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Enduro Suspension Tuning & maintenance of Enduro forks, shocks, etc


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Old 11-01-2017, 12:33 PM
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ssaulnier ssaulnier is offline
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Default 2007 EC300- Set Up and Upgrade Questions

I just picked up a 2007 EC300 a couple weeks ago. It is is decent shape, but needs some love and setup (plastics and tires too). After rejetting the carb and dumping the nasty old gas and tranny oil I was able to run a gallon of gas through it on South Texas single track and fire roads. It was fun.

I have not serviced the forks or shock yet, but I set the clickers according to info in the suspension forum sticky. They are not leaking and work fairly well for my 200 lbs undressed weight, but I suspect I should inspect/clean/service them with fresh ATF in the forks (130mm air space) and oil in the shock.

I noticed that the forks did not smack my palms and make them sore like the WP forks on my KTMs, so they must be a bit more compliant. But I also noticed a bit more of a wallowing sensation over braking bumps. And lofting the front wheel over a couple downed trees gave me a bit of a jolt as the front wheel hit the tree (was not as cushy as I would have liked). I still had about 2 inches of fork travel unused according to the dust lines.

I like to service my own suspension, and can swap shims but do not have the time or talent or inclination to spend time time and time again revalving and modifying the suspension. Should I send this Marzocchi suspension out to WER or LTR or other shop and have it revalved or should I just refresh the oil and replace wear parts or swap out the forks and/or shock?

I have a pair of 2006 Showa CRF250 forks that I can transplant to this bike although it would be less work and more riding time to just get the Marzocchis revalved, if they will work for me.

I also noticed that the HS Compression knob of the Shock was very difficult to turn and the the compression clickers on the bottom of the forks were a bit gritty feeling. What gives here?

Any advise is appreciated.

As a long time KTM Talk person, this Gasgas site is really nice to navigate and you guys are really cool. I am looking forward to getting my new to me Gasser all tuned up and burning up some Super Techniplate castor oil!


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Old 11-01-2017, 01:33 PM
Jacob 'Berg Jacob 'Berg is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ssaulnier View Post
I like to service my own suspension, and can swap shims but do not have the time or talent or inclination to spend time time and time again revalving and modifying the suspension. Should I send this Marzocchi suspension out to WER or LTR or other shop and have it revalved or should I just refresh the oil and replace wear parts or swap out the forks and/or shock?
I would service both the shock and forks, including fresh oil, and set the sag before sending for a re-valve so that you have a baseline to work from. You will then be able to provide the tuner with information regarding where the valving needs improvement. The zoke 45's can be improved by tuning, and valving so that they flow more oil, but they are going to have some limitations when compared to some of the closed cartridge forks (showa, KYB, Zoke 48's). Just my opinion.
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Old 11-01-2017, 02:35 PM
Motorman_55792 Motorman_55792 is offline
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I recently picked up a similar 250 and am going to be servicing the suspension myself as well. The forks were recently done and seem to work well, with them being what I would call plush. The rear shock was very harsh, but to be fair I just set the sag and rode only noticing the rebound was screwed tight after I got back. I think it was packing up and making it harsh.

What rear shock does yours have? Mine is Ohlins with single compression adjuster - no separate high and low speed compression adjusters.
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Old 11-01-2017, 03:54 PM
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My shock is not the Ohlins. I think its a Sachs.

I think the linkage is in good shape because the static sag changes very little when doing the push down versus pull up test on the rear end. I still need to open it up, clean, inspect and grease it though to really know.

I am guessing that the oil in my folks and shock are pretty dirty. I don't see any suspension company stickers on either one so they may have never been opened up for all I know.

A fork oil change should be pretty easy.

How difficult is the rear shock to service versus Showa and WP stuff? Looks like there is a piston in the shock versus a bladder.

I measured the rear rider sag at about 111 mm with no gear on, but don't recall the front sag offhand (60 mm rings a bell). So maybe the springs are in the ballpark.
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Old 11-02-2017, 09:37 AM
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My fork static sag is 38mm with 63mm rider sag.
Shock is 38mm static sag and 111mm rider sag.

