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front and rear shocks

6K views 9 replies 6 participants last post by  travellingtenor 
#1 ·
Hey guys

I just picked up a dedicated ninja300 race bike. My weight usually fluctuates between ~150-160lbs without any gear. At the track yesterday I had a pro take a look at my suspension (both front and back have aftermarket bits in them that the previous rider installed), and he said that it is way too stiff for me and that I need a new rear shock (currently have a 9mn shock for the rear, he suggests 7.5nm), and front suspension too.

So I've already emailed Elka suspension to ask what shock I should use for the rear (interestingly the rear has an elka suspension but the shock is actually from Ohlins lol), and now I'm looking for some advice on what brand to go with in the front. All I know is that the front has aftermarket emulators and springs, but I dont know what rating nor brand they are

also how straightforward is it to replace the rear shock and install new springs/emulators in the front? i dont have a lot of experiencing wrenching, but if its not a super complicated job I'm happy to learn how to do it myself.
 
#2 ·
Also how straightforward is it to replace the rear shock and install new springs/emulators in the front? i dont have a lot of experiencing wrenching, but if its not a super complicated job I'm happy to learn how to do it myself.
Perfectly doable. Also, there is a few posts on installing a GSXR rear shock on the Ninja 300 you could follow if you want to see the steps to change the shock. I did it and it was an easy upgrade that cost maybe 35$ between the used shock (in good condition) and hardware. Also, you might find better pricing or more parts available compatible with the GSXR since I'd imagine it has more performance upgrades available than ours. Anyway, just wanted to say that. The only pain in the ass is suspending the frame since you can't use a rear stand while swapping the shock. I don't remember if I hung the bike or used a center stand.
 
#3 ·
Suspend the bike from the foot pegs using jack stands. Easy Peasy.
 
#5 ·
The best article you can find is here: http://www.peterverdone.com/archive/springs.htm
Note: "The correct spring is the softest spring available, that is able to support the bike and rider under the hardest of braking/accelerating while still leaving some room for the system to travel if a bumb is encountered in this state."
A possible front spring could be this: http://www.gpsuspension.com/Ohlins-FSK-100_p_18652.html
This comes with a spring with 7 N/mm and preload-adjuster which are adjustable in the range of 15mm, what's the highest value I've found so far, also the collars are from aluminum (real light) and the setup is already perfect for stock replacement -> it's Ohlins...
For the rear I use a shock from YSS (MZ366-320TRL-13) http://www.yssusa.com/series-z.html which is adjustable in the height and comes with a 80 N/mm spring.
My weight is 160 lbs. and my setup is really stiff.
Don't make the same mistake like everybody else and go with a too high spring rate.
Also my word about the GSXR-Shock - this is not more than experimental and not the best, but the cheapest solution.
 
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