Has anybody found a good phone app for recording and cataloging suspension settings on a bunch of different bikes? I'm not talking about a shock whiz or anything that tries to help you chose settings, just a better way to record and organize them. I just use a spreadsheet right now, but it's a pain in the ass.
Suspension Setup Tracking
- Thread starter HAB
- Start date
i suspect he's looking for a way to do it trailside.
CC used to have an app, but that was only for their shocks, and IIRC the latest iterations were limited to bikes they have official tunes for
CC used to have an app, but that was only for their shocks, and IIRC the latest iterations were limited to bikes they have official tunes for
I gathered as much. He would probably also need a bigger cardboard box.
A simple app would be nice where you could track settings and take notes, but that could be done in any document editor.
Were you the accountant for Hardwicks?
If I was just dealing with a couple bikes that would be fine, but it's not going to scale very well for my purposes. And being able to do stuff trailside would be nice.
templates are pretty easy to make in notes if you are an IOS peep
I'm on android.
I just create a page in "Notes" on my Samsung phone for each bike. Easy to access and particularly helpful when getting new bikes sorted (especially if you're dealing with multiple bikes). I always aspire to keep it up to date, track service intervals, etc. Typically, however, I promptly forget about it and don't do much after initial set up.
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I've wondered about this as well and I don't think there is anything.
What I was thinking of doing is creating a Google Form to interface with a spreadsheet. So then you can easily input PSI, clicks etc etc and review the data later on.
I guess the only tricky part is, after submitting the data, how do you then associate if it was good/bad/whatever to it? Maybe input the settings after the ride, then you can tag it good/bad at that point?
I was thinking if I do this enough, I can filter down to what I think feels good. And if I record if it was wet/cold/balls sweating hot, maybe I can then have a known set of configs going forward without having to guess "oh hey its wet as fuck today, maybe I should back off this and that"...
Then again this is all what I want to do, but I probably won't, because who has time for that when there is post ride beer flowing?
What I was thinking of doing is creating a Google Form to interface with a spreadsheet. So then you can easily input PSI, clicks etc etc and review the data later on.
I guess the only tricky part is, after submitting the data, how do you then associate if it was good/bad/whatever to it? Maybe input the settings after the ride, then you can tag it good/bad at that point?
I was thinking if I do this enough, I can filter down to what I think feels good. And if I record if it was wet/cold/balls sweating hot, maybe I can then have a known set of configs going forward without having to guess "oh hey its wet as fuck today, maybe I should back off this and that"...
Then again this is all what I want to do, but I probably won't, because who has time for that when there is post ride beer flowing?
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It doesn't have more than just an open notes field to write stuff down though, right? I'm not worried about tracking mileage and don't use strava currently. It could definitely work, but I was hoping for something more tailored for suspension settings specifically.
What's wrong with just creating a Google Sheets spreadsheet, with a different tab for each bike? Create a template for suspension setting layout (front/rear) and just re-use that on each bike. Add fields for travel / shock stroke, so you can plagiarize settings from similar bikes. Create additional shock / fork setting blocks on each tab for different forks/shocks you test.
If you want to be a fancy lad, you could do it all one one sheet, with a row for each bike / suspension configuration. Then use data filters to, say, only show entries for a Fox 36 160mm.
If you want to be a fancy lad, you could do it all one one sheet, with a row for each bike / suspension configuration. Then use data filters to, say, only show entries for a Fox 36 160mm.
That's basically what I'm doing currently (not the part about filtering) but google sheets is really clunky on mobile and it's not great for tracking changes. It works, but I was hoping something had made something more elegant. It sounds like the answer is no.
Create a Google Form... It makes it much friendlier on a mobile device and you'll get the same data out of it, directly into your spreadsheet.That's basically what I'm doing currently (not the part about filtering) but google sheets is really clunky on mobile and it's not great for tracking changes. It works, but I was hoping something had made something more elegant. It sounds like the answer is no.
I use one for when I get put gas in my car, looks like this on my phone. With a shortcut directly to it on the home page, it doesn't get much simpler.
Because dumb..Erm...
