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AVALANCHES NEW INDEPENDENT HI/LO SPEED! Now available!

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
Universe said:
I liked my avy in some ways, but the chronic topping out was annoying. When asked Craig said "thats normal" Huh. Wonder if these are any better.

They top out when they are new. It goes away after a few rides and you can adjust it out.

Ive ridden a lot of shocks and the Avy and DHX 5.0 are my favorites. I have YET to ride a Roco, but I assume its like a Avy and DHX combined.
 

bomberboy11

Monkey
Jul 15, 2005
665
0
At a computer...duh
I have to say I'm not pleased with mine at all after it was revalved for my new frame. It felt incredible on my old Stab, but it feels stiff, overdamped, tops out hard, and somehow bottoms out easily on the R9. The DHX felt fairly good on the R9 but I'm going the Roco route next just for kicks. I've had great experiences with them in the past and had grade-A CS, but it just doesn't seem to be working with this frame real well. I also didn't like the way it overweighted the rear end of the bike with the reservoir placement on the swingarm either.
 

Cave Dweller

Monkey
May 6, 2003
993
0
bomberboy11 said:
I also didn't like the way it overweighted the rear end of the bike with the reservoir placement on the swingarm either.
Your kidding right?

The res weighs almost nothing compared to the weight of the rear wheel, swingarm, plus the inertia force of the rotating wheel.

I have been running avys for 4 years no problems.
 

dexter

Turbo Monkey
Sep 23, 2001
3,053
99
Boise, Idaho
never felt right on my r9, craqig could never valve it for how i wanted it to be and how the bike was supposed to be set up. it felt way over damped topped out hard and felt very sluggish. my dhx (which will soon be pushed) blows it out of the water
 

bomberboy11

Monkey
Jul 15, 2005
665
0
At a computer...duh
dexter said:
never felt right on my r9, craqig could never valve it for how i wanted it to be and how the bike was supposed to be set up. it felt way over damped topped out hard and felt very sluggish. my dhx (which will soon be pushed) blows it out of the water
That was another thing. He wouldn't set it up to run more than 30% sag but just said I could put a lighter spring on that it would not be valved around.
 

vitox

Turbo Monkey
Sep 23, 2001
2,936
1
Santiago du Chili
bomberboy11 said:
I also didn't like the way it overweighted the rear end of the bike with the reservoir placement on the swingarm either.
the resi weighs little more than a coke can....


anyway, whats the leverage ratio on the r9?
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
Sounds like Craig never really got the valving right for an R9. I agree. If you are patient and send the shock back a few times he gets it spot on if you tell him how its riding.
 

DHS

Friendly Neighborhood Pool Boy
Apr 23, 2002
5,094
0
Sand, CA
Kanter said:
send the shock back a few times
ok, but no one, maybe except you. would ever want to do this...
sure i'm only a state over from where he is, but i don't want to do this.
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
DHS said:
ok, but no one, maybe except you. would ever want to do this...
sure i'm only a state over from where he is, but i don't want to do this.
I dont like doing it either but nothing rides like a perfectly tuned Avy.

Its a custom shock. The new DHS with the hi/lo adjuster should be a lot easier to tune and you probably wont have to send it in.


Most people that own Avys have another shock to begin with so its not a problem to send it back. Craig usually will revalve it for free the first time. He almost always gets it right the first time but sometimes you have to send it back a second time, but rarely.

Im not pushing Avy but I have had many friends ride my bikes with Avys and they all agree they are the plushest shock they have ridden.
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
I got my Avy back yesterday and went for a little ride. The hi and lo adjustments really do make a difference. The hi speed adjustment is only 3 full turns but you can actually feel a diffence in even a 1/2 turn. The low speed adjustment is still about 20 or so clicks or 10 full turns. You can actually make the Avy pedal very well. I only got to ride the Avy for awhile but it has a lot more adjustment and they actually work. I can hardly wait to get some hard miles on it. This was a great improvement on the Avy.
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
I have set the new Avy up. I put the hi and lo speed settings in exactly the middle and Im running the rebound in the middle too. It seems to work very well.

This week I plan on really tweaking the adjustments but for now the thing feels pretty good. I use to run the rebound a lot slower so it wouldnt buck me on DJs and bigger drops. Now with the hi speed adjustment Im thinking Ill be able to run faster rebound and more hi speed adjustment.
 

Secret Squirrel

There is no Justice!
Dec 21, 2004
8,150
1
Up sh*t creek, without a paddle
I want to apologize to Avalanche and make sure there are no hard feelings...I jumped the gun....and even though I thought my previous post was harmless (deleted cause I'm a moron....) it wasn't. For that I am sorry. So here's a little background:

I just spoke to my local shop and had things explained to me...

Turns out nothing was wrong with my Avy, I just didn't understand what I was doing. (This is usually the cause of most of my problems of late.....sigh....)

I figured that it would adjust like every other shock I've ever owned...(5th, Fox, Romic, etc.). But upon further explanation, I realized that I had jumped the gun on switching the Avy out. Basically what happened was, I had the rebound where I thought I wanted it. Took a run and thought it was too fast...(about 4 clicks from all the way fast). Turned the knob 2 clicks toward close and pressed on the seat...felt like I didn't turn the knob at all....turned it all the way closed, and felt a touch slower but no where near where I 'thought' it should be.....well, I did not know (never asked, of course, so I was totally in the dark, without even matches...) that the hi/lo and rebound was speed sensitive. And that I had to *gasp* actually ride it to notice significant differences....DOH!!!

