Mountain Race Shop Technical Series

Suspension Knowledge Centre

Motorcycle suspension diagnosis and the engineering behind springs, damping, shim stacks, fluid flow and complete damper systems.

Post-Race Report Try Shim Calculator Book Service

Motocross Setup & Parts Database

Find your bike. Find your setup.Free manufacturer, year and model lookup for available suspension settings, parts and spring charts. Excel edition A$10; checkout availability is shown on the page. Coverage varies by model.->

Featured Steering Geometry Guide

Motorcycle Trail, Steering Geometry and HeadshakeEngineering equations, measurement methods, fork height, triple-clamp offset, headshake diagnosis and genre reference ranges.->

Featured Workshop Engineering

Wet Torque Versus Dry Torque: Friction, Preload and Assembly ControlWhy grease, anti-seize, threadlocker, shaft coatings and prevailing-torque nuts change clamp load in motorcycle suspension hardware.->

Featured Fluid Reference

Fork Oil Viscosity: Why 5W Does Not Tell the Whole StoryA measured, in-scale 5-grade comparison and a free Excel reference of 117 motorcycle suspension-fluid entries, with source links and temperature data.->

Critical Damping Explained

Critical Damping: What It Means for Motorcycle SuspensionThe textbook ratio, the behaviour it predicts, and why real forks and shocks need more than one number.->

Featured Engineering Article

Why a Hydraulic Damper Must Be Modelled as a Changing Flow NetworkWhat Wen, Chen and Liu’s peer-reviewed multi-scale damper model means for bleed flow, shim deflection, flow redistribution, separator valves, mid-valves and whole-system motorcycle damper analysis.->

Free Workshop Tools

Post-Race Suspension Report - Free PrintableRecord the bike, rider, track, symptoms, clicker settings, sag, tyres and setup changes while the ride is still fresh.->

Mountain Race Shop Technical Series

004 — The Truth About Sag: Ride Height, Traction and Handling BalanceWhy sag exists, why preload is better understood as ride-height adjustment, and how front-to-rear balance changes traction, stability and turning.->003 — What Causes Fork Harshness?Why orifice-like pressure rise, damping-curve gradient, mid-valve behaviour and valve opening force can create the sharp hit riders call harshness.->002 — Clickers Won't Fix a Bad Damping CurveWhy clickers adjust bleed flow but cannot rewrite the shim stack, rescue poor rider data or replace a proper damping target.->001 — Clickers Won't Fix the Wrong SpringWhy matching sag at one point does not make different spring rates behave the same—and why damping cannot replace mechanical support.->

Suspension Basics

What is Rebound Damping?What is Compression Damping?What Does Oil Height Do?What is Spring Preload?

Suspension Problems

Fork Harsh on Small Bumps Shock Packing Down Bottoming Out Front End Push Rear Wheel Spin

Suspension Engineering

Changing Flow Networks in Hydraulic DampersCoupled flow paths, pressure, shim deformation and why the governing mechanism changes across the operating envelope.->How Shim Stacks Work Base Valve vs Mid Valve Fluid Mechanics of Suspension Understanding Damping Curves Pressure Differential in Suspension Systems