Terminator2
Site Supporter
Hi everybody! It's a beautiful Superbowl Day here in Northern California. The title of this thread refers to confusion in my head. I've had the St 18 months now. I love it. The suspension has always seemed ....Off.....to me. For example, the front bottoms out and didn't seem to do its part working. Second, the PreLoad Adjuster took 16 clicks to begin engaging. I read thru so many comments regarding PreLoad, yet, something was bothering me in my thoughts. It seemed that for so many that serviced their PreLoad system (some did it quickly, some took longer). Nobody really addressed bleeding thoroughly (probably I missed the comment)........Very important. IMO, if you don't bleed properly, you'll still get immediate clicks when turning knob (1-3) to begin actuating, however, air can be present which is like having air in a brake line, no bueno. I noticed when I removed the adjuster and raised it above the shock, disconnected the fluid line to the adjuster, that when I dropped the line down, there was no fluid in the line......I know that the entire line and adjuster should be filled with fluid......so....let's begin. I poured the fluid out of the adjuster, depressed the piston, filled with 10 wt fork oil. Took the bike off the center stand to force some air out of the line. Cleaned brass line washers (yes, I will look for new ones), and attached the banjo line to the adjuster. Turned knob on the adjuster about Six clicks. Suspended adjuster above shock (I know that you know the air will rise). Waited. Guess what? The adjuster knob rod grew to max extension (air came to the top). Cracked banjo bolt (to bleed air), tightened, and repeated 3x. It takes 2 clicks to obtain pressure. A big surprise was that.......remember my front forks being low/bottoming out? Well the forks grew (extended,rides higher than ever before) and my front end feels so much better. I just wanted to contribute something meaningful to this site which has shared so much to me (being a newbie at owning an ST. Having a PreLoad Adjuster with no air in the system is my maddening goal, lol. Gearing up for a Colorado 2500 mile ride (RT).