1 suspension trick you need to know. 

This videos is a must watch for 95% of riders. Seen almost everyone, even myself make those mistakes

Take away - “Run more pressure than you probably think”. Totally agree. I’ve found this out through trial and error. It doesn’t feel more harsh at 100psi compared to the 85psi I was running previously and I’m sitting higher in the travel.

In a MTB video space that is overrun with suspension set-up guides, this is legitimately good advice that is typically not stated elsewhere, and I can personally vouch for the truth in both of your points. Super quality content, love the channel, keep it up.

Excellent teaching voice, because you talk at a steady pace and use clear simple language.. I'm a retired/tired English teacher and your explanations are the best I've encountered. Thanks for your help in making my riding safer and more enjoyable!

Man, this is gold content! I never thought of that way and I've been riding ''wrong'' all those years! Thank you!

Without a doubt the most informative short vid about air pressures. Been out of the riding game for twelve years and so much tech to try and take in now. Great stuff mate.

Another advantage to running less sag is that the bottom bracket height is increased leading to fewer pedal strikes.

OMG!! I've been making BOTH those mistakes for years! Finally, a video that clearly explains why more air/less sag is actually a solution to more supple ride. I love how this is not a manufacturer specific issue but something that should really be considered "Air Shock 101." I've never considered adding air pressure out of fear it would make my riding experience worse, but it has changed everything for me. Not only have I finally found the suppleness I've been searching for, but my bike is handling significantly better. I actually started to blame my bike as potentially having a "poor design" for the sketchy loose feel. Funny...such a simple (but hard-to-find) solution.

YES, thanks for sharing this! This same exact topic gets hashed over and over again on every forum, etc for 'rough, harsh' feeling suspension! LESS isn't MORE!

This is something which is mentioned a lot in motocross suspension setup, but i've rarely seen mentioned for MTB's. Commonly, amateur motocross guys will just go softer and softer on their preload and damping dials to dial out harshness or reduce arm pump, and the fork ends up operating deeper into its stroke and the harshness just gets worse.

The simplest expanation of fundamentals how to setup forks I have ever watched on YT. Good job! 👍

SO glad somebody can break it down properly, Thank you!

Your right, no one really mentions this in any other suspension video but it’s a great point! I have been doing this recently trying to soften the beginning of my forks travel. Thanks

good to know that there are lots of us who think the same way. i am just a beginner by all means, but i always wanted to ride higher on my suspension travel because i wanted to maintain the geometry of the bike , i don't want to feel like going over the bar when emergency braking and i wanted to reserve the rest of the travel for bigger hits, especially, that i'm using a hardtail.

One of the best most comprehensive shock setting video I've seen (I've seen many)

agree completely. on forks 160mm and greater, using full travel is rarely desirable. the fork travel is there to both maintain a certain 'dynamic ride height' and geometry for riding hard and the last say, 20mm of travel are purely reserve for the biggest (and probably, unplanned) hits that are potentially saving you (maybe) from full loss of control and dirt or rock nap.

This very concisely explains why my newer Pike, which rides much higher in its travel than the outgoing version, actually feels incredibly smooth. Great advice and a fresh point of view to keep in mind!

Man the amount of camera work and riding shots to go along with your explanations is amazing! Awesome riding!

if you have "bottomless tokens" or volume spacers in your fork/shock, remove them before changing air pressure/sag. the ramp up in spring force will happen later in the travel. Works especially well for lightweight riders like myself on longer travel bikes.

Probably the most important thing to know when setting up suspension. Great vid!

This video was right on time for me. After my ride this morning, I was under the mistaken idea of the "100% travel" myth and was about to increase my sag lol. Thanks!

This is super helpful! I have made this same mistake. Great, logical explanation that cuts through the confusion and will benefit a bunch of people. Thanks for making this 👍

Got me to check my air pressure, and I let some out since I weigh less than I used to. My fork never felt better. Glad to have some small bump compliance back. I agree with everyone else that this was very helpful.

A very well articulated description of a common setup pitfall. I've made this mistake a few times in years past. Thanks for posting.

This PERFECTLY explains my problem with my fork!! Thanks so much for the video, you did a really good job explaining it, and I would easily think you have at least 100,000 subs. Great video production, I subscribed.

Boom!.... ive been thinking the same on both of these points for a few years. But never heard anyone else say it. Great to see. Everyone should see this vid. At last!!! 👏

Thanks for the great video. I’ve always been under the impression I should use all of my travel and will be given this ago today. Cheers from a newbie

This video was the most useful video I’ve seen on suspension setup

Spot on. I came to this realisation naturally when I decided to put more air in at both ends to firm up the bike for smoother terrain. What I noticed was with more air, I was getting a smoother response on smaller trail chatter at both ends. At lower pressures, as stated - I was riding more in the stroke of my suspension and it wasn't responding well to chatter on the trail.