My Sachs shock LS Comp was screwed all out.
I set the clickers according to the Sticky I found on in this forum.
First I set the shock HS Comp to 1.5 turns out from closed. For reference there are a total of 4 turns of adjustment.
Then I set the LS Comp screw to 12 clicks out (24 clicks total).
I set the Rebound to 15 clicks out (42 clicks total).

On the 45mm Marzocchi Shiver forks I set the Compression to 16 clicks out and rebound to 12 clicks out.

Adjusting the clickers showed me that they all work although some of the clickers make a bit of grinding noise and the shock HS Comp dial is very stiff and hard to turn.

I need to change the oil, clean and inspect the forks and shock before I ride it again to assess the suspension performance.

Depending on what I see inside I might build a tapered midvalve stack in the forks.
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Old 11-02-2017, 12:22 PM
Jacob 'Berg Jacob 'Berg is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ssaulnier View Post
My fork static sag is 38mm with 63mm rider sag.
Shock is 38mm static sag and 111mm rider sag.

My Sachs shock LS Comp was screwed all out.
I set the clickers according to the Sticky I found on in this forum.
First I set the shock HS Comp to 1.5 turns out from closed. For reference there are a total of 4 turns of adjustment.
Then I set the LS Comp screw to 12 clicks out (24 clicks total).
I set the Rebound to 15 clicks out (42 clicks total).

On the 45mm Marzocchi Shiver forks I set the Compression to 16 clicks out and rebound to 12 clicks out.

Adjusting the clickers showed me that they all work although some of the clickers make a bit of grinding noise and the shock HS Comp dial is very stiff and hard to turn.

I need to change the oil, clean and inspect the forks and shock before I ride it again to assess the suspension performance.

Depending on what I see inside I might build a tapered midvalve stack in the forks.
Some people have had success with replacing the base valve piston, as the stock unit does not flow enough oil and is too restrictive. I believe a company named Teknic offers a replacement.
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Old 11-03-2017, 07:48 AM
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ssaulnier ssaulnier is offline
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Thanks for that tip Jacob!
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Old 11-04-2017, 01:43 AM
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Spent all day on my 07. Rode my mate's new Husky500. It's a monster. But got back on my 07. Bliss. Much less top heavy and close throttle 2 stroke free wheel. Then open. Bwaaaap.

Yeah.

This is me.
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Old 11-04-2017, 09:29 AM
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Glad you had a good ride that reinforced your love for your Gasser!

This morning I installed a new M59 front tire to replace the 9 year long old Dunlop.

Then pulled off the right side fork and took it apart. Only had about 400 ml oil left. The rest must have leaked out the broken oring on the base valve.

Valving is not stock, but looks pretty light just counting shims.

Needs bushings and seals. Where to buy? Is there a kit or just buy the piece parts?

I am in San Antonio Texas.

I will post more later. Going to the zoo now!
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Old 12-06-2017, 07:18 PM
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Well I replaced the oil and shuffled the shims in both the forks and shock. I increased the rebound damping in both forks and shock, built a midvalve in the forks and removed the bleed shims. The bike seems balanced, handles, corners and rides nicely.

The suspension, linkage and wheel bearings and seals were all in good condition. Since this is a Texas Motorcycle it has not seen much water and mud.

The suspension feels better now with new oil and shim settings and the bike handles nicely. I have a ordered a gutz racing tall soft seat foam and new cover to soften up the hard stock seat.

I am leaning out the jetting and the engine is getting more responsive. I?ll post more details when I get back home. Am traveling right now.

I am having a bit of a problem occasionally getting my size 13 MX boot stuck under the shifter when I upshift from 1st to 2nd gear. I installed some slightly lower footpegs and they help some but I still get my foot stuck under the shifter every once in a while.

I need to install a new chain and rear tire. Might also try a set of flexx handlebars like I have on my two ktm 200s.

This is EC300 is a solid and fun bike. I am enjoying it so far!
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