Öhlins Shock Absorber for MX & Enduro STX 46

Öhlins Shock Absorber for MX & Enduro STX 46 Owner's Manual. Purpose What is the purpose of setting up your suspension? Answer: Getting a bike that helps you negotiate the track in an efficient and safe manner by adapting it to your weight and riding style.Getting a bike that you can position as desired going into a corner, when braking and taking off from a jump etc. Setup work is all about making front and rear suspension work together as one balanced system. Neither the rear shock nor the frontfork can handle everything by itself, balance between front and rear is fundamental.

A balanced bike needs just the right amount of input from the rider to attain the correct position for an upcoming obstacle. Example: If the bike has the wrong position going into a corner it does not matter what fancy parts are on there,you will not make the corner. When balance and position are sorted, you can start making adjustments to suite your specific taste and get to benefit from the high quality riding experience that your Öhlins suspension provides.

Öhlins MX & Enduro STX 46
When working on your setup remember to always ask yourself: What is the problem onthe track? The right kind of analysis, “The bike struggles for traction when accelerating outof the slow flat corner”, will open up the entire toolbox that is the suspension system to help you fix the problem. The wrong kind of analysis,I have too much rebound and that’s why thereis no traction, only leaves you with one optionto fix the problem. Always analyze the problem from a position standpoint. Position is always dominant and it is always the factor that gives the most options to solve a problem.

Load transfer means a change from static load distribution, see picture 2.1, to a more front end or rear end biased load distribution. Let’s say the bike’s load distribution is 50% Front - 50%Rear when static.

When you brake; the chassis shifts its position towards the front increasing the load on the front wheel. See picture 2.2. The load distribution might be 80% Front – 20% Rear as an example during the braking. The added load on the front wheel increases traction. The purely geometrical effect of the steeper front fork angle aids when turning the bike.

Öhlins Shock Absorber Enduro STX 46
When accelerating; the chassis shifts its position towards the rear increasing the load on therear wheel. Se picture 2.3. The load distribution might be 70% Rear – 30% Front for example during the acceleration. The added load onthe rear wheel increases traction. The purely geometrical effect of the flatter front fork angle gives more straight line stability. When you add the rider and the way the rider moves on thebike you get the entire effect.

Pitching means rotation around the bikescenter of gravity. The bike can pitch forward or backwards. See pictures 2.4 and 2.5. When a pitching movement has begun it is hard to stopit due to the momentum of the rotating mass,the chassis. A small pitching will be perceivedas a big change in position by the rider sincethe angle of the bike is changed to quite a large extent. The bike will be most susceptible to pitching when close to its neutral position. See picture 2.1. Pitching is very much an effect ofthe balance between front and rear. The bike is less likely to pitch if in either front end or rear end biased load distribution. A bike that pitchesa lot will feel like it moves too much and is nervous.  Pitching is also a good thing. In order for the rider to control the bike he/she must be able to pitch the bike forward to corner and pitch the bike backwards to wheelie over a log for example.

By squatting we mean that the rear suspension is compressed from forces inherent to the acceleration of the bike. See picture 2.6. During an acceleration the rear wheel is pushingthe bike forward which rotates the chassis backwards onto the rear wheel. At the same time, the chain wants to pull the rear wheel closer to the engine resulting in the swing arm moving up towards the rear fender. These effects change the load distribution of the bike and puts more load onto the rear wheel adding traction vital to the continuing acceleration.