Stiff Rear Shocks/Shock Valving Specs

[canadianhunter]

The sag measurement on mine is 0 lol. It maybe moves an inch at most when I sit down on it.

My LTX is the same and I weigh maybe 5 to 10 lbs. less. Front spring set at 1 turn tension.
Thinking of removing the 3 position adjuster on the short end of the spring completely. Shaft( 9/16") to position #1 is approx. 0.100". Just for reference position #1 to Position #2 is approx. 0.300".

 

[BTbt]

On yamaha parts finder, comparing ltx base and se, same torsion springs, same front skidframe shock and spring, rear shock different part numbers

 

[Studroes144]

Was at my dealers today. He had a base ltx and ltx se sitting side by side. Pushing down on the rear bumper the base model was noticeably softer

 

[canadianhunter]

Moved the "hook" that's what the parts list calls the holder for the long end of the suspension spring. Move just shy of 1/2", can't be to much as spring no longer sticks thru plastic when sled is lifted. Was not what I planned on doing cause I hate drilling on a new sled.
Seemed to make more difference than I thought as now goes down almost 2 1/2"when I sit on sled.
Front spring one turn above loose.
Next is to check ride.

 

[cannondale27]

I may resort to something like you did.

I have not ridden it but the AC LXR spring from a sled that sagged 4" and rode very plush with me on it must be the same rate as my Viper. We swapped springs and no change at all in sag. I still have 0 sag. Sure wish Yamaha would let out some specs it cost me nothing but time. I would like softer springs to get some sag. AC has a chart listing the springs and the rates. The springs measured out the same but we were hoping the wind was less. No such luck. Odd part is that since springs are same something in geometry of skids must be different. The shock does not affect the sag.

 

[Thumper1]

yep, ltx se has almost zero sag with 275lb rider. way too stiff. took shocks out and used springs only and it actually had some sag, so it is not the springs. shocks are getting revalved at hygear right now. too much compression damping and too much rebound damping is not a good combination.

 

[Apex1958]

Thumper1 my LTX 137 was the opposite and the shock in the rear should be the same. I weigh 290 with no gear and the sag was 4" and rode like a wood truck on the small stuff and bottom out on the big bumps. That was because too much sag the springs on our sleds is rated for a 240 lbs rider. I put AC 1704- 710/711 the heaviest they make and the sled now rides better than any sled I have ever owned which is 15 new Yamaha's. I am going to put more compensation and rebound damping in my rear shock to set it up for my weight.

 

[Thumper1]

well, if you have an ltx, then it must be different than the ltx se. cause on the ltx se, the rear suspension does not stroke. riding side by side on rough lake, watching my buddy (240+), the distance between the rear axle and rear bumper did not move hardly at all. riding 60mph plus down a VERY ROUGH trail, the rear suspension is not soaking up the bumps, just bouncing off them. i can not get it to bottom ever. that is a problem. i definitely wont be going stiffer on the ltx se, at least mine anyway. Mine rear suspension isnt rebounding fast enough to react to the next mogul. its a bouncy ride to say the least.

its a great chassis, but the suspension needs some tuning. i'll report back when i get the shocks rebuilt and see what that does.

 

[cannondale27]

Okay guys I have come to a conclusion. Track Tension is Part of your suspension with this design. If you want alot of transfer run it loose if you want speed run it tight. Find the happy medium. As far as the valving and springs I like letting the shocks take the hits not the springs. Others may not. Thats why I dont claim to be a expert. Experiment and find what suits your riding style best.

 

[fxnytroxtx]

Ok just got my rear shock back, had it revalved and so far I'm liking the results! The sled is much smoother now and transfers better I can now press the rear with my weight as before it almost didn't move (I'll try cannodales advise on running the track looser for better transfer). It turns out that the front shock is kinda soft and the rear was stiff. The guy softened the rear about 30% according to the dyno sheet. He just did a set of rtx shocks before mine and the stacks are exactly the same as the ltx, the only difference was that the rear ltx shock was about 1" longer.

 

[MCApex44]

Ok just got my rear shock back, had it revalved and so far I'm liking the results! The sled is much smoother now and transfers better I can now press the rear with my weight as before it almost didn't move (I'll try cannodales advise on running the track looser for better transfer). It turns out that the front shock is kinda soft and the rear was stiff. The guy softened the rear about 30% according to the dyno sheet. He just did a set of rtx shocks before mine and the stacks are exactly the same as the ltx, the only difference was that the rear ltx shock was about 1" longer.

Who did the revalve?

 

[fxnytroxtx]

Local guy did it. Just the rear shock cost me $96

 

[Studroes144]

Does anyone with an ltx se know for sure what needs to be done to soften up the rear suspension? What is causing it to be so stiff..the torsion springs or the shocks? I am fine with sending the shocks out for a revalve if that's what it takes and I am fine getting softer springs if that's what it needs. If it needs both a revalve and softer springs then that's what I'll do just want a definite answer on it. Some are saying they are bottoming out. Others are saying they are too stiff. People obviously have different riding styles so it's hard to judge for sure I guess. Is there any crazy chance that shocks could come valved differently from the factory even on the same model sleds? I certainly wouldn't think so but I wouldn't question it out either.

 

[YamahaTim]

Ok just got my rear shock back, had it revalved and so far I'm liking the results! The sled is much smoother now and transfers better I can now press the rear with my weight as before it almost didn't move (I'll try cannodales advise on running the track looser for better transfer). It turns out that the front shock is kinda soft and the rear was stiff. The guy softened the rear about 30% according to the dyno sheet. He just did a set of rtx shocks before mine and the stacks are exactly the same as the ltx, the only difference was that the rear ltx shock was about 1" longer.

The RTX does have one more inch of clearance. 13.5 for LTX and RTX 14.5.
Stud roes what are you looking for in your rear suspension? I don't understand why yours feels so stiff, with you weighing 230 dressed it should fit you perfect. How do you ride? I mean big moguls and jumps and for fast trail riding you would want it stiff rather than soft. Now for just cruising around the trails not hitting big bumps or jumping than a soft set up would work. But not for aggressive trail riding or ditch banging. So I guess it's up to what are you looking for?

 

[Studroes144]

Most generally the trails I ride are either extremely rough or perfectly flat. On occasion you get some that are choppy but it's usually 1 or the other. As for the rough stuff I honestly don't think I've bottomed the sled out yet. 1 ride in particular was 60 miles with 2-3 foot moguls the entire time and standing up riding the sled never bottomed once. What I've always been told as far as suspension is that on the really big bumps you should just bottom the sled out so that you are using the full amount of the travel. One thing I know for sure on mine when I'm riding it is that it seems to compress to slow and rebound too fast. You could blame that on improved valving but if the torsion springs are just too stiff it will have that affect too. I do hafta say that standing up and hammering the big bumps it rides really nice..but only if you're standing. As far as sitting down and riding hard, for me it'll never happen with this setup as I get flung around pretty bad. I don't like standing at all but when I need to I do. I feel that with proper shock/spring combination that the sled can have a very plush ride and still have all the big bump capabilities. Would really like to hear more feedback on what is working for people and what isn't. Some say springs are too stiff some say shocks are too stiff. Is it both? Talked with two different suspension companies and both said that torsion springs seemed "ok" and that they could get the ride better by revalving the shocks. Guess what I'm getting at is I haven't heard any definite feedback on what really is working. I'm find spending $500 to get the sled to handle awesome in all aspects of riding but hoping there is an easier solution out there before it comes down to pulling the whole skid and sending out shocks