Do fork settings have to be equal/match?

[vizcarmb]

Do settings on the fork need to match?

I have 2 bikes MT09 and a Harley Road King

So I have semi adjustable suspension on my Rear for my Road King. Just preload and rebound. I adjusted the rebound on one side to 1/softest while I adjusted the other side to 3/medium. It rides great on that setting compare with I matched both ends to 3 or one.

So my question is that my MT09 have fully adjustable front. Can you apply the same settings to be asymmetrical instead of being equal on both legs? I figured that the preload would have to be the same, just wondering if having different settings on each leg is good or bad.

The only thing I can think of being an issue is remembering the settings which you can easily write it down.

 

[motomania2007]

Short answer is no.

There are many bikes that have only rebound damping in one fork and only compression damping in the other fork.

This is fairly common for race bikes because it makes adjusting the suspension easier.

First generation FZ/MT09 only had one cartridge in one fork. The other cartridge had no valving or anything so it did no damping at all.

 

[TWF]

Nothing has to be same between legs, settings, preload, spring rate, spring in one leg only, type of internals....etc. None matters, once all connected it is one unit and you get average of two.

 

[vizcarmb]

Cool


Thanks. I didn’t think about the units working as one

 

[Darkness!]

In your particular case with your MT-09, if it's 2017 or newer, damping duty is indeed split between right and left legs. So for that particular bike, your settings (for rebound and compression) would likely not be the same. But the vast majority of bikes with fully adjustable suspensions aren't setup that way. In fact, the SP version of your bike has KYB forks that are fully adjustable in both legs for rebound and compression AND high and low speed bump absorption.

It really depends on what you prefer and how you ride. In other words, if you're hard on the brakes and hard on the throttle you'd need very different settings than someone that flows in and out of corners and upsets the chassis a lot less.

The first rider might want low preload settings for street comfort or low overall body weight but need a lot of damping because they smash on the brakes and then want to launch out of the corner then are hard on the brakes again at the very next corner. Lots of seesaw action on the chassis.The second rider, on the other hand, might prefer the preload pretty firm but have completely stock or just slightly higher than stock settings for the damping. Because they understand about carrying corner speed and/or are very smooth on the brakes and throttle. Either way, match the settings to how you ride.

As to the Harley, why would you not just set both rear shocks on your Harley to 2 clicks/settings/whatever? Is there no setting in between 1 and 3? I'm guessing there isn't?

Just be aware, you are making one side work and wear way harder/more or at least very differently over time than the other side. If you do have to have two different settings for your Harley, make sure to Service them regularly and switch off which side has the higher setting...

 

[vizcarmb]

Ok

The general rule would be to keep them the same. I’ll have to keep messing with the Harley settings to get an ideal feel.

That is good insight on how you will ride the bike.

 

[Holeshot]

This is fairly common for race bikes because it makes adjusting the suspension easier.

Right/ left kits are a cost savings w/ near similar results. We used to do a lot of rep/comp both legs and now everything is right/ left kits...as I know you're educated about.

Ok

The general rule would be to keep them the same. I’ll have to keep messing with the Harley settings to get an ideal feel.

That is good insight on how you will ride the bike.

It's not a general rule on forks, it's just people thinking it should be that way. As Z-man said, it's an average. However, on stock forks, there's probably an upgraded suspension in your future.