Suspension first...?

[buster024]

I hear stories of riders soupin' up the engines, but forgetting about their suspension, and their bikes suck. I'm getting to the point where I've exhausted most of the cheap/easy bolt-ons, and my next project is either motor or suspension. I just picked up a set of 450R front shocks, and I'm curious what "all ya'lls" opinions are on a-arms? Is that a logical step? Will the stock '05 450R shocks fit on +1 or +2 a-arms (with the right tie rods)? I got the shocks for free, so it won't hurt my feelings to dump them, but I know other aftermarket shocks are ridiculous so I'd love to use them. I ride mostly trail and tracks (love to jump), but I do hit the dunes now and then. I'm picking up a new '06 450R next week, which will be my dune bike, so the 400 (hopefully 416 or 426 in the near future) will be track & trail only.
If I do get new a-arms, what else would be required? Cables, etc....?

Thanks for readin' the epic!!

[procircuit406ex]

i would unless you have the money for both,id go suspension

[firefighterjosh]

1st suspension then motor work. I have a 416ex with elkas and plus 1 a - arms. Well spent money if you are planning on keeping the 400 for a long time.

[GPracer2500]

I'd also say suspension first. From the description of how you ride it sounds like susp would make the most difference. And having a 450r for the sand is significant too.

If you had said that you mostly just tooled around except for the occasional drag race then my opinion might differ. I think the harder you ride the more the balance swings towards "suspension first".

[buster024]

Good stuff. So, a-arms first? What's your opinions on going wider? I'm not a pro racer, so I would think anything more than +1 would only decrease reliability. What about those 450 shocks? If i pick up a decent pair of arms, will I have to buy different shocks, or will those work?
Any recommendations on arms?

[procircuit406ex]

shocks,THEN a-arms;) if you go lt, shocks AND a-arms

[AR15 guy]

You can use the 450r shocks with standard travel extended a-arms.

I think I may go with +2 a arms on mine. I do alittle bit of everything.

[ride_red666]

i would get new shocks, i regret not geting shocks sooner now cause it is really rough racing on stock suspension. good suspension will let you ride to ur bikes full potential....

[buster024]

You can use the 450r shocks with standard travel extended a-arms.

forgive my ignorance.....but what's the difference between standard travel a-arms and a +1? Isn't the +1 or +2 an inch measurement of extended width? If you extend your arms out wider, won't that make the shocks travel further?

[procircuit406ex]

the+1,+2,+3 is the extended width of each arms if you put +2 a-arms on it will make your bike 4 inches wider and im not sure about the second question


Hope this helped :)

[buster024]

Do extended a-arms help with "bump & jump absorbtion" or are they more for stability & turns on the track?

Any recommendations on brands of arms??

THANKS TO ALL FOR THE HELP!!!!

[armysig]

First question to answer is:

Can standard travel shocks be used on extended A-arms.

Yes, but make sure the A-arms are designed that way. Most are unless you buy +3 A -arms that are more than likely set up for long travel shocks. You can get +2 A-arms set up for long travel shocks also.

2nd question:

Will wider A-arms help on bump and jump absorbtion?

That's more of a shock question. If your shocks are designed for MX racing and your style and wieght; yes it will help with those problems. A steering dampener will help with "Arm pump" It absorbs a lot of the vibration coming up through your steering stem.

Making your quad wider will help more with the handling of it more than anything. You'll be able to take corners better with a less chance of your quad tipping to one side or losing traction depending on the track and your skills of riding.




A quick tip about the 450r shocks. Yes they can be used on extended A-arms, but you will have to modify them slightly to make them fit on the quad by grinding them down. Do a search on this website to find out the correct way of doing it. This topic has been brought up a lot.
I personally wouldn't work with any kind of stock shock, I know a lot of people haven't had problems but I personally don't like modifing the strength of the mounting points to make it fit.

There are a lot of good A-arms out there. If you can, try to stay away from no named brands or something that you don't see a lot of on this site.

Some brands to look at,

Lonestar
American Star Racing,
Houser
Burgard
iShock

Do some research on what you want to used your quad for. Areyou going to do MX? Trails? Dunes? or a combo of all 3? Most of the time when you contact the company they will tell you what is the best product for your application.