Quote:
Originally Posted by TnNinjaGirl
I've adjusted the rear shock. That helped. Then I installed clip ons and dropped the front, which didn't help.
I am running stock IRC tires with 28 front and 32 rear. I have not tried preload adjusters.
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Having ridden the dragon, you are not alone when it comes to the Ninja feeling a little squirelly at times. Anyone that has ridden the Ninja long enough knows that it does not take much steering input to get it feeling loose. You can do it driving a straight line really. Lowering the front of your bike changed the rack and geometry of the bike. Now you have a more nose down position, couple that with more of your body weight going in that direction as well and you got a bike with really twitchy steering and less shock travel. The best thing to do is lower the rear as well to even it out.
I also have to mention that there are more than a few complaints about the stock IRC tires. They are not the most confidence inspiring tire and can be a little squishy if push too hard on corners. A slightly wider and grippier tire can work wonders. Just about any other tire will be better than stock and more than likely the tire inflation numbers will be slightly higher, which can have an affect on the suspension. You can get new suspension components, but if you have crappy tires, the wrong sag and bad geometry it does not mean a thing.
As far as the stock suspension goes, for me the front forks could be a little stiffer, but I've kind of gotten used to them. I do a lot of different riding on twisty back roads, some gravel from time to time, city riding and interstate. the front shocks seem to be a happy medium for them all so far. I weigh about 225 lbs (fully loaded) so, riding too close to the tank, for me, makes the bike dive more under hard braking. If I slide back as far as I can on the seat, stretch out and keep my weight behind the tank instead of over it, it really seems to help, especially with equal braking.