[twjay]

I've been digging around the web trying to find some info on adding more preload to the stock TW front springs.

I'm over 6' and right around 250#. I want to firm the ride up front and rear, but the spring manufacturers I'm used to using don't

make springs for the TW (Race Tech, Factory Connection, Eibach).



Has anyone made longer spacers for their forks, and did it help the ride?



Has anyone found a rear shock that will bolt up to the TW that is adjustable (preload, compression, rebound, etc)? I've seen a couple of threads about

using a Blaster shock, but that looks more inolved that I want to get, and it raises the back end more than I'd like. I don't mind some increaed

ride height at all, just not that much.



I had a set of Enzo sub tanks on my last bike that I'm kicking myself for not keeping...



Has anyone made a set of sub tanks? The one thing that I'm stuck on is the valve that regulates the air flow to the tank.

 

[lizrdbrth]

Gizmow has subs.



Spacers iz spacers. Trial and error should get you where you need to go.

 

[Gerry]

HyperPro has a better progressive spring for the TW. A sub tank for the bike was easy to make (my opinion). Some folks have installed schrader valves in fork caps (I found this easy as well). My goal was more soft travel for my slow offroading. I was very happy with the mods, as for me, they were a vast improvement in comfort offroad. I sold my setup to another forum member and installed a TRI-Z fork... Gerry

 

[RodneyReed]

I've been digging around the web trying to find some info on adding more preload to the stock TW front springs.

I'm over 6' and right around 250#. I want to firm the ride up front and rear, but the spring manufacturers I'm used to using don't

make springs for the TW (Race Tech, Factory Connection, Eibach).



Has anyone made longer spacers for their forks, and did it help the ride?

I'm the same height and weight as you, and I cut my spring and added more spacer. It's still too soft, but it did help. Just remove the stock spacer and spring. Cut two coils off of the spring. Using the stock end of the spring as a guide, heat up and bend the newly cut coil flat, and grind it smooth. Replace the stock spacer with a 210 mm length of 3/4" pvc pipe. Based on my calculations, it is likely possible to cut a third coil off, and make a correspondingly longer spacer, but it would be real close to a coil bind situation. With two coils, there is a little room for error and I've tested it and it does not coil bind. I also went with 30w oil in the fork to stiffen up the damping.

 

[twjay]

Thanks for the replies.



I'll check into the HyperPro springs. I don't have to tools to cut mine at the moment, or I'd try that first.



Gizmow, what kind of valve did you use in your sub tanks?

 

[twjay]

I just noticed mrgizmo's sticky on rear shocks. Don't know how I missed that.

It more than addresses my question on the rear suspension.



Thanks again for putting up that sticky.

 

[Gerry]

Since my offroading is sedate, I gave more thought to simply having more air to compress than trying to control the transfer rate. Personally I do not think our bikes would (could) be ridden in such a way as to really warrant worrying about valveing. YOu either want more soft, or more hard. Many of us older guys want it more (

). Guess it depend on what you are trying to do....... Gerry

Taller spring is the HyperPro progressive.

 

[joelsplace]

I've done quite a bit of fork tuning on old bikes and there are a few rules to follow if you want the best action. 1) Don't use extra air pressure to stiffen forks. It makes them harsh and changes a lot with temperature. I know it's tempting because it's easy.

2) Don't use a lot of preload on the springs. This tends to also make the forks harsh. It's far better to find stiffer springs or cut yours and use spacers. 10-15mm is generally the most preload you want. I know this isn't always possible.

3) If your action is ok but the fork bottoms too easily add more oil. The increased oil level will use the airspace in the fork like a very progressive spring. On a fork with as little travel as a TW I would start at 3.5" from the top with the spring out and the fork collapsed. You don't want to add too much oil or it will limit the travel.

4) If your action isn't damped enough "pogo action" then go up to a thicker oil and use the level to control bottoming.



I haven't messed with my TW forks yet but I plan to in the next week. I have a YZF600 shock on the way to fix my pogo stick rear shock. I'm sure once that is fixed I will have to do something with the forks.

 

[50short]

I'm the same height and weight as you, and I cut my spring and added more spacer. It's still too soft, but it did help. Just remove the stock spacer and spring. Cut two coils off of the spring. Using the stock end of the spring as a guide, heat up and bend the newly cut coil flat, and grind it smooth. Replace the stock spacer with a 210 mm length of 3/4" pvc pipe. Based on my calculations, it is likely possible to cut a third coil off, and make a correspondingly longer spacer, but it would be real close to a coil bind situation. With two coils, there is a little room for error and I've tested it and it does not coil bind. I also went with 30w oil in the fork to stiffen up the damping.

Out of curiosity, why did you cut two coils off the spring?? Doesn't that negate any preloading effect from an extended spacer?

 

[kdick91]

If you're looking for a less involved solution for the rear, ProCycle sells two stiffer springs for the TW. The Blaster shock isn't that involved from what I read though and Eibach "makes" a spring for them. You just use one of their universal springs with the height, diameter, and rate that you want. I haven't looked up TW size, but I'm sure with some sleuthing, you could stuff an Eibach universal in with no problems.

 

[lizrdbrth]

Out of curiosity, why did you cut two coils off the spring?? Doesn't that negate any preloading effect from an extended spacer?

Shortening a spring stiffens it. As he has pointed out you can't shorten ours by very much before you risk coil bind. You'll need to work up new spacer lengths to suit the shortened, stiffer springs. But spacer length becomes a bit more critical. Too long and you'll bind the spring.

 

[rbm]

I'd bet, if you cut the springs and make the spacer longer, you'll be reducing the travel by an inch or two. Not worth it IMHO. I added the springs that ProCycle sells and they transformed the forks. A little stiffer but NO bottoming, much more usable over rough terrain at speed now