How have you set up your long travel suspension for maximum top end?

bluemonster1

bluemonster1

LIFE MEMBER ONLY ONCE!!!
Joined
Dec 30, 2005
Messages
12,690
Age
68
Location
Howden ,Manitoba,Canada
I installed a long travel skid in my 02 SRX and was wandering what is the best way to set it up.Rides better now in the bumps and my back is thankful.Was told I would loose my top end speed ,but was wandering how to set it up to gain some back,may end up with back pain again.
I did the front shock bracket flip and switch sides to gain a little front end height.My center shock pre-load is basically at "0".Limiters are on the loose side,maybe 3/4" tip of threads to plate.Have Max. Perf. Transfer Rods installed and has 4 lines showing above the adjuster nut.
When sled sits on the ground or floor,the limiters straps go loose.So do I pull the straps up snug in this position.Or with my weight on it will sitting on the floor.I should adjust straps snug,otherwise when riding and front goes up over something,the front of skid will drop..right.Trick is to have the rails tracking level to the axle cogs,a better approach angle so to speak.Doing this then I would want back end of skid to sit lower via adjusting the rods for maximum transfer which will make skid couple back and down more.Could also adjust the preload on the front end to get front up even more,but maybe have enough there since I flipped the shock brackets.
Just want to know if my thinking is right here.I pretty much have had my heelclickers dialed in and runing wot at 8500,but only hitting speeds of 105 mph.Is there hope for any more mph with skid adjusted differently.Heard some guys on here say they bury the needle on there SRX with a long travel,so what am I doing wrong or not quite correct.My PV's are clean and adjusted also,have new belt installed.Sled has oversized idlers and all new bearings thru out.Got to get more out of the beast...it's an SRX ,but not fast enough for me yet.Was getting 110 at least on speedo last year with studded track ,8DN's and a half damaged stock skid at that time.
If you think you can help me here,I would appreicate it very much.THANKS!!!
 

I have been told to test to see if my clutches are shifting fully,put felt marker lines on the primary and run it top end.I have done this before and the marks left are about 1/4 from the top of the sheave.This should be normal..right.There is no way belt will climb to the very top edge of the sheave.Just wandering about this to.Dis clutch alinment and center to center before the season started.Have Sled Pro Tool for that and it all lines up.
 
I have been away rideing all weekend did you ever swap in your 8dns.That sounds right on the belt hieght.And yes the limiters should be tight with you off the sled,than when you sit on it there will be some slack.
 
Last edited:
haven`t been out all weekend.It was to cold and I have a sore throat and head cold to boot.So I didn`t do any testing this weekend at all.I feel safer staying inside my warm house...thankyou!!!!!!
 
Blue good question. Spent the last week at the cabin riding and, well, not working. I have my suspension set up per BTV recommendations and it rides a lot more comfortably but I lost some top end, but it was hard to tell because we had temps from 36f to 1f and snow from hardpacked to 4 inches of fresh lake effect. On the trails it was a little darty at times so I cranked my rods up 3 turns to decrease front pressure. I am also going to put some more preload back on the front shocks, it had more inside ski lift than I felt comfortable with. When I got back to the road in front of the cabin and pinned it the motor revved right up but my old track and worn studs wouldnt hook so the clutch would shift up too fast and then drop down to 8000 or so. I tightened limiters up some (they are loose as it sits there) and cranked up the rods. Ski's came up enough where turning the bars didnt change heading but hookup is still inconsistant. I think I might stiffen the rear shock a little and see what happens. One thing at a time. I need a new track! Like Stein said though, at 1 degree this morning it ran very well, with stock 2000 jetting. I didnt do many runs like that.
 
Last edited:
The higher the suspension the slower you go. At least that's what happened to me when I long travelled my sx. Lost at least 10 kliks on the speedo.

Get well and maybe we can tear up the river next weekend.
 
thanks bluewho for the info on the straps.I will adjust them when it gets warm enough to get sled into the garage and defrost it first.Will try and take it out for a run on Friday afternoon to see what happens and how my clutches react.Got 4.3 g in heel now and 7 g in tip with red spring .50:38 helix at 70 with new belt.I put one washer on each of the 3 bolts behind the secondary to get belt hieght up a bit,hope it don`t squeal on me.
Once I adjust the straps,wanna see how the track is sitting to the floor also.
 
i never knew u long traveled that thing. Thats where ur top end is gone. we used to put srx/sx 8" travel shocks in our long travel sx-r,s/rx-1 when racing cus it really performed a lot better.
 
hey stein that is a lot of lost speed 10 kms.Gonna be a nice weekend coming up weather wise,we should get together for a ride for sure.Got to make up for lost time here.They are predicting -2 C for Saturday,kinda sucks a bit,prefer around -10 to 15 C for riding...oh well.I`ll pull my sled in the heated garage Thursday evening and start to work on it.I am off work Friday,but have somewhere to go in the morning.Will have a chance to run the SRX for a couple of test runs in the afternoon then.Keep in touch..................Doug
 
Turk I still have my SRX shocks from the stock skid here.You are telling me I should switch shocks. What is the difference in travel between an SRX rear shock and SX rear shock.So basically my clutch setups are good,just need to work on suspension set up.
 
Last edited:
It is a good start but you might have other issues. tuff call unless you put in the stock clutching & see if there is a diff otherwise the whole excercise is a waste of time.
 
I have my spare clutch set up also with 8DN-20's and 4.5 in each hole.I will take the 51/43 helix from the SXR and use with the above setup and see what happens firstly.
 
Also when u tightened your limiter straps u loosened off your centre shock.....right????
 
I haven't tightened up the limiters yet,they are loose now.My center shock is now set up with 0 pre-load.When the sled is sitting on the garage floor,straps are way to loose.Only have them set at about 3/4" from tip of thread to the plate between the 2 nuts.
 
well that is why I why asking guys on here about my limiter strap adjustments,wanted to know where I was with them and how much was needed to tighten them up.When the sled is sitting on the floor ,I will pull the straps up snug then.Will get this done first and will take it for a run and see what gives.Will leave c shock at 0 preload also so that they will still have some compression when I pull straps up.Don't want that shock putting on mega pressure against the w-arm.still want it to work for me.Will also want to see if the back of the track will sit flat with the floor or not.
 
long traveled also

i was wondering the same thing since i long traveled i lost at least 5mph even though i put turks clutch kit at the same time!!!!i thought i would not loose anything then
 
Like I said earlier,still have my SRX shocks,could just swap them in again,but will run the sled a few more times with 8DN's and HC's and see if there is an increase with speed anywhere.Will pull up my limiter straps firstly.
 
Good god after reading all this I think with my long travel suspension on my 2001 srx and my 1.25 track..... I would be faster with my old 700xc polaris.....something to think about especially when the poo was easier to work on, started 1st pull, and rode better than my sled long-traveled.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


Back
Top