[Bukwheat535]

ok, I am getting very confused and hope someone here can add a little help. I had a stock front and rear spring on a 2006 crf 450r that I could set the sag at 98mm and the free sag at 40mm.I weigh 235 with gear. I bought recommended 6.1 spring and .49 front and when I went to set up sag I got 82.5 mm and for free sag I got 33mm. Something just doesn't seem right to me. Anybody have an idea if I am just looking at this wrong. Oh, I am 6'1". Thanks and hope someone can help, I will be using it for MX

[motosicko]

You need to loosen the spring pre-load until you get around 105mm of race sag (gear on sitting balanced on seat). Then report back with free sag. Should be between 20-35mm.

[Bukwheat535]

Ok, So I adjusted the spring as low as I could go and the spring barely touches the collar and the best I could get for preload is 75mm. The best I could get for free sag was 52mm. I have no indication of what the spring rate was I took off so I don't know if it was stock or not. I went with the recommended 6.1 from FC. Any ideas. Should I be getting a lower rate spring? Thanks for any help.

[JimDirt]

I think you have too stiff of rear spring , at 235 WITH gear (about what i weigh in gear ,205-210 without) i am running the stock rear spring and have no issues with sag adjustments

I am running 0.52 in the front on my 450X(but i re-valved my bike *myself* and valved it very soft for logs and rocks ,basically endurocross type riding) , but a 0.49 is in my 450R and a 5.5 rear , so you should be fine , at worst you would need a 5.7 rear , i think they recommended too stiff on the rear (who recommended the 6.1 ??) , the front they got about right or you could go to a 0.50 front and be fine if you are a B+ rider , but no more than a 5.7 rear , if you were 250+ with gear i would say go ahead with a 6.1

I am not a pro suspension tuner , but i have messed enough with re-valving and springs to be confident in what i am saying

Has your shock been serviced ??? , the oil may be done or the nitrogen may be low , that will affect your sag settings a lot

[motosicko]

FC will trade out that spring if you contact them. Make sure all linkage bearings and shock mount bushings are working freely and a shock service/rebuild is a good idea if it hasn't been done recently. A good test you can do is to throw 20 or 30lbs. of weight in a backpack and see if sag sets correct with the added weight.

[JimDirt]

+1 on the linkage checking

With the shock disconnected all linkage should move freely as well as the swingarm itself , any of this as motosicko said , is mandatory for achieving proper sag settings

[Bukwheat535]

Thanks for the help. I called FC today and now going down to 5.9 rear and leaving the front at .49. He said the data base showed 6'1" my weight at 6.1 but could be a number of factors. I have the spring that came off and I looked around and found it may be a 5.8 according to a color code chart. Solid yellow no paint dots. I changed all the pivot bearings and checked it all to make sure there was no binding. The spring will be here tomorrow for me to install and try. I will let you know how it turned out. Thanks again

[JimDirt]

The stock springs should be 0.46/5.5 , i still think with the 6.0 you will be over sprung , i still think a 5.7 will be the stiffest you might want for your weight unless you are a A rider

Usually the only spring changes up to 210 (without gear)would only be the fork springs and only to a 0.49 , so 0.49/5.5

You STILL did not mention if you had the shock serviced (ever?) , IF that spring truly is a 5.8 it should be plenty enough to support you , i am thinking there is something else (like a shock service needed) as the sag issue unless the spring is less than a 5.5 which would mean someone swapped it out for a light rider , are you the original owner ??

The STOCK spring should hold you up and give good sag numbers (at 235 in gear ,which is as i mentioned about what i weigh in gear) at worst a 5.7 as i already mentioned , i think your going in the wrong direction and putting a band aid on another issue like a oil/nitrogen re-fresh and that can be done far cheaper than a $100 spring i dont think you really even need (do the oil change yourself ,all the info is in the manual and at most a shop should only charge you about $10 to recharge it , so your out the cost of the oil *$20* and the $5-$10 recharge)

I do ALL my own suspension work and have a Nitrogen bottle and gauges , so all i have to buy is shock oil , rebuilding the shock is as easy as doing the forks , with the exception of having the Nitrogen bottle and gauges which runs about $250 , but if you are doing your own *or friends* bikes , its worth the cost