Sonic .90 Springs

[Kimchirider]

I finally dropped in the .90 Sonic Springs I picked up while in the US this summer. Due to not having a garage and just wanting to see how a spring-only change felt with the oil left exactly the same, I didn't pull the forks off the bike. The forks had 10 weight oil in them from an oil change in January. I cut the provided PVC preload pipes to 4.5", as instructed. I weigh about 190 .lbs in full gear, and usually ride solo and somewhat "sporty", so .90 was the spring rate the chart recommended. First impressions are that they don't feel much stiffer than stock. The most noticable change is that the big clunk when hitting a sharp-edged bump is gone. I can barely feel that they are riding higher in the stroke while banked over in a fast sweeper, but that may be due to me really wanting to feel a difference. I'm not disappointed with the springs, but the improvement isn't as dramatic as when I changed the fork oil or when I installed the Murph's Brace. I'll go to the recommended 15 weight oil and maybe add another .5" of preload when I have time and let you know what that does to things.

[turboderek]

I find this interesting. I wonder if changing the fork oil has as much affect as the springs themselves.

[10/10ths]

I own a 2004 DL650 and I weigh 190 pounds with all my gear on.

I installed the .90 Sonic springs, Motul "Pro" 15 wt fork oil, cranked the rear pre-load up 3/4 of the way, and installed the Continental "Road Attack" tires all at the same time.

Wow!

The bike feels planted, handles perfectly, and rides much better. She is easier to handle at walking speed, and at high speed.

I installed the Murphs' Brace the next day. Its improvement was subtle, but I did detect a modest reduction in vibration and weaving.

I highly recommend doing this conversion like I did.

She's a brand new bike with all day comfort and sport bike-like handling.

Cheers,
John

[Kawidad]

I put the 15w in my 650 and felt the fork action was too harsh and think that 10w would have been a better choice. I now have a 1k and think that the 10w oil that comes in it is too thick and intend on changing it to 5w to improve the dampening action.

[roger123]

My Sonic .90's arrived in the mail yesterday (fast shipping from Rich at sonic Springs, thanks). I'll be putting them in along with 15wt oil tomorrow.

[tmcgee]

I noticed a huge difference with mine, but they were 1.0 springs. I did change the oil, but used 10 wt since it was all I could find locally.

[Kimchirider]

I put the 15w in my 650 and felt the fork action was too harsh and think that 10w would have been a better choice. I now have a 1k and think that the 10w oil that comes in it is too thick and intend on changing it to 5w to improve the dampening action.

When I did the first oil change (got my K6 in May, '06) in January '07 I went with 10w since I read something somewhere that it reduced the harshness, and it did. I also started out with less oil and was going to add little by little until I got it where I liked it. After two adjustments, I was pretty happy with the level (I've been using the controversial volume method, adding 10cc at a time). I wonder how much of an effect the temperature played into things. Changing fork oil weight in January vs. July might feel completely different. When I ride my mountain bike in winter the forks slow way, way down.

[Kimchirider]

I own a 2004 DL650 and I weigh 190 pounds with all my gear on.

I installed the .90 Sonic springs, Motul "Pro" 15 wt fork oil, cranked the rear pre-load up 3/4 of the way, and installed the Continental "Road Attack" tires all at the same time.

Wow!

The bike feels planted, handles perfectly, and rides much better. She is easier to handle at walking speed, and at high speed.

I installed the Murphs' Brace the next day. Its improvement was subtle, but I did detect a modest reduction in vibration and weaving.

I highly recommend doing this conversion like I did.

She's a brand new bike with all day comfort and sport bike-like handling.

Cheers,
John


John,
Are you running 4.5" of preload spacer? I did the Murph's Brace first, so maybe that's why I noticed the improvement from it more. If I swapped springs first, maybe I'd have noticed more of a change. Either way, I'm happy with the way my front end is handling. I haven't played with the rear shock settings hardly at all since the front end needed help much more urgently. Just last ride I started paying attention to what the rear rebound was doing, which will start a whole new cycle of adustments and upgrades. Let the games begin.

[10/10ths]

About the "preload spacer", I'm running the PVC pipe in the forks as per the instructions. The Sonic Springs guy , forgive me for forgetting your name, told me to run .90 springs, 15 wt fork oil, and to "crank the rear shock preload 3/4 of the way in."

I did EXACTLY as he recommended and the bike is freakin' awesome.

The Murphs' Brace went on the next day and it was a subtle, yet, noticeable improvement as well.

I hope this helps.

Cheers.

[Kimchirider]

About the "preload spacer", I'm running the PVC pipe in the forks as per the instructions. The Sonic Springs guy , forgive me for forgetting your name, told me to run .90 springs, 15 wt fork oil, and to "crank the rear shock preload 3/4 of the way in."

I did EXACTLY as he recommended and the bike is freakin' awesome.

The Murphs' Brace went on the next day and it was a subtle, yet, noticeable improvement as well.

I hope this helps.

Cheers.

I'm at about 3/4 on the rear preload (time to count lines again), and 3 lines showing in the front preload. Looks like the 15 wt oil is the main difference between your setup and mine, so I'll get some the next time I'm in Seoul. Nothing to be had out where I'm at.
Thanks for getting back to me.

[10/10ths]

Yes, same for me as well, 3 lines showing on the FRONT preload, 3/4 towards full preload on rear shock, .90 Sonic Springs in fork, 15 wt fork oil, new Continental Road Attack tires, Murphs' fork brace--Road handling and ride nirvana.

John

[NEFL_STROM]

I put the 1.0 springs in my 650 (about 250 in my gear) and when I sold it put them in my 1000. I now have added 15W oil and it's a bit thick, however I love how planted the bike is. I have my preload backed way off, but it works pretty well so far.

[roger123]

Just installed my Sonic .90's, used Belray 15WT fork oil, 150ml and stock spacers with supplied washers (directions allow for this). Currently have 3 lines showing on the preload adjusters.

Took a very quick ride around the block and it seems to have stiffened up the front, which is what I was really looking for.

Will set up sag and stuff this week and see how it works.

Very fast shipping, everything was packaged perfectly and the instructions were easy to follow.

[Atomic Spew]

Kim-
Yup, you'll notice the difference when you install the 15w oil. I'm a tad bit heavier than you, but .90's were still the way to go for my style riding. I also installed the Superbrace, and that, combined with the Sonic's, is the best damn improvement one can do on these bikes, IMHO.

Enjoy!
A.S.