Progressive Shock - Sag Setting

fjmartin · 12-21-2016, 11:10 PM

Today I got my Progressive Suspension 465 installed...and my dogbones lubed up. Now, I want to make sure I have it setup optimally by seeing the preload and rebound. My front and rear rebound seem fine. Comes back fairly quickly but doesn't buck or bounce. But the rear preload is giving me some issues and making me wonder if I'm doing things correctly. So this is on an RX3, I'm a fairly light guy at 120 pounds and then add my riding gear and having all the normal stuff on the bike I first put it up on the center stand and then measured from the center of the axle to a point I marked up on the luggage frame. It measured 21 13/16". My understanding is our bike has 5.7" of rear travel. So setting a 30% race sag means that the measurement with me on the loaded bike should be 20 1/8". I mounted the bike and bounced it a bit to settle the suspension and had my wife measure the same points. It was closer to 19". So turned the preload spring down a couple of turns and was able to get it to 19 1/2". But there was also a note in the supplemental manual for the CSC version that said: Caution: The installed spring length must never be shorter than 8.13" or shock damage may occur. The spring length was shorter than that from the factory and I'm worried about continuing to tighten it. BTW the shock came with the light spring.

Any thoughts or suggestions? I plan on calling Gerry tomorrow but wanted some of your in the field recommendations also.

Thanks much!

jbfla · 12-21-2016, 11:50 PM

Hi Joe,

Here's Spud's tutorial:

http://www.chinariders.net/showthrea...Shock+absorber

jb

pete · 12-21-2016, 11:58 PM

heavyer spring required.... Did CSC not ask you for
your weight etc ? if theres one thing I have learnt
yer don't buy suspension componets from motor bike
shops..
But the sag setting you are trying for
are for a 100% off road.. with these setting
the bike will wollow though the corners...
if I was you I would set the sags somewhere
between dirt & road....more along the lines
of a motard set up......

yer never said what the static sag is...

..

pyoungbl · 12-22-2016, 09:33 AM

First, it's much more accurate to measure suspension setup in mm rather than in inches. You are looking for 1.7 in of sag....hard to keep track of that when you are forced to deal with fractions of an inch.

The caution you mention is probably due to the limited travel of the OEM shock. The Progressive Suspension likely has much more travel. I'd recommend riding the bike as it is now. See how it feels to you. If you are happy with the ride that's all that counts. Remember, that 30% figure is just a starting point.

Peter Y.

fjmartin · 12-22-2016, 04:29 PM

Pete, I requested the light spring which is now default on that shock since I weigh 120 pounds and others on this forum had mentioned it. I am setting the shock up for offroad riding right now as I do a lot of that. I'll stiffen it up come summer as I start moto camping and loading it up a bit more. The static sag of the bike is 20 9/16". That was with the hard luggage and gear in them. Just not me on the bike.

I usually do MM but since I setup a wooden yardstick to allow me to easily see the sag I ended up using inches. It wasn't much of a stretch to do the conversion of 1.7 to inches.

I spoke with Gerry at CSC this morning about the shock setup. Specifically I wanted to ask about the little add-on sheet that was included by the manufacture that spoke about not having the spring set shorter than 8.13" and that from the factory it came at about 7 1/2". He said that should not have been included for this shock and to ignore.

I took the bike out on some nice twisties and some bumpy fire road to test out the shock. I like it. It seems set well for both and doesn't buck around like the OEM one did offroad and doesn't wallow in the turn...felt confident railing around!

As always, thanks for your comments and pointers and have a great holiday!!!

pyoungbl · 12-22-2016, 08:47 PM

Interesting that the light shock spring is now the default. Thanks for that update. When I got mine they assured me that the existing spring was perfect...not so to me...I asked for something lighter. That appears to now be the standard. Funny how these things work out. Once you get the suspension dialed in the bike is much more fun...as you have shown. Enjoy.

Peter Y.

