Need some advice from those of you that have modified your suspension & handling on Scramblers and Sports. I am on the verge of dropping some dough to upgrade my 99 Sport and need to know what works and doesn't for the money. I will outline the areas and your comments would be appreciated.

Shocks: I'm looking at replacing the rear/front shocks and springs. So far I have seen Fox, Ohlin, and Works shocks and struts. Does anyone have an opinion on these different manufacturers (or others)? I am leaning towards Ohlin rear w/ remote resevior and Works rebuildable strut w/ HSP progressive springs in the front.

What about this add a shock(front) from AAEN? Does anyone know if its worth the money they are asking for it? In theory it looks and sounds great.

Steering: I'm looking at replacing the stock A-arms with +3" arms from AAEN. Adding a damper (AAEN or someone else?), lower post bushing and new post will be done as well. Any thoughts on these items?

This is the direction that I plan to go, if I have missed something feel free to let me know. I feel that these upgrades will accomplish the disired result- much better handling through woods trails and small/medium jumps

 

read the little print when buying from AAEN, the plus 3 a-arms you are talking about arent.

 

I'm very happy with my fox struts and Hot Seats spring kit. I don't do alot of jumping but i can say it made a huge improvement on the ones i do take and it also helped out a ton on all the small trail bumps, for my rideing style and for the money i am not sorry i went that route. I'm sure you can get alot better but you will have to pay i'm sure. Send modquad or mike chero a private message, they are the experts on this and they were very helpful on making my final choice.

 

valerius,

I don't believe Ohlin makes shocks for the rear any more. Your best bet for a rear shock would be either the Works Ultracross or the Fox clickers from HPD. Both of them are better than the standard stock unit. On the front, I prefer the Works struts because of their progressive dampening. However, the Fox clicker struts are pretty sweet too. It all comes down to how much you want to spend. The Fox clickers struts are generally about double what the Works struts are, and the Fox rear clicker shock is less than the Works rear unit.

The dual rate spring kit is a matter of individual taste. I can guarantee with the stock struts they will be WAY too soft. With an aftermarket set of struts, they'll work much better. The Fox should be used if you plan on MXing it. If XC is your cup of tea, the Works will provide a nice soft ride for the first few inches and then stiffen up for the big hits. Perhaps not as well as the Fox on the bigger stuff, but for what I use it for, it's more than enough.

As far as the extra front shock kits Aaen has, I consider these to be counterproductive. Instead of buying a decent pair of struts (like Fox and Works) you'll spend a lot more money for no more performance and a lot more weight with the Aaen set up. The wider Aaen A-arms are like Ronnnnn said. They are about 3/4" wider each and will widen the track of the front end by 3" at the bottom of the tires. If you want a wider front end, you may have to go with wheel spacers.

I can't stress enough how much of a difference aftermarket tires make. Before you start modding the suspension get your self a good set of XC tires. Holeshot (XC and XCTs), Maxxis Razrs and GBC Shredders are about the best out there for traction, durability, puncture resistance and performance.

 

Mike (or anyone for that matter),

Can you describe the differences between Holeshot (XC and XCTs), Maxxis Razrs and GBC Shredders? If you don't know all of them, then any comments about the one(s) you may know would be helpful.

BTW, I went with the Fox Shox by HPD. Haven't received them yet. I know want the HPD (VDO) tach they sell. I have yet to receive my EGT either.

Thanks in advance for the discussion on Holeshot (XC and XCTs), Maxxis Razrs and GBC Shredders.

Chunky

 

Chunky,
Send me some pictres of the new shocks and a report on how you like them once they are mounted.

As for the tires I have run the Holeshots and Razers on my race bike. They both are excellent tires. For traction; they grabbed in every type of terrain (sand, mud, dirt). They slide great and were very controlable through the corners. They also have tons of straight line traction. If you do fast off-roading like I do then the 6 plies are worth it. If not then the 4-ply should be strong enough.

Valerius,
I am in the same spot trying to mod my ride out. I don't have experience with Works Struts but their shocks are great. I don't know about the HPD or FOX setups but have been looking into them.

I bought some wheel spacers and hopefully they will be here this weekend. Everyone I have spoken with really liked the wheel spacers.
I think this is aobut the best route to go when widening the stance.

 

Chunky5678,

The main difference I was refering to was between the stock tires and the aftermarket ones. But I'll try and answer your questions. I feel the main difference is both the construction of the tire and their sizes. Here in good old PA, I need clearance for the three "Rs", rocks, ruts and roots. As ITP makes the only 23" front and 22" rear combination, these are what I go with. The Shredders use a slightly softer rubber compound for the tread causing increased traction and accelerated wear. This isn't as bad as it sounds if you need a tacky tire for harder surfaces, this might be your best bet. I have no experience with the Maxxis Razrs, but I've heard that they are a good tire and some racers swear by them in mud due to their open design. IMHO, the best "all around" tire for me is the Holeshot XCTs.

As I said before, any of these tires will give you advantages in flat protection, traction, wearability and cornering over the stock tires. The side walls are MUCH stiffer allowing you to rail around corners with a lot more confidence where the stock tires will fold over. You get increased flat resistance with the six ply construction of these tires as opposed to the two ply stock tires. Finally you get better traction and wearability due to the tread pattern. All in all, a win/win situation.

 

Thanks, when I replace them I think I will try the XCTs.

Thanks again
Chunky

 

For about $500 you can get both front & rear upgraded. I use the Works fronts which are air adjustable for the front. I use 20-30psi for trail riding 3/4's of the year & then pump them up to 50psi for summer MX riding season. I've taken the struts off & on so many times now it's VERY quick but at first it was a pain. Anyway, I had PEP rebuild a custom rear shock for me out of the stock Fox shock. They use completly different progressive valving so it rebounds quickly, sags for the first inch or 2 just like the very expensive shocks do except it's non adjustable. You of course can adjust the rear spring though like stock. I used very short Kenda Domminators (Holeshot tread) which lowered it about an inch & used spacers front & rear. The handling is night & day different than stock. I rail the corners w/ my friend on his widened 250R all the time. It handle GREAT!!! I used the 7 clicker Aaen steering dampner which work MUCH better than the HPD version. I tried both.
Jim Maloney 98 400 Scrambler
http://photos.yahoo.com/jim400scram