Trying to find out what standard is on a 14 (gulp, really?) yr old bike is not easy. Haynes is no good as it does not cover this bike as the suspension changed in 2k. Owners manual has some settings, but not all. Google is full of people's opinions on what they ride at. Still, I'm learning lots.
I think the owners manual has front and rear ride height numbers, but been a few years since I had one of these
I don't want to confuse matters but twins are quite sensitive to chain tension and low running. A slack chain at 1500rpm could be affecting the whole chassis. A common mod is to change sprockets to increase the revs for same road speed which effectively smooths everything out.
I'm missing 3 settings from standard: Rear ride height adjuster eye/eye length. TFM states " not exceed 261mm" so unless I find anything more accurate I will measure what it is at minimum and stick it in the middle. Rear outer pre-load. Correct me if I am wrong but this is set when I do the rear sag. But stock would be nce to know. Front ride height. How many rings showing/yoke height? Not sure where to measure these as the front yoke is not flat. Any help grateful received.
to begin with the bike needs to be in a neutral plane i would suggest 2 or 3 rings showing on the inside of the top yoke at the front as a start std seat height is 790mm measured from the front of the seat to the floor. You could then set the seat to this with the ride height adjuster if you haven't got the tool. standard pre load is just a factory guess based on a very lower than average weight person. its more about personalising it to you...with what spring you have how much you weigh and so on I cant tell you how much easier it would be with a rear ride height tool both for ride height and then measuring you static sag and rider sag. Yes you can do it off of a bit of tape on the seat but its just a bit more accurate and consistent cos then i can tell you set the rear to 230mm and that would sort all your problems as its a datum measurement and standard language across every one......
I found this if it's any help, it may have possibly been posted on here before. I have it as a PDF file if anyone wants it emailed to them.
This is a good read and very useful, worth comparing to yours. 996/748 Suspension Setup And of course, this one from Tech wizard Shasamm is also a good reference Suspension Springs and Sag- Ducati Up North And this one should give you plenty of reading. section8superbike :Tech:
I believe the factory manual and Haynes define the fork height in the section for installing the forks. It's measured from the bottom of the fork (unloaded) to the bottom yoke (I may be getting mixed up with the 749 manual, but it's deffo in there somewhere).
Saw that but would rather not spend another £70 on something I will probably hardly ever use. I have spent far to many £70s recently on bits/tools etc.
Hi Chris, read all of them already. The first one is the PB settings I got from the MCN guy and it has the wrong rear shock. Shazzam says put it back to standard without giving the figures and the last is somebody else's settings which I have seen criticized elsewhere. Thank anyway.
I will 're read Haynes tonight. The Ducati manual just refers to fitting them when unboxed from crate.