The Car thread
I don't. It's been below -10°F for the better part of a week here, and my block heater has helped get the car running and rolling very nicely. And yes, I had to spec the block heater at the dealership when I bought it. They tried to tell me it was a waste of money; I told them to just install...
ridemonkey.bikemag.com
I just press the notes into clay tablets with a bamboo stylus. I have a stack of tablets per each bike in my garage but i could use some pointers how to better organize them.
Toyota's don't have fuel a gauge/indicator?The Car thread
I don't. It's been below -10°F for the better part of a week here, and my block heater has helped get the car running and rolling very nicely. And yes, I had to spec the block heater at the dealership when I bought it. They tried to tell me it was a waste of money; I told them to just install...
Send an old box to @Westy or request he steals one from a dumpster. Then using a wireless bluetooth headset, call him at the start of each ride to write down current settings on said box and then give a commentary on how they're performing for the duration of your ride so he can record that information too.
This is peak Seattle.
Also, it's clunky and not great but I just use notes on my phone as well. It's probably why I don't actually do it all that often (well, that and I hate riding with my phone). I asked a coworker that develops apps on the side to make one but she said the market was too small for her to bother.
That doesn't help with knowing how far you've actually gone. Which is needed for various reasons.
When I was still self-tuning a lot of moto suspension, I had a Google Docs spreadsheet that listed out every shim at every piston front/rear along with every other relevant setup parameter (even down to measured factory piston dish, piston band sizing info, bushing radial slop, swingarm length, chassis torques, tire age and ambient temperature) with note fields at the bottom to make note of what types of terrain inputs resulted in what sort of attitude or input to the rider. This was all in a single column format, so when I went to make a change, the next column over would read exactly the same except for changes that were highlighted in red. Later on it was plain as day to quickly see what I'd been honing in on, or more realistically, going down a rabbit hole chasing false symptoms. Got to be something like 50 or more iterations whether it was clicker settings or internal valving adjustments.
That got old fast. But it was more educational to go through that exercise once than anything else. It's great for knowing what you don't know about suspension/chassis behavior. And knowing that you still don't know it. If nothing else it showcases which behaviors can be positively identified and adjusted for by a rider alone, and which ones are just too vague (or violent) that nothing short of a high framerate camera will tell you what's what. Now I know which inputs to not even bother trying to tune for without that because I'll end up with a shit setting that's full of compromises.
Your number of parameters on a mtb are probably 1/3 to 1/2 of all that BS though. Even so, that's going to be tough to manage with a phone screen.
That got old fast. But it was more educational to go through that exercise once than anything else. It's great for knowing what you don't know about suspension/chassis behavior. And knowing that you still don't know it. If nothing else it showcases which behaviors can be positively identified and adjusted for by a rider alone, and which ones are just too vague (or violent) that nothing short of a high framerate camera will tell you what's what. Now I know which inputs to not even bother trying to tune for without that because I'll end up with a shit setting that's full of compromises.
Your number of parameters on a mtb are probably 1/3 to 1/2 of all that BS though. Even so, that's going to be tough to manage with a phone screen.
I have a collection of paint pens i use for marking settings on the frame. a lil spit of thinner is enough to wipe it off. You could have someone print you some tune stickers if you are wary about writing on bikes you don’t own. Fresh sticker for fresh tune
Google sheets. I'll just duplicate a spreadsheet tab & name it by date if I'm messing with something.
How do you guys track your own inconsistency and its impact on how the bike/suspension feels?
I'll use my spreadsheet above like a journal. If I feel like it's worth recording some other info ( It's hot / cold out, I'm having an off day, slippery as shit out, ect...) I'll fill out the comments field.
I would actually record in mine if I was riding tight in my back or hamstrings. I'd even make note if I had to take a massive dump and rode like a sally.
I've made correlation between the empty beer can count & taking a dump.
Follow the science.
Why not just build your own app, not that difficult
I've got a whiteboard in the garage with all the deets on it for my bikes (and my friends bikes) when servicing in case something ends up getting changed.
Out on the trail I'll just fettle a little bit and update the whiteboard when I get home if anything changed permanently
Out on the trail I'll just fettle a little bit and update the whiteboard when I get home if anything changed permanently