Dualsport Chic · 12-24-2016, 05:55 AM

Interesting indeed - as I was told the 450 shock was the right one for me by CSC at only 140 lbs - only later to come to find that it is far too stiff for my weight. Feels like I am going down the road without suspension much of the time if the terrain is bumpy. I may opt for the lighter spring as well - just have to see how folks like it once they've put some miles on it. I tried calling Progressive but they did not seem to know that the 450 spring CSC sold me existed and never called me back after they were going to 'research it'. Will put more time and effort into it come Spring once the snow melts.

rjmorel · 12-24-2016, 01:12 PM

DSchic, I had the 450 spring and went to the lighter one also . More better and I'm around 185lbs geared up. rj

jbfla · 12-24-2016, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rjmorel

DSchic, I had the 450 spring and went to the lighter one also . More better and I'm around 185lbs geared up. rj

Same here, rj.

450 spring too stiff for my geared up 190#.

I'll have to live with it...not spending any more $ on this "inexpensive" bike.

jb

Dualsport Chic · 12-25-2016, 07:07 AM

RJ - can you shoot me the information on the new spring you acquired - I need to find it and buy it to save my fragile back.

2LZ · 12-28-2016, 10:10 AM

On a different note, I'll be working with the stock shock when I'm putting the lowering link on the new RX3 for Mrs. 2LZ. I was able to set up the stocker pretty well with my white one so fingers crossed I can do the same between preload and dampening with the new bike.
I'll be taking off the bags and rear bars so hopefully I can set tit up light enough for that and her.......

pyoungbl · 12-28-2016, 10:18 AM

DS, the spring is a Progressive one...and now CSC has them in stock. As I recall, mine cost about $70. I think the softer spring won't change the seat height since the shock itself can only extend to the limit of its travel, no matter what spring is installed. I doubt you can get any credit for trading in your 'old' spring. Of course you can talk to Ryan or Steve at CSC and see what kind of help they offer. Swapping the spring out is a pretty easy task. You will have to take the shock off the bike (a good time to grease all those bearings).

Peter Y.

rjmorel · 12-28-2016, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pyoungbl

DS, the spring is a Progressive one...and now CSC has them in stock. As I recall, mine cost about $70. I think the softer spring won't change the seat height since the shock itself can only extend to the limit of its travel, no matter what spring is installed. I doubt you can get any credit for trading in your 'old' spring. Of course you can talk to Ryan or Steve at CSC and see what kind of help they offer. Swapping the spring out is a pretty easy task. You will have to take the shock off the bike (a good time to grease all those bearings).

Peter Y.

DS Chicky, same as above for me, I went through CSC $80, Progressive is pretty mum about the shock and told me to deal with CSC. Ryan no longer works at CSC , got a job teaching where Joe teaches I believe.
My inseam is about 28" so you shouldn't see any difference. Don't have bike in front of me as its put away for winter. The spring is longer then the one that came on the shock which makes it work better through out the travel it seems. rj

rtking · 12-29-2016, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rjmorel

Ryan no longer works at CSC , got a job teaching where Joe teaches I believe.

Whaaaat?!? Bummer as I enjoyed working with Ryan. But if the change to teaching where Joe teaches is better for Ryan, I'm happy for him! He was an awesome guy to deal with.

But this does explain the used bike for sale at CSC. I was wondering who had that bike, especially with the KIPO exhaust. I am guessing it was the bike that Ryan was riding. Whoever buys that bike is going to get a well kitted and maintained bike.

Dualsport Chic · 12-29-2016, 06:22 AM

Thank you gentlemen for the good information. Spring is on the way from CSC. Looking forward to getting it on the bike and testing it out - hoping it will provide the fix I seek.

Once again - great customer service from Steve and Gerry. Nice to talk with Matt as well. Best wishes to Ryan in his new career.