Once all this was explained, I felt absolutely terrible. Not only could I have saved myself the time and sweat of switching the shocks, but I could've been riding that bad boy all weekend...And not making myself look like a tool in the end....:dead:

Now I'm eagerly awaiting getting my Avy back so I can go whole hog at Whistler with a bad ass shock and put up a proper trials and tribulations post when I return from Deer Valley.

Thanks for listening.

-Apologetic and very embarassed Squirrel :ouch: :o:
 

ufdff15

Monkey
Apr 13, 2004
809
0
Central Massachusetts
I'm getting a R9 tomorrow and it's coming with a DHS on it. The feeling that i'm getting from reading this thread is that it's not the best option for the R9. Should I try to sell it right away and go for a DHX or Roco? I'm not really Suspension savy so i'm not sure i could tell what doesn't feel right if there is something wrong. I can't stand Platform shocks(5th). On my trail bike I have a push RC and it the best feeling shock i've used(so far hopefully that will change tomorrow). I'm probably just worrying about nothing, i'm just bored and bikeless at the moment.
 

seismic

Turbo Monkey
Dec 22, 2003
3,254
0
South East Asia
At least go and try the Avy before you sell it....I think you will like it unless it is valved for a rider who is very different. Try it, and if you like it send it to Craig for a revalve to get an even better match.
 

SuspectDevice

Turbo Monkey
Aug 23, 2002
4,157
359
Roanoke, VA
All the latest DHS's that Sinister has recieved are coming with the same Valving as FTW's. They are setup for 40% sag and are pretty slow on the rebound circuit. They go fast, but they don't make the bike feel very lively. The initial leverage ratio on the R9 is pretty light, enough so that with stock R9 valving a 160 pound rider can run a 350 pound spring.
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
I did a big ride today, 3 laps on our North Shore. The new Avy is amazing. It never bottomed and I got the 06 888 to bottom twice on some bigger drops. I am so amazed at how the adjustments actually work and you can feel the difference in only a click or two.




Now if I can just get this 888 from bottoming out. I weigh 180 and have the compression almost cranked. Ill have to turn up the preload a few turns and see if that helps.
 

jncarpenter

Monkey
Apr 1, 2002
662
0
lynchburg, VA
Kanter said:
Now if I can just get this 888 from bottoming out. I weigh 180 and have the compression almost cranked. Ill have to turn up the preload a few turns and see if that helps.
...try adding a few ml's of fork oil. Should do the trick.
 

davep

Turbo Monkey
Jan 7, 2005
3,276
0
seattle
Kanter said:
Now if I can just get this 888 from bottoming out. I weigh 180 and have the compression almost cranked. Ill have to turn up the preload a few turns and see if that helps.
You need firm springs, or atleast one. You ran a firm spring on your old 888 didn't you? You should not try to compensate for the wrong spring with your comp damping. If you look at marz spring rates, they are a little soft compared to a boxxer or other 8" forks. The change from the standard spring to the firm is also less than what most manufacturers offer.

05 boxxer stock = 2 x 20 lb/in springs for 160 - 180 lb rider
05 boxxer med/firm = 1 x 20 lb/in + 1 x 25 lb/in for 180 - 200 lb rider

05 888 stock = 2 x 17.8 lb/in
05 888 firm(est) = 19.6 lb/in

So the firmest 888 spring set up is LESS that what rock shox recomends for a 160 - 180 lb rider. Of course these are just rough guide lines and the forks are different, but both forks move 8" and have the same leverage ratio (1:1) with out any type of internal pressure (like a progressive) to act like a spring. Thus the sag and spring rates should be cross comparable for a rough estimate.

I am 185 and run 1 firm spring in my 888 and feel that is is on the soft side (with full oil and L/S comp sleeve). I think that it is quite possible that some of the brake dive issues with the 888 are due to them being 'under sprung'

Just a thought
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
I was told by Zoke that I didnt need to change the spring on the 2006 888. They told me the STOCK 2006 888 is good up to a 200lb rider. It usually bottoms out once a ride. I guess thats not too bad.

Yes, I did change one spring on my 05.

I checked the settings today and I had the preload turned as soft as it would go. Ill try turning it up first.

Has anyone change out there springs on the 06 yet?
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
I thought I would bump this. I finally got a full day at Whistler to tune my hi/lo Avalanche and I must say this thing feels great. The bike now does everything that I want it to do. It is super plush on the DH and still DJs awesome.


How has everyone else liked the new adjuster? How do you have it set?
 

ufdff15

Monkey
Apr 13, 2004
809
0
Central Massachusetts
When I send my DHS in over thewinter to get rebuilt i'm going to have the hi/low installed. So far i have been very impressed with the performance of my DHS and I haven't felt any of the lack of "livelyness" as described earlier I'm 215lbs geared up and i'm using a 450lbs spring in the bottom hole. I'm thinking of getting a montie or woodie for my splinter.