I come from brakeless bmx, so my natural inclination has always been to run a high pressure for a more "rigid" feel. Plenty of people have told me I should drop 10-15psi in my fork, but I always felt nothing I was doing needed that much travel. This completely validates what I already kinda knew, and without the youtube fluff!

Great video Rich. Explanations were spot on and simple. Wish I would have heard this years ago. Would have saved myself a lot of suspension tuning time. Had to learn the hard way

This makes so much sense!! Thank a bunch for explaining!

Learned a lot from this, I was doing exactly what said, going softer to increase suppleness.

Tnx! Im new to full suspension and any video tutorial is great!

Good job my man!! I follow this rule on motorcycles. I like less sag (riding high in the stroke) and lighter valving so most of the travel is plush. I see it's pretty much the same for air suspension.

Wow I never thought of it this way. This is really interesting. Great insightful video!

The worst initial setup advice, when I got into riding, was that your fork should use all of its travel at least once or twice on the trail you ride. ..... This video is spot on 👍🏻

Well done! I always try and approach topics like this from the mindset of someone who hasn't really encountered these ideas before; it's easy to make assumptions about how people think about more complex ideas. You totally hit the nail on the head in terms of clarity and context! Cheers - Dan at Fanatik

This was "shoking" to me. Thank you!!

Recently replaced a stolen Yeti SB115 with a Revel Ranger and your Ranger video helped me realize I made a fine upgrade. Thanks for the simple suspension breakdown! Derek

After 30 years I have my first air shock. Thanks for the advice!

Very well done. Good information, professional video editing. Even after many years of riding, suspension set-up is my Achilles heal in mountain biking. It is like I have a brain block or something...

So grateful for this video. Just changed my perception on pressure for my forks 👍

Until now I was the one who was thinking that more sag more fun:) I will change my bike configuration! Thanks man&have fun!

Well done sir, plenty of good food for thought!

Best suspension setup video ever!

Extremely helpful, thanks! 👍

Absolutely useful and simple explanation… thanks!

I ride a 170 170 bike and run 18% sag in my fork amd 28% in my shock and the bike is an absolute caddie but still pumps and boost so hard. This video is spot on!!!

I've made the last one a time ago. I used think I needed to be using all the travel: until I went over the bars a couple times in steeper terrain. I was blowing through the travel too fast in more gnar. I guess I learned it the hard way. Great job on these tips. 🤙

Really good advice! I'm new to mtb'ing and have been playing around alot but I'm glad I came across this video.. I just subscribed too! Explained it so well.

Exactly... I've been riding all my life and it takes a willingness to constantly work with your suspension. You will get it wrong many times before you get it right, but too soft will cause as many problems as too hard. It took me two years of riding, racing, and changing components on my KX 450 before I finally came up with settings that I liked. I am now riding and racing a 2021 Canyon Torque CF 9 and I am going through the same scenario, but getting closer everyday. Get a digital air gauge, a notebook, and keep track of settings for the places your ride be it XC or downhill.

Found it useful, and subscribed. Thanks for the info!

Great clip, great insight. Thankyou, and well done.

Excellent video. I have recently taken the same view as what you provide in this video and have gone to firmer spring as well as firmer overall in terms of Low Speed compression. I realised that I was losing a lot of my energy inputs to my ride because I was running my suspension too plush for the terrain that I ride. This was a result of exactly the mentality that you describe in your video i.e I am not using 80% of my travel so let some more air out etc. While plush feels comfortable, I discovered , when riding a hire bike and afterwards changing my set up approach, that my plush set up was causing me to lose speed on the trails because my pumping inputs were being absorbed by my suspension. In addition, the bike was less "poppy" off small bumps and big jumps in the plush setting. I started experimenting on both my bikes suspension set up and have gone to less sag and from fully open to closing by a few clicks the LSC setting and find a completely different ride. In addition, on the uphills I am not sagging in to and jagging on to obstacles, and am using less energy on the climbs. EDIT: I am always experimenting with settings anyway, but the current set up results in a suspension that feels more like a Ferrari as opposed to previously feeling like a rocking boat in a storm, especially when moving the body weight around. I don't dive as much under braking. Down steeper trails and over obstacles I am riding higher in the travel with the result that I don't feel like I am overbalancing towards the front of the bike.

Thanks, I was in the guilty camp of letting more air out! This cleared it up =D

Excellent info, thank you!

I'm trying out a Bomber Z1 coil this summer, can't wait to see how it compares

This video could be the light bulb moment I've been waiting for!! Cheers bro! Gonna reset ma suspension the morra and try it out! 🤘

Vorsprung smashpot up front and Push eleven six in back! So lovely!

