebuild kit i want localy(hopefully before the end of this week) i wll rebuild the entire suspenion on my bike and every setting that i have now will change.
since i'm no expert, i say got to borders or barnes&noble or used book store(many good finds there). and pic up a book on suspension tuning. it will be able to explain in detail. one of the best books i have found is
101 Sportbike Performance Projects by Evans brasfield.
it has everything needed to maintian and encrease the preformance of a bike.
but there are many others also. if you go to a riding school they can treach you how to adjust the settings too

quailty
 

oh and dont just read anythign and belive it online make sure that the soucre is legit. i.e. an ex-racer, school instructer, race team mechanic, or a person with ties to a magazine

Can anyone my weight please post their suspension settings so I can try to dial this bike in as much as possible.

I know I probably need my suspension adjusted by a shop re fork oil/springs and also rear spring but that's not in my budget at the moment.

Appreciate any help.

It isn't just weight that needs to be considered - it is also how your ride your bike. If you spend all day on the highway touring long miles you'll have it set soft. If you carry a passenger or camping gear it'll be harder. If you take it to the track it will be a torture device on the street.

I'm currently cranked all the way up on the front - and still wanting more... at which point you start to have to look aftermarket or to a professional tuner.

Fair point.

I ride it to work a couple of times a week and its a 25km trip each way but I also do a lot of rides in the hills and this is where I find it a bitch.

I don't really mind compromising my plush ride to work and I don't tour or pillion anyone.

When you say cranked up are you referring to preload or what?

I find the back wallows around and just generally feels soft and spongy in the twisties and its unsettling and non confidence inspiring at all.

There is a suspension set up service offered at our local trackdays that tunes stock suspesions relevant to your weight and riding style, I hope to get out to see them soon but any feedback from you guys is welcome.

I have one word of advice: Ohlins

And although you may think I have a conflict of interest in providing this advice...it is not any less true...

https://cbrforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=97468

Hi

Im new so bear with me :icon_wink:

I recently got a 03 600FS..now Im only about 140lbs...I find the suspension AWFUL..its So SO bumpy..Ive tinkered with all the settings to no avail..a mate rode it the other eve and although he's a lot heavier than me he too thought it was awful...I followed on his VFR800 and thought it was a joy to ride..

even on city roads Im bumped all over the place..

Is this the nature of the beast or what should I do???
Any advice re settings...

It is very different to my 600FX..did they radically change the suspension settings with the FS???

Cheers
DC

darkcloud, The bottom line on the 600F4 (or FS / FX in Europe's case) is that it is a great bike with sh(i)t-bucket OEM suspension. Front and rear. I have the correct Ohlins shock for your bike. Its even the European version, although only the P/N is different from the US to Europe (shock is same as F4's according to Ohlins). Its the HO049 Ohlins model.
Look up the spec sheet on www.ohlins.com

https://cbrforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=97468

I am not kidding when I say it was like a new bike with this shock. Put this on it and then some race-tech stuff in the front end (or whatever equivalent y'all have in Ireland) and you will LOVE that motorcycle! - VE

raising the rear end
 

Hey guys,
I have a honda f4 2000 model. I bought it off my friend and he's a really short guy. Im around 5"11. The bike's rear end is really low and I was wondering if anyone can give me instructions on how to raise it and how much to raise it.
Thanks for your help.

Im in the same boat im 6"2 and feel its as if someone lower it before I got it and someone said I look too big for the bike which has really messed with my head,
Changeing that load bearing thing on the shock will that adjust the height?
Im going to go tinker with the settings on the bike and try find out what is best for 95kg and ill post up the results but before I do who can explain what screws do what

Bottom front forks (L/R)
Top front forks (L/R)
subframe shock
and the spring from 1-7

Im interested in suspension tuning as well. i have both my rear and back shock bagged out hard and its still to soft for me. I love my out of the box set up on my 08 CBR1000RR. Very tight and crisp, very nice set up to start out with.
I was wondering does anyone know if i can throw 08 Cbr 1000 forks on front of my 600. I think both are 43 mm thick. Not sure about hight. And if i could i would have to use a Cbr 1000rr Wheel and brakes . I think it would be nice to have better front brakes as well. I know its not nessary cause i have two different bikes, but i love the hell out of my old 600 and i would like to max out its potential.
Just an interesting idea if i plan to get race forks for my 1000 i would swap stock front end on my cbr 600.

In addition, if the latter was not possible, a friend was telling me i can tune the forks by changing to a thicker oil. If anyone know about this on a F4/F4i please let me know.

The most important setting to determine is sag. This ensures that you are using the suspension as much as possible with out it bottoming or topping out. Any issues beyond setting proper sag are then adjusted with compression, damping, or buying stiffer springs(or better suspension period)

http://www.sportrider.com/tech/146_0308_geek/index.html

There are a lot of basics about suspension to read on this site. get to it :P

anything with an rr has larger front forks then the f4. i'm 6'1" and i sit bent knee and flat footed. you can change the shock so you can change the spring. f4 spring is tapered no one in the world makes a spring for the f4 shock. and that will help with the guys over 175lbs. read my first reply in this post. raising or lowering a motorcycle more than a 1/2in changes the geometry of the motorcycle geatly. the less your weigh the less preload you need, the more you wiegh the more you need. preload effects your ride hieght. which is your sag. go to a book store and read a book on proper suspion setup. the most important thing on a motorcycle is tires, second is suspension. they work together to make your motorcycle do what it was intended to do.