12-21-2016, 11:10 PM	#1
fjmartin Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Redmond, WA. Posts: 534	Progressive Shock - Sag Setting Today I got my Progressive Suspension 465 installed...and my dogbones lubed up. Now, I want to make sure I have it setup optimally by seeing the preload and rebound. My front and rear rebound seem fine. Comes back fairly quickly but doesn't buck or bounce. But the rear preload is giving me some issues and making me wonder if I'm doing things correctly. So this is on an RX3, I'm a fairly light guy at 120 pounds and then add my riding gear and having all the normal stuff on the bike I first put it up on the center stand and then measured from the center of the axle to a point I marked up on the luggage frame. It measured 21 13/16". My understanding is our bike has 5.7" of rear travel. So setting a 30% race sag means that the measurement with me on the loaded bike should be 20 1/8". I mounted the bike and bounced it a bit to settle the suspension and had my wife measure the same points. It was closer to 19". So turned the preload spring down a couple of turns and was able to get it to 19 1/2". But there was also a note in the supplemental manual for the CSC version that said: Caution: The installed spring length must never be shorter than 8.13" or shock damage may occur. The spring length was shorter than that from the factory and I'm worried about continuing to tighten it. BTW the shock came with the light spring. Any thoughts or suggestions? I plan on calling Gerry tomorrow but wanted some of your in the field recommendations also. Thanks much! __________________ 2017 BMW F800GS Adventure
	1

12-21-2016, 11:50 PM	#2
jbfla Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: FL, GA, NC Posts: 771	Hi Joe, Here's Spud's tutorial: http://www.chinariders.net/showthrea...Shock+absorber jb __________________ 2016 Honda CB500F......2017 Triumph Street Twin 2014 XT 250........
	1

12-21-2016, 11:58 PM	#3
pete Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: ChCh , NZ Posts: 2,262	heavyer spring required.... Did CSC not ask you for your weight etc ? if theres one thing I have learnt yer don't buy suspension componets from motor bike shops.. But the sag setting you are trying for are for a 100% off road.. with these setting the bike will wollow though the corners... if I was you I would set the sags somewhere between dirt & road....more along the lines of a motard set up...... yer never said what the static sag is... .. __________________ 09 XT660R ... 06 TTR250 ... 80 Montesa H6 125 Enduro... 77 Montesa Cota 348 MRR "Malcom Rathnell Replica"... Current resto projects.. 81 Honda CT110... 80 Kawasaki KL250A1... 11 Husaburg TE125 enduro... "sold" along with another 31... Lifan 125 Pitbike.. "stolen" ... KIWI BIKER FORUM...... http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/content.php All the best offroad rides in NZ... http://www.remotemoto.com/ E-mail... xtpete1@gmail.com
	0

12-22-2016, 04:29 PM	#5
fjmartin Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Redmond, WA. Posts: 534	Pete, I requested the light spring which is now default on that shock since I weigh 120 pounds and others on this forum had mentioned it. I am setting the shock up for offroad riding right now as I do a lot of that. I'll stiffen it up come summer as I start moto camping and loading it up a bit more. The static sag of the bike is 20 9/16". That was with the hard luggage and gear in them. Just not me on the bike. I usually do MM but since I setup a wooden yardstick to allow me to easily see the sag I ended up using inches. It wasn't much of a stretch to do the conversion of 1.7 to inches. I spoke with Gerry at CSC this morning about the shock setup. Specifically I wanted to ask about the little add-on sheet that was included by the manufacture that spoke about not having the spring set shorter than 8.13" and that from the factory it came at about 7 1/2". He said that should not have been included for this shock and to ignore. I took the bike out on some nice twisties and some bumpy fire road to test out the shock. I like it. It seems set well for both and doesn't buck around like the OEM one did offroad and doesn't wallow in the turn...felt confident railing around! As always, thanks for your comments and pointers and have a great holiday!!! __________________ 2017 BMW F800GS Adventure
	3

