Tech Tips: Setting Up And Adjusting A Motorcycle Shock Presented By Vital MX

In the most basic explanation your dirt bike suspension is pretty straight forward. It simply goes up and down as it absorbs the bumps and jumps, doing its best to minimize transferring the jostling to your body while also keeping the tires in contact with the ground. When you really dive in there's much more to it in regards to the intricacies of of suspension. Compression, rebound, adjustments, the amount of travel, and dealing with built up pressure are just a few things that come to mind.

Riding a dirt bike that hasn't had its suspension set up for your weight and/or riding  preferences can be the difference between a great ride and a miserable one-or more importantly a podium finish and not even making it past qualifying. Many riders think that it takes some kind of black magic sorcery to properly adjust their dirt bike suspension. As this video from our friends at Vital MX demonstrates, once you understand the basic terms, functions, and how the different adjustments affect the performance and handling it's really not that hard to dial in your dirt bike.

In the video Michael Lindsay walks you through how compression and rebound work in a dirt bike fork and explains where and the different adjustment points are and how to adjust them. Michael also discusses clicker settings, what they do, and when you should make changes. He also addresses air pressure-yes even if you are not running air spring forks your conventional forks can build up air pressure and change how your suspension feels.

By watching this video, even if you have been riding and tinkering with your dirt bike for quite some time you just might learn something new or rediscover a fact you forgot about dirt bike forks.