YET ANOTHER (!) suspension question... can anyone advise

[Jupiter]

All the regulars are probably fed up with this but I'll ask anyway, as - like many - I find bike suspension a real deep and mysterious black art.....

I'm very pleased with my 'Bird - but I keep reading about the spacer thingy and wonder if this really does improve anything.... ??

And, to the main reason for this post... - the rear of my bike frequently clunks when I go over bumps/ manhole covers.

I could be imagining it - but it seems better (not clunky) when I've done a few miles - and I wondered if maybe the shock heating up is something to do with it...????

The last thing I want to do is start meddling with things I don't completely understand and bugger everything up completely...!

I'm about 15 stone ( ) and the bike is low miles (4000 almost).

Tbh - as I've previously posted, the Blackbird is a bloody incredible bike, but I'd expected the suspension to be a bit plusher. I test rode a Pan recently (which I know is a totally different animal) - and the suspension on that just soaked everything up with no jarring or anything....

I know there can't be too much wrong because I've been throwing it around a bit lately and it feels pretty good in corners. (Even with oe BT57 tyres on).

Are there any improvements I can make without buying a very expensive fully adjustable super shock ?? :dunno:

Thanx for any useful advice. :beer:

 

[R2B2]

The Blackbird is a Sports Tourer so the suspension is always gonna be a bit firmer and more sports biased than the Pan.

There is a very basic hard - soft adjuster on the bottom of the shock. Look under the bike on the left side directly into the side of the shocker at the bottom. You will see a little screwdriver slot (you need a long screwdriver). Fully anticlockwise is soft, fully clockwise is hard. It only move less than half a turn so a little bit at a time is the way to go. Just experiment to find your ideal setting. You cant really mess it up... just make a note of where it was when you started! (If you look in the bikes little handbook it shows you a sketch of what the adjuster looks like).

If you are getting a clunking sound at the rear I would say something is worn there somewhere - you should get that checked out.

Remember - 1200Pete is our very own suspenders guru He's yer man. Or Jaws of course.

 

[Jaws]

It sounds to me as though the spring sag has been set a little hard ( which is good ) and the rebound damping has been back off ( which is bad and is proly what the clunk is

Obviously this is a complete stab in the dark though...

Get the bike up on the centre stand and sort of lean over the back seat so you can grab the back wheel, one hand on each side.
Give it a tug upwards and see if it clunks..
If nothing heard then chances are good that nothing is worn out and it is as I suspect..
Set the rebound damping to somewhere around this point and give it a try..
Let us know if it has made any difference
( oh, before I forget.. yes ! The spacer makes one hellova difference !)

 

[Jupiter]

Thanx for the help chaps !

I'll try what you've recommended this weekend. If I've understood correctly, the adjustment is quite limited anyway - which means I can't really do anything too bad. (Good thing... )

Thanx, I'll report the outcome.

I suppose I'd better get me spacer off Jaws too......

:beer:

 

[Jupiter]

Well I eventually did have a little twiddle with this rebound setting - and guess what (?????) - .... IT REALLY WORKS !!

The annoying clunk has almost disappeared, I think it just needs a fraction of more turn towards firm to eradicate it completely.

Thanks chaps !

:beer:

 

[TheStig]

Not to be a scare monger, but when mine clunked, I was a few hundred kms from a rear shock change............. just keep an eye out for oil seepage from the shock!!

 

[Wolfie]

took my spacer out, did not notice much difference, except my knees were bent when i had my feet on the floor.