12-24-2016, 05:55 AM	#7
Dualsport Chic Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Western, CT Posts: 168	Interesting indeed - as I was told the 450 shock was the right one for me by CSC at only 140 lbs - only later to come to find that it is far too stiff for my weight. Feels like I am going down the road without suspension much of the time if the terrain is bumpy. I may opt for the lighter spring as well - just have to see how folks like it once they've put some miles on it. I tried calling Progressive but they did not seem to know that the 450 spring CSC sold me existed and never called me back after they were going to 'research it'. Will put more time and effort into it come Spring once the snow melts. __________________ Carpe Diem IBA#65836 2005 BMW F650gs 2008 Yamaha XT250 2013 Yamaha XT250 2009 Suzuki Gladius
	1

12-22-2016, 09:33 AM	#4
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	First, it's much more accurate to measure suspension setup in mm rather than in inches. You are looking for 1.7 in of sag....hard to keep track of that when you are forced to deal with fractions of an inch. The caution you mention is probably due to the limited travel of the OEM shock. The Progressive Suspension likely has much more travel. I'd recommend riding the bike as it is now. See how it feels to you. If you are happy with the ride that's all that counts. Remember, that 30% figure is just a starting point. Peter Y.
	2

12-22-2016, 08:47 PM	#6
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	Interesting that the light shock spring is now the default. Thanks for that update. When I got mine they assured me that the existing spring was perfect...not so to me...I asked for something lighter. That appears to now be the standard. Funny how these things work out. Once you get the suspension dialed in the bike is much more fun...as you have shown. Enjoy. Peter Y.
	1

12-24-2016, 01:12 PM	#8
rjmorel Join Date: May 2007 Location: Warshington Posts: 928	DSchic, I had the 450 spring and went to the lighter one also . More better and I'm around 185lbs geared up. rj __________________ Live Zong, and Prosper
	1

12-25-2016, 07:07 AM	#10
Dualsport Chic Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Western, CT Posts: 168	RJ - can you shoot me the information on the new spring you acquired - I need to find it and buy it to save my fragile back. __________________ Carpe Diem IBA#65836 2005 BMW F650gs 2008 Yamaha XT250 2013 Yamaha XT250 2009 Suzuki Gladius
	0

12-28-2016, 10:10 AM	#11
2LZ Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Volcano, Ca Posts: 7,105	On a different note, I'll be working with the stock shock when I'm putting the lowering link on the new RX3 for Mrs. 2LZ. I was able to set up the stocker pretty well with my white one so fingers crossed I can do the same between preload and dampening with the new bike. I'll be taking off the bags and rear bars so hopefully I can set tit up light enough for that and her....... __________________ "Light a fire for a man, and you heat him for a day. Light a man on fire, and you heat him for the rest of his life." 2007 Suzuki DRZ400S (SM convert) 2009 Q Link XP 200 1967 BSA B25 250cc Starfire 2022 Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 2023 Royal Enfield Scram 411 1948 Royal Enfield Model G 350
	0

12-28-2016, 10:18 AM	#12
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	DS, the spring is a Progressive one...and now CSC has them in stock. As I recall, mine cost about $70. I think the softer spring won't change the seat height since the shock itself can only extend to the limit of its travel, no matter what spring is installed. I doubt you can get any credit for trading in your 'old' spring. Of course you can talk to Ryan or Steve at CSC and see what kind of help they offer. Swapping the spring out is a pretty easy task. You will have to take the shock off the bike (a good time to grease all those bearings). Peter Y.
	1

12-29-2016, 06:22 AM	#15
Dualsport Chic Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Western, CT Posts: 168	Thank you gentlemen for the good information. Spring is on the way from CSC. Looking forward to getting it on the bike and testing it out - hoping it will provide the fix I seek. Once again - great customer service from Steve and Gerry. Nice to talk with Matt as well. Best wishes to Ryan in his new career. __________________ Carpe Diem IBA#65836 2005 BMW F650gs 2008 Yamaha XT250 2013 Yamaha XT250 2009 Suzuki Gladius
	1