Setting up front suspension for balance

[polemite.productions]

the m sleds are quite a bit heavier on the left side. as a result, i find it much easier to turn and carve to the left than the right. the other day i picked up the back end of my sled, and noticed that as the front end took more of the load, the front suspension dipped even further to the left. i figure its time that i try doing something about it, and i'm wondering if anyone else has tried anything similar, and what results they got.

in a perfect world, i'd like to balance out the wieght better, but i don't think thats gonna happen. so, i was thinking of either stiffening up the left side spring, softening up the right side spring, or doing a little bit of both. and by spring in my case, i mean adjusting air pressure in the floats.

a little side question about the floats: i don't have the little hand pump. is it possible to adjust pressures with my compressor and a tire gauge, (if i can make them fit on the valve) or do i run the risk of damaging the shock?

 

[Frostbite]

First off, step away from the air compressor. I don't think that would turn out pretty.

Maybe a 12 volt compressor but, that's a big maybe. I bet someone on here has an extra hand pump? I'd certainly suggest a hand pump only because the volume of air in the shocks is so small.

I usually put an extra 3 lbs of air pressure on the left side of my front shocks to compensate for the extra weight of the clutches.

I hope this little bit of information helps.

 

[TheBreeze]

yep

It is very common for people to run a few extra lbs. on the clutch side to compensate for unevenness in weight distribution.

 

[polemite.productions]

haha, yeah i figured that the compressor was a long shot, but worth asking. just have to find the hand pump i guess, and start experimenting. thanks guys.

 

[ripsass]

Just cough up and buy the Float pump. They are only like $25 bucks then you will always be able to make adjustments.
Just the air temp changing 15-20 degrees can be cause for a little adjustment as they are very sensitive.

I run an extra 2-3 psi on the pto side fwiw.

 

[M-Rider]

I run an extra 5lbs in the clutch side. That's about the most you'd want to add.

 

[polemite.productions]

thanks again guys.
yeah, the only reason i ask about alternatives to the hand pump is because its gonna take time to get one shipped here. i've already been riding 3 times and we are planning on going out again this weekend. i wanna balance this out asap!

 

[IDspud]

Any sporting goods outlet should have something for short term, find a manual camp or sport pump with the right fitting.

 

[snostrm]

Remember that the suspension has to be hanging with no weight on it to set the pressure. Good Luck

 

[JHG]

Any bike shop that sells mountain bikes should have a shock pump.

 

[05snopro440]

Once you get a pump, another way to set it up that i've heard works well (but is a little more expensive) is to get 2 relatively cheap bathroom scales, and put one under each ski. Lift the sled and let the suspension hang, adjust pressure in one of the shocks, reweigh, and repeat until both scales read the same.

I've got an extra 3-4 pounds in the clutch side of my 1000.