Man that was an awesome review I guess I never thought about the suppleness at the top of the stroke like you explained it I’m going to increase the air pressure back to my standards act right and see how it goes

Great video Rich and good information. I will rethink my fork and rear shock setup. Like many other folks I have my rear shock sag set at the extreme limit thinking that would give me a more supple ride. I have only been riding a full suspension bike since last fall when I added one to my antique hardtail. I am still experimenting.

Of all of the suspension chat on RU-vid, I would recommend watching Vorsprung Suspension's 'Tuesday Tune' series. Deep concepts, explained clearly by someone who actually has the knowledge to back it up! He is also an advocate of simply cutting off your travel O-ring, which similar to your last point, absolutely makes sense to me.

Fantastic vid, makes complete sense - I just put 160psi in my front forks & 300 in the rear - to get the sag right to the bare minimum, for my weight.

Ugh I wish this video came out sooner! I made these mistakes and am just now realizing why my fork feels dialed after adding air! Settled on a nice 69 psi for my 36

Outstanding advice! 👌

Very useful, thank you for the clear tips. Cheers

Awesome vid that every biker needs to see :-) It is also the reason why I ride spring f+r at 25% sag (Ohlins on Sworks Enduro), exactly for the reasons explained. Thanks.

What a excellent tutorial! Thanks! Nuff Respect!

Smile /// Just got into mountain biking and after half a dozen rides was going to start adjusting suspension from the standard settings. Yes i was going to start lower pressure in my forks and shock to cushion ride on trials with smaller roots and rocks. Thank you for this info. I would of just been screwing myself going to wrong direction .

Thanks for reminding this!

Great video. I was just having the issues you discussed in this video so this came at the perfect time for me. Thank you! .....subbed

OK, so I commented only 7 hours ago. I have been running 30% sag on my forks for 3 years with the belief that less air = more plush. However, I literally hit my local trail a few hours ago purely to test this video theory. I added 10psi to bring sag to 20% expecting it to be more firm. It WASN'T in-fact it was awesome. For the first time I understand sag properly. What an awesome video. Thank you Semi-Sendy

Damn dawg you just flipped my world upside down 👍🏼

🙏🙏🙏 that was perfect. Exactly what I needed to know

Very good explanation. Thankyou!

Spot on! that's a quality content and info. Thanks a lot.

Well done video! Just subscribed! I keep on letting air out to feel like I am getting all the travel put of my fork

Excellent and concise info:) I have to explain this often at East Ridge Bikes (where i work). I am going to have this video on hand for my new (and experienced) MTBers. Simple but hard to relate sometimes. Thanks man:)

Smart and crystal clear 👍

excellent and very well explained. Thank you

4:15 This originated from downhill racing, where you only have 1 Track and you ride it several times. Back in the early days bikes had much less travel (even no travel) so everyone tried to use the hole 2 or 3 inches the fork or frame could provide.

Thank you sir. I have a cheap Diamondback Lone 27.5" I got for $850 for the winter from performance bicycle before the closed. My Original fork SR suntour XCR got seized because inwas riding it for 4 years and never serviced it, so now I am upgrading do Minatou Markhor 27.5" 9×100mm straight steerer and I am verybglad and thankful that I've watched this video because I learned from it that I pretty much destroyed the original fork by doing exactly what you said, making it looser even though it wasn't air fork it bottomed out on me many times. Thanks you, now This new fork will last me much longer. Owe you 🍺 🍻 🍺

100% spot on video. 👌🤙

Very helpful and easy to understand thanks 🙏

Great content. very good explanation. Thanks

That was explained very well.

I've found this to be true, as I've gone for less and less sag (also running a newer rockshox Charger 2.1 damper air stack that holds the bike up even further into the shallow sag zone). I do run a bit more air pressure than I think I like right now, but when the trail gets gnarly, it really smooths out the zings. Everything is a tradeoff. you gotta tune for the 'oh shit' conditions if you find yourself flinging yourself into that envelope. So many variables - it's a game I never tire of playing

This information is perfect!

Woohoo!!!!! A Titan Racing Cypher in the video. Awesome bike! Extremely unknown and largely under rated.

Helpful video. awesome mate, thanks

Nice. Added understanding to to it works 🙏🏽

Useful video. Thanks.

Been explaing this one to customers for years, always fun watching the penny drop as to why they are have trouble.

Great insights, thank you.

Awesome stuff! great video!

subbed, got me first word. nice and relaxed presented, good information. thank you!

Best set-up/ education vid

Its so well explained! GMBN could learn from this ;)

Good Stuff Rich! Gotta Love "Riding High" haha