THE SCIENCE OF SUSPENSION
The Suspension on every motorcycle plays a very important and key role in ensuring the stability and optimum control of your motorcycle. Suspension influences the levels of traction and feedback you get whilst riding your motorcycle in high and low speed situations.
Today’s technology offers many advances in suspension, but the basic principles still apply.
The basic function of all motorcycles suspension is:
- To maintain stability by absorbing impacts and damping the effects of riding across uneven surfaces.
- To help maintain tyre traction when traveling at high or low speed across uneven surfaces.
FRONT FORK SPRINGS UPGRADE
The springs of any suspension unit are designed to support the mass of the motorcycle and the rider whilst absorbing the impacts of riding across uneven surfaces.
If the spring rate for a given mass being supported is too great, every time the motorcycle rides over a bump, the centre of gravity of the motorcycle will inevitably be forced to move in the opposing direction to the impact.
On the other hand, If the spring rate is too soft to support the mass, then of course centre of gravity will, through its own weight and inertia move down towards the bump or jump, which can lead to “bottoming out”
When the centre of gravity of your motorcycle moves excessively in either direction due to the incorrect spring rate selection for the mass of the motorcycle and rider being supported, then the more unstable the bike will be.
By selecting the correct spring rate for the mass of the bike and rider that needs supporting, the less centre of gravity will be forced to move, making the bike more stable over uneven surfaces.
SHOP FOR SPRINGS
THE FUNCTION OF OIL AND VALVES IN SUSPENSION
If your motorcycle suspension only consisted of springs, with no form of damping, then it would be like riding a pogo stick and very difficult to control as a spring with no damping tries to continue oscillating. This will cause the C of G of your motorcycle to move excessively making your bike more unstable. It is for this reason, suspension units use oil and valves through which oil is forced during the compression and rebound cycles of the suspension unit.
The damping of the suspension is controlled through the careful selection of valving, shim stacks and selected oil viscosities used inside the suspension unit.
When a motorcycle is manufactured, lets say its for general road use, it is usually fitted with a basic suspension package front and rear. They generally consist of a progressive rate spring (this means the rate of the spring increases for each mm it is compressed) and a basic internal valve and shim stack. Progressive rate springs are designed to help support a wide range of different masses. They provide sufficient performance and handling to allow the motorcycle to be ridden safely, however, they do not always provide you with the best handling and feedback that can be achieved !!
At TW Suspension Tech we take pride in providing you with high performance suspension products and services tailored to suit your personal requirements, your bike, its application and your budget. We take the time to listen, understand your needs and provide you with the right solution to give you the best options at a cost to suit your personal budget.
