Shock Adjustment

[dg110270]

My 2011 RT sways left and right on straight line interstate driving. If I adjust the front shock stiffer will it mess up the alignment? I want to try this first instead of the expense of a stiffer sway bar.

[azprince]

That's a good question. I did the sway bar first and it settled the sideways rocking due to direction change. After I installed the shock adjusters, I found they calmed the nervous reaction of the front wheels when encountering bumpy roads. I do not regret the addition of both, but if I had done the shocks first,
I may not have added the sway bar. As to alignment, I can't speak to that, but during the search for an appropriate level, I found that the front of the bike, unloaded height was very close to the original measurement prior to the installation and increase applied by the adjusters. Current front tires have 16,000 miles on them and evidence no unusual wear, beside being adjusted up two turns.

[canamjhb]

I don't think there is any one magic answer. There are several things that come into play and each has it's own influence. Starting with tires. If you have poor quality tires that are prone to tread seperation, nothing will fix that except new and better tires. The stiffer sway bar does a great job of reducing or eliminating front end sag in turns and helps with straight away driving. Front end alignment also helps as well as proper shock adjustment. You need to address each item seperately and experience the results and keep tweaking until you're satisfied. If youre going to mess with the shocks and sway bar, I would wait to do a proper alignment after that. It kinda all has to come together. I've done tires, sway bar, shocks, and alignment. Each improved my riding experience. Good luck..... Jim

PS; Don't forget to check and maintain correct tire pressure too.

[JayBros]

Has your Spyder been aligned by a competent individual using the Rolo alignment system? If not, go ahead and adjust the shocks; you have nothing to lose because you can always reset them if you don't like the results. But before you do, as canamjhb suggested and make sure your tires are at the proper pressure and within 1/2 lb of each other. If you want an expert opinion, send an email to Bajaron. Yes, he sells a great sway bar, but he's also one of the most knowledgeable Spyder suspension gurus outside of the BRP company.

[Musashi]

I just had my front shocks adjusted to my typical riding weight while it was at the dealership for scheduled maintenance. I am very pleased with the ride difference, especially in regard to that "squirrely" or "fidgety" feeling a lot of people complain about. It never was bad enough that I considered it a problem worthy of fixing under 75 mph, but it is GONE now.

Get your tires and shocks right before you change sway bars or pay for a Rolo alignment. Start cheap and move up until you get what you want. That's my 2 cents.

[safecracker]

On my 2011 RTS I have my front shocks on the stiffest setting. Works best for my riding. Bruce

[Musashi]

On my 2011 RTS I have my front shocks on the stiffest setting. Works best for my riding. Bruce

I bought mine from a friend of about my same body weight, but who always rode 2-up with his wife and carried a lot of cargo (road trips). It has the factory pre-load adjustable shocks. So his were set to 5. I had them turned down to 4. I believe that's why it smoothed out a bit at high speeds, because I ride 1-up with less than 20 lbs of gear 90% of the time.

[Revalden]

My 2015 RTS Operators Guide doesn't mention anything about adjustable front shocks. WTF, over?

[PW2013STL]

My 2015 RTS Operators Guide doesn't mention anything about adjustable front shocks. WTF, over?

BRP did away with the adjustable from shocks in 2013 for sure by 2014.

[DGoebel]

BajaRon does sell Front Shock Adjusters for '13's and beyond with stock front shocks. Worked GREAT on my '13.

[DGoebel]

Revalden, Hope you're fully recovered from your Triple fix.

[Revalden]

how to BJ adjusters work? Are they spring wedges?

[Revalden]

Revalden, Hope you're fully recovered from your Triple fix.

Thanks for asking. I'm able to tinker with the Spyder, put on Lamonster's hwy pegs. Ordered the 6" arched extenders and heated them up to bend into an S shape to get the pegs closer to the fairing. I'm 6'-6" tall, so they needed to be up close to the front wheels.

[DGoebel]

RevAlden, here's a link to a Youtube video, they are add on Twist adjustable spring adjusters like many motorcycle spring adjusters.


BajaRon has a thread here in the Supporting Vendors sub forum where he sells all his products through (as well as EBay, maybe even Amazon???)
Here's the link to the thread New Sponsor here for Filters, ...etc