Well this thing must have come with Traxter front shocks from what everybody else says, but these front shocks were WAY too STIFF. I never saw the A-arms move before, beat the crap out of me. My first ride down a sand wash with this thing was dissappointing for a machine labeled a dune meister. The stock front end geometry (and bad factory alignment) doesn't have enough castor for sand. Period.
But that is all better now. Timmy Boys $395, and Works Steeler front shocks $335. I do not have, need or want a steering stabilizer. It would just be something I would have to work against. Sometimes we make quick decisions on the trail, I want my steering light, sensitive, and stabile. I got it all now.
Took a hard ride down some familiar and not-so familiar trails Sunday. What an Awesome quad.
It is finally working like it is suppossed to. You can stuff this thing sideways into a corner going too fast and hit the brakes or hit the gas and bang your way right through it. The Power is intoxicating. The Handling is superb, powerslide at will, but always hooks up and slingshots you forward, not off the trail. And in the sandwash it is a rocket "pod" like on Star Wars Phantom Meanace.
With the front end finally working great I could dial in the back. A little too loose,, a little too stiff..ah,, just right.
My buddy on his 450 Honda ES Foreman went with. Poor guy, he got me started. He is a great rider, I don't know how he gets that piece of $$it going so fast. His electronic shift craps out every 10 minutes, no suspension at all on that thing, but he's got 6,000 miles on it.
He had a lot of gravel in his hair when we got home.

 

fourlix I'm glad to hear that your getting theDS sorted out, I was dismayed by your posts right after you bought the DS, It sounded like a different machine than I have but the DS benifits greatly from tweaking and a few aftermarket parts
(seems like all quads need some aftermarket stuff)
glad to here uour happy with the DS

 

There must be 2 different shocks coming on these things. I went out this weekend with a friend of mine that has one of the first DS's sold here in Vegas. He is an excellent judge of ride and control and has built a 250R with his own suspention and home built air shocks. He really is serious about a good ride and was VERY disappointed with his front suspension. He felt his was sprung a little soft but valved way to stiff.
Well, after taking my quad out, he is amazed at the difference between the two. Not only was he grinning ear to ear because of the power, but he could not believe the difference in the ride. Keep in mind that my shocks are completly stock and my preload is cranked up a good deal due to my weight. I think that some of Bombardiers shocks are stiff and some of the same shocks are just right, like mine.

 

I bought my 00' DS from a friend 3 weeks ago and my first impression of the front suspension was that the shock valving seemed awful light. I've ridden it 2 weekends now and we do a lot of jumping and hard riding. The preload collars were initally set about 1 inch up from the bottom of the threads. I cranked them up about another 1-1/2 inches, better but I still bottom the front end a lot. I wish I had adjustable damping, in my opinion something all the upper end quads should come from the factory with!

 

Knutz have you beaten alot of machines w/ that big bore kit? Have you ever been beat?

 

I have beaten MANY quads with the big bore, But I will admitt that I have been beaten. The only quads to have finished ahead of me so far were a couple of Banshee's[over 400cc's] and a freakishly fast 400EX that I understand was built by Curtis Sparks and displaced over 460cc's. That was when I was running just a 40MM carb though. I haven't been beat since the 45MM but I'm sure I can be.

 

Let's swap, or I'll sell them cheap. I've got my works shocks on anyway. But these front shocks that came with this thing sound perfect for you. I think you could land off the Empire State Building and not bottom them out. I couldn't stand them. Way too stiff for this rough rocky terrain out here. Beat me up good.