WP Suspension Mods: Sherco 450SEF-R

Suspension Matters … it really does! And it’s also the name of David Burnett’s company on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast; a company that specialises in tuning suspension for the trail, enduro and adventure-bike markets. David recently transformed my Transmoto Sherco 450SEF-R project bike into a more compliant and rideable machine, and taught me a thing or two about setting up suspension in the process. You see, after 15 hours of riding and becoming more familiar with the Sherco 450SEF-R, I started to realise the standard suspension just wasn’t handling the bigger hits as I started to ride it faster. I was running out of adjustment, and although I thought I had it dialled, little did I realise I was a long way off the mark.

David is one of those self-taught blokes who has a knack for sorting things out for himself. The former motorcycle mechanic thought he could do a better job of dialling his own suspension, so he gave it a go and discovered he had a real knack for it. Ten years later, he’s built an impressive business with a team of technicians and has forged a reputation as a suspension guru.

While out testing the Sherco project bike’s suspension with David, I sat down during a break and asked him a few questions to find out more about what he does and how he goes about it…

TM: David, tell me more about how you started out tuning suspension?
DB: About 10 years ago, I got my bike’s suspension done. And whilst I felt a good improvement, I thought it could be better. So I played around with it and basically taught myself how to revalve suspension; so I could tune it the way I wanted it. After about 12 months of trial and error, I started getting mates to ride my bike. They liked it, so they then asked me to tune theirs. Before long, I was tuning mates of mates suspension, then mates of mates of mates, and then people I’d never met before. I worked eight-to-five as a mechanic, then on suspension until midnight every night of the week until it got to the stage it had to be one or the other. So that’s when I decided to start my own suspension tuning business.

Why the focus on trail, enduro and adventure disciplines?
This was an intentional decision as these are the riding styles we are most passionate about. Because we ride these bikes ourselves, we have a greater understanding of our customers’ needs and what is required to improve them.

What changes did you make to the 2016 Sherco 450SEF-R?
When we first look at a bike’s suspension, we always start with the springs. They are the biggest priority. The standard springs on the Sherco’s are really only suited to a rider in the 70 to 80kg range. With you weighing in the 80kg-plus range, we went up one rate in both the fork and shock springs. Next, we turned our attention to the damping. And with you being an Expert-level rider, who I feel rides a little more aggressive then say the average trailrider, we firmed the suspension up and got it to sit higher in the stroke. The higher in the stroke we can have it, the more available travel we’ve got left to absorb the bumps, and the more stable the bike is. That stability will make you feel more confident riding the bike and allow you to ride faster.

How do you go about determining the damping settings? What’s your ‘process’?
We start with a base setting we know works well with the WP suspension on the Sherco. Depending on the rider and application, we change the damping curve. Then from there, the customer can play around with the clickers to better suit the terrain and the conditions they ride. We find riders commonly mistake a compression-related issue with a rebound-related issue. And so, more often than not, they’ll adjust the wrong clicker. I always say to a rider that trial and error is the best way to learn. Write your settings down, make a change to either the compression or rebound one at a time so you know what’s doing what. If you find it’s better, great. If it’s worse, go back and try again. If you make an adjustment and it is worse, that’s not a bad thing; it just means you’ve gone the wrong way and you’ve simply just got to go back to where you were and go the other way. You’re not going to wear the adjusters out, so use them. Once I set the suspension close to where it needs to be, one or two clicks can make a real difference.

What advice can you offer the average rider out there?
We see a lot of bikes come in where the owners manual suggests changing the engine oil every 15 hours and yet guys change it every five hours, thinking they’re doing a great thing for the bike. But they’re never changing brake fluids, clutch fluids, coolant or suspension fluids. A lot of manufacturers recommend changing the suspension fluid every 50 hours for trailriding, and even more frequently for competition use. Servicing your suspension regularly will keep it working really well and prevent any wear in these high-performance components. We also suggest that, if you buy a brand new bike, you should spring it for rider weight straight away. There’s no point in even riding a bike with wrong springs because you’re not going to get good feedback on how the fork or shock is operating. Then once you’ve ridden a few hundred kilometers and the suspension is bedded in, that’s when it’s due for its first service and the best time to have a chat about revalving.

SUSPENSION MODS

For more info, or to find out how David and his technicians can help you set up your suspension, contact Suspension Matters via their website (www.suspensionmatters.com.au) or phone 041 REVALVE.

SHERCO MODS

For a comprehensive insight into how we’ve customised and improved our Sherco 450SEF-R project bike – the suspension settings plus all those small things owners need to keep an eye on – check out the feature article in Transmoto’s free-to-view September-October issue (#58), due to be released this week.