In this video I lift the suspension on my 2019 Suzuki V-Strom 650XT to give more ground clearance for some off road adventures. Get your rear raising links here: www.ebay.com/itm/123588567816...
Hi John. Thank you for your videos which are very informative and I really enjoy watching them. I’m looking to get a 2021 vstrom and I’m glad to have discovered your channel.
Hello and thanks you for sharing how you did your suspension lift! I just bought a 2020 V Strom 650. It's my 2nd motorcycle and your content is helping me with ideas for modifications and how to do them properly!
Good to hear from you sir. Congrats on the new ride. I hope you have as much fun moding out your bike as I do... Thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Great video. I have a 2017 Vstrom 650XT and love it. I'm 6'3" and 215 lbs... suspension is fine but I lowered the foot pegs and added 2" Rox Pivoting Risers to the bars for better ergonomics while standing (back surgery doesn't let me lean over much for very long). I have 5 miles of gravel roads, sometimes washboard, to get to pavement - still running stock tires but decided last year to go to the TrailMax Missions after watching Chaparral Motorsports reviews and ratings of 50/50 tires (excellent, detailed evaluations there ). Glad to hear that you like them so much. Thanks for your detailed video work and explanations! Here in SW Colorado at 7550 elevation we had 67 inches of new snow - up past the top strand of the barbed wire fences! So no riding til at least mid March or later. Thanks again! -GeezerWheels
Good to hear from you sir, Glad you liked the video. Sorry to hear you are buried in snow right now... spring is on the way... keep your chin up.. hope to see you out there some day... thanks for watching... :)
Thanks for your great explain how to manage different issues, also your camera is top! I got my 650 XT since a few months ... greetings from the Netherlands.
Oh yes, thank you, I used to ride he kawasaki Vulcan 1700, it became to "heavy" at last, at the age of 70 , so now i'm very happy with V-strom 650....able to continuing the coming years and drive with pleasure and secure/handling the bike...
Hope the new Vstrom (700 parallel?) goes in this direction. The new 2023 Vstrom 1050 DE has already longer suspension + 21" front, which lifts the bike. Great video, thanks for sharing.
The Strom is looking good John! I got my Pan America yesterday and put about a 100 miles on it today. I hope to put some more on tomorrow! Stay Safe and I hope to see you out there!
HA! I did spot those TMM tires, I had those on my Tenere and loved them, after I wear out the stock tires a bit more, I'll get a set. Nice lift on the Vstrom 650, the front forks are average at best. I heard DR650 fork tubes will extend the forks an inch. but spacers are a low-cost way to start. Thank You for the video.
Great video, thanks. I'm about to fit 50mm raising links, fork preload adjusters and 25mm bar risers to my wee strom. It'll be interesting to compare numbers with you on how much ground clearance I gain, will update here. Cheers.
So, my Wee has now gone from stock ground clearance with no skid plate fitted of 165mm; To 175mm ground clearance with a Cosmo skid plate fitted. I can still get both feet down, I'm 6'0". With the pre load adjusters and the 50mm raising links fitted I would definitely say the bike feels more responsive on road and the front end dives slightly less under braking. Will be testing extensively off road next week, on a new pair of Mitas e09 boots.
Another quality video. I have a 1st gen DL650 and love it. They are great do it all bikes. I was wondering what the biggest difference between your v-strom and the mighty Tiger is? They seem to overlap each other quite a bit.
Hello sir, good to hear from you... I think the biggest difference between the two is how easy the V-Strom is to handle over the Tiger. The V-Strom has a much lower center of gravity and a lower ride Height. The Tiger is quite top heavy with the longer suspension and being taller the center of gravity is high which makes it a handful to handle off road. The Tiger definitely has the better suspension and is more capable off road but that comes with a price. Both bikes are quite good on road and both are very comfortable for longer trips. Thanks for watching and keep safe... :)
Olá senhor, bom ouvir de você. A SV650 é uma máquina incrível com certeza, eu tive um amigo com um anos atrás, ele foi a muitos lugares com aquela moto. Obrigado por assistir e mantenha-se seguro ... :)
I gave my 650 a 2" lift and dropped the foot pegs 2". Dirtbike forks and different links in the rear. The bike looks like a monster compared to a stock bike. But it made it much more capable off road. These bikes are top heavy so a lift has pros and cons.
