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Hey guys. I've been riding for a little over two years now. Started on a Xr 250 for one summer, then went to a 450x for a summer and now have a 250x for this past summer. Xr had a good suspension until I road the 450x, and the 250x is equally impressive to me. I thought I had done a pretty good job tuning the x's to my liking until I road my buddy's KTM250 and that was like a Cadillac compared to mine.
So I would like some info on the cause and effect of the basic adjustments so I can further tune mine some more before I go spend money on a custom suspension.
I ride exclusively trails. I don't have the skill level to loft the front tire over obstacles so I have the front set up pretty soft so I can just ride over roots and bigger rocks. The ktm impressed me the most in the woops. For the first time yesterday I adjusted the high speed comp on the rear and that seemed to help. Can I set it up to handle the woops better without sacrificing the softness that I like for the cruising style of rider that I am?
What makes a bike feel stiff? Compression or rebound. I'm not sure that I understand how they work in conjunction? compression is how the suspension absorbs bumps and rebound is how fast it reacts? High speed compression?
Trying to figure out what I need to adjust to make it work better overall and what I should expect those adjustments to do for me. I don't know if I know enough about suspension to describe to someone how to set up a custom suspension for me if I were to have that done
Thanks,BGG

first, you must have the correct spring rates for your RIDING weight. the springs hold up the weight of the bike and rider to avoid the suspension sagging into the stroke. the suspension stroke is progressive...generalizing it means they have a softer response early in the stroke which gets progressively stiffer to provide greater resistance to bottoming. if the springs are too light the suspension will sag past the plush portion of the travel. the result is a harsh feeling. so, make sure you have the correct spring rate for your riding weight. then look to adjusting the clickers. if you have the owners manual it goes into excellent detail about these and how to use them. briefly the fork rebound determines how quickly it extends after being compressed. the fork compression determines how quickly it compresses. the shock compression has high speed and low speed adjustments. these determine how the shock reacts to high and low speed hits. the shock rebound adjuster determines how quickly the shock extends after being compressed.

the owners manual will also cover setting the rear shock sag which will help with the rear shock and handling. with the correct spring rates, adjusted clickers, correct sag this will be the best you can do without breaking into the forks and shock.

ken

Are 450x suspension parts interchangeable with a 250x? I have a buddy that has a 05 450x with a custom suspension. He's not sure he can get a return for his investment for the suspension if he sells the bike. Can I swap in the forks and rear shock into my 250x?

BGG