Eric's Gen II Suspension notebook w/ Penske & USD Forks DIY manual!

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No ride yet. The weather here went south and I had to wrap up the rest of the mods including brake lines for two bikes. Now it is raining and rain/snow over night. :(

Good tip on the clamps! Wished I seen that before I clipped them because there's no way I'd get these two back on. I'll go pick up two more and get them covered then replace these two. Thanks Johnny!!!
 
Well, I took the bike today... commuted with it. Purposely took some back roads with a lot of bumps. I didn't push the bike because it is still cold and the tires were cold but... no more butt-slappers! The rear absorbed all the bumps with no jarring and my butt never once left the seat. Now it really pronounced the front end pitfalls so I'd best get busy on the forks soon!

No adjustments to Lee's setup as sent to me. The rear feels firmly planted and rebound after a bump is spot-on. Compression? Well, I didn't feel much of the bumps so I'm giving it an A for the time being! I hit them from 35 to 80 mph and both low speed and high speed settings seem to be well balanced.
 
Krispy1 said:
Wait until you really push the bike. You will really appreciate the new shock!
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Wait till you hit that first big midcorner bump and you will be thrilled with it. At my weight, the forks work pretty well. I will probably install a Race Tech Gold Valve kit myself. I just want a little less high speed damping.
 
Update: I'll still be doing the forks but I'm waiting for the seals, gaskets(washers), o-rings and dust seals from PartShark. I know they aren't the fastest place to order from but they are one of the cheapest. Also ordered were two new inner fairings. I accidentally oversprayed some Gunk brake cleaner on them and ruined them. There's no fixing plastic that is hit with that stuff!

Maybe next weekend but I'm guessing more like the weekend of the 21st/22nd for the for rebuild. I've got the tools, springs and oil. :tup:

As for the rear shock... it is a DREAM! I still have not been able to push it as hard as I want. It's too cold and the tires don't heat up well in this weather with cold asphalt. I know of some nice corners with the dreaded washboard effect that I want to go test on. ;)
 
NJFZ1 said:
Yea, I suppose I really should invest in a rear shock, especially now that I got some new tires :)
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Tony, you won't regret it. The difference is indescribable. You really don't know just how much the rear OEM shock sucks until you've ridden a better built shock. I've joined the "Happy Arse Club" and love it.

I know what I'm doing to the forks will not make them perfect, but it's all I can do right now. Later, I may go with the gold valves but would love to do the AK-20 Traxxion kit. Actually, just rip out the forks and send then down to Lee!
 
This is a Partshark RECORD! They shipped already! Unexpected but very welcome!

Expected Delivery: Thursday, 04/12/2012, By End of Day

They are getting better!
 
Cobalt said:
This is a Partshark RECORD! They shipped already! Unexpected but very welcome!

Expected Delivery: Thursday, 04/12/2012, By End of Day

They are getting better!
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I think a lot of it has to do with whether they have the parts in stock or not and how quickly they get them from the Yamaha warehouse.

As you can imagine dealers keep very few parts in stock so as not tie up their money. Maybe your parts got thrown into an order that was shipping from the warehouse that same day. Hey sometimes you get lucky ;)
 
I'll be installing my Penske and Akra tomorrow, as I've had the bike on the dyno for a power run whilst stock standard... It put out 137hp at the rear wheel today... so we now will have a base line to see the increases when tuned...
 
First step: Return all fork settings to original specs.

Pre-load = 3.5 rings showing
Rebound (Right fork) = 15 clicks counter-clockwise
Compression (left) = 5 clicks counter-clockwise

Reference points:
OEM spring free-length = 9.59" (minimum 9.39")
Fork leg oil level = 3.58" (91mm)
Rod nut = 12mm of thread showing above nut.
 
Cobalt said:
Tony, you won't regret it. The difference is indescribable. You really don't know just how much the rear OEM shock sucks until you've ridden a better built shock. I've joined the "Happy Arse Club" and love it.
...
Click to expand...

Well currently working on a deal for a used Penske 8983 ;) Might be joining the Penske team very soon :)
 
With my Partshark order, I should be able to get underway with the fork rebuild soon. Undecided if I want to do this on the weekend or do it on the week nights and not commute for a few days until I've finished. My first USD fork build so I want to be slow, precise and deliberate plus document and photograph it for the DIY here.

Glad to see more of you all going out hunting Penkse! (Or any better rear shock) The ride difference is incredible. I knew it would be good, I didn't expect an almost totally new experience. Awesome guys!!! :Rockon:
 
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