@nine, just curious I'm only 5 ft 9 it's mostly a commuter bike but I do occasionally like to go off-road and I am also used to dirt bikes , not much left in off-roading in South Florida, but I do like the idea of a 2 inch lift 👍
@@larryvaughn3670 Well it is much easier to manage at a lower height since it is such a top heavy bike to begin with. Not really meant for any kind of offroading per say. Gravel road at best. However they can be taken some amazing places if you are not afraid to test it's limits. Being a dirtbiker helps you a ton since you will understand the terrain reading better than a straight road rider. I'd say get a really good skid plate, make one if you have to so you can have a good one, and let er buck!
Hello John, I am writing to you from the Argentine Republic, congratulations!!! Your videos are magnificent. But I want to ask you a question. Isn't PVC weak to get the job done on the front suspension? Is it safe to put PVC supplements on it? In your case, how thick should the pipe be? Sorry for my English. Thanks a lot.
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Schedule 40 pvc is way more than strong enough for this application. There is absolutely now way that the front fork spring can generate enough force to crush a 5 inch piece of schedule 40 pvc pipe. I have never heard of anyone having a problem using pvc as spacers in front forks. This was common practice even back when I was a youngster back in the 1980's. I can't see that this would ever be an issue. Hope this helps... Good luck with your projects... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
Thank you very much for your great videos. Can you tell me what model motorcycle lift you have? It seems to have a good grip on the front wheel. Are you satisfied with it?
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. The lift I have is the air/hydraulic motorcycle lift from Harbor freight. I have had it for about 11 or 12 years now and it has worked perfectly. It can be raised with air from a compressor or pumped up with the foot lever... I usually just use the foot lever rather than taking the time to hook up the air. It has been a great too for me... Thanks for watching and good luck with all your projects... :)
I have a 19 vstrom 650xt touring also.... Front Bridgestone Adventure A40F front worn out at 4200 miles... Majority of mileage is pavement. Good tire but totally insufficient life. What did you do with your old tires? I have SW Motech skidplate and crash bars. The stock bags are just too small I think... Givi Monokey trunk I haven't installed as Dr wants to replace right hip and being able to swing leg over rack area is easier without the top box. Your headlamps aimed right? Mine had low beam too high. I like mine a lot, super dependable bike and comfortable.
Good to hear from you sir, i have the Dunlop Battlax Mission tires on both of my bikes and love them. I have 9000 miles on the set on my Tiger and still all kinds of tread left on both. Hope your hip surgery goes well... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
Awesome. Happy to become subscriber. How much did the ground clearance increase? If I am not wrong, I didn't see you measuring from center of skid plate or I am getting somewhere wrong. This bike pulls me strong in all aspects except the skid plate at the bottom always hits the bumps or speed breakers when loaded fully ( pillion + two side bags+ 1 top tank) Any ways of improving ground clearance further?
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. My skid plate is mounted level to the ground so I had 3/4 inch increase in height over the whole plate. You can also get a 2 inch lift rear link set if you want more lift in the rear but in order to get another inch in the forks you will have to get some over length fork tubes to do that. Thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
@@ozarksbackroads5484 oh got it. If you have any weblinks for those products , please let me know. If you have them or sell them, let me know. I will come back when needed. Once lockdown is out, I will come back
@@rapoliit I don't have any sources for overlength fork tubes. You will have to do a google search for fork tube suppliers that build those but there are several. you can get the 50mm lift links from the same source listed in the comments on this video.... thanks... :)
Hi Jon, who wouldn't like an extra inch? How did it ride? Was the handling compromised? Typically off road suspension is higher in the front resulting in a slacker head angle. Not matching the rear would steepen this. Back to the question, how did it go on and off road? If its good that'd be just what I need.
Hello there sir, after the lift on the V-Strom I really could not tell much difference at all in the way it handled or road on or off road. It felt pretty much the same to me in both scenarios. I was afraid it would feel more top heavy in general but I have not noticed that either. I don't believe you are going to notice any big changes so long as you raise both the front and the back of the bike equally... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
@@ozarksbackroads5484 Thanks Ron, I'll make the same change and see how it goes. Another option I've been thinking about is a 21in front wheel would provide the 1in front lift. I don't know of any swaps that are available from other bikes that fit. ( If anyone knows please advise?) Thank you very much for your reply. Happy riding!!
I was wondering, as I’m an heavy rider, 240 lbs, maybe raising by 2 in would be even better but is it possible to put the good spacer in the front fitting the springs….
Good to hear from you sir, the most I believe you would be able to raise the front of the bike is about 20 to 25mm. To get any more length in the front forks longer fork tubes would have to be installed. Thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Very well explained and easy to do for cheap. Tks a lot Sir. Is the side stand too short now or still ok? BTW, which model of windshield is it, looks awesome and must provide awesome protection because I’m 6’3.
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. My side stand is a little short now but I am getting along ok with it.. I probably won't lengthen it. The windshield is a Givi Touring windshield. It is the medium height one... I thinks is just about right for me at 6'0". Thanks for watchig... keep safe out there... :)
You installed 1” links for rear suspension and now rear tire was binding when turned. If you installed 2” rear links, do you think the centerstand will still work?
Hello there sir, I don't know where you have gotten the idea that the rear tire was somehow binding in a turn... no binding here... if you install rear links to give a two inch lift the center stand will have to be lengthened.. it won't reach the ground otherwise...... good luck .. :)
Great tutorial John as always. Love the confidence you have tacking these jobs. Why was it you wanted to raise the height ? Brave man too...wielding the wrench over that beautiful paintwork. A towel over the tank can save a lot of swearing 😂😂. Awesome job 👏
my guess is for offroad performance. 3/4" isnt much but could mean the difference between scratching up your skid plate or even getting stuck high center. off course, the vstrom isnt a real dirt bike but you can squeeze a little more off road performance out of it by following this video
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Raising the bike won't stiffen the springs any but you can crank down the preload on the rear spring to stiffen up the rear suspension for heavier loads... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
@@ozarksbackroads5484 this mod is going to raise the rear, without changing the stiffness, but on the front forks, it will increase the stiffness, it's pretty much exactly what preload is meant to do in the back. The main thing to be aware, is to be sure there's some inch of static sag (you have to be able to lift/free move, on the suspension, the bike with your hands) front and back, if not I'll become dangerous to ride.
Good to hear from you sir, you have great taste in motorcycles if I say so myself. I have the Givi racks for my Outback Treker cases that came with my 2019 Triumph Tiger. You can check the install of the racks here... ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Nse3U6cGZ3Y.html Thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
good to hear from you sir.. I could not tell any difference in how the bike rode after raising it... it is still a blast in the twisties... thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hey there Joe, good to hear from you. I do not believe you are going to crack a 4 inch schedule 40 pvc pipe. If you somehow did do that you would have a lot more to worry about than a cracked tool tube for sure... Good luck and thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. I have a 33" inseam. The total amount of lift on these mods was about 3/4 inch overall. Thanks for watching... good luck with your projects... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Yes, going with the tall seat and lowering the foot pegs will give you 65 or 70mm more leg room... thanks for watching sir... :)
Well most suspension guru's will say that the front fork needs at least 20mm of rebound overrun to function properly. 20mm is about 3/4 inch. So I added 3/4 inch lift with the spacers and that left 3/4 inch of rebound overrun. I am happy with how the suspension is working on the bike now.. excellent on the highway and twisties and still soft enough for gravel roads... :)
Do you think it would be better to use abs pipe which is used in drains and more corrosive resistance to oils etc that white pvc used mainly for water?
Hi John, I clicked the link you provided in the description but those but I get an error. Do you have another source for those links? I would like to raise my 2018 V Strom 650 XT. Thanks.
Hello there sir. Those ebay sites come and go I suppose. I just found these on ebaymotors.com. This seller has them in 50mm or 20mm lifts. I had to order mine from the UK but I had mine in about a week. You can do a search on ebaymotors.com for" Suzuki dl650 link " and find more sellers with these. thanks for watching and goo luck.... lift link kit: www.ebay.com/itm/120964049800?fits=Submodel%3ADL650%7CMake%3ASuzuki&_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D239178%26meid%3D65f8f9e190564a2d99ca18246ebb9cc3%26pid%3D101195%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D5%26sd%3D184883304715%26itm%3D120964049800%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DUltimatelyBoughtOfCoviewWithSimAMLv7SameOrRelatedFilter&_trksid=p2047675.c101195.m1851&amdata=cksum%3A12096404980065f8f9e190564a2d99ca18246ebb9cc3%7Cenc%3AAQAHAAABIKBaRnFlXv4Iwg0rGkD9M64N1iv2UsD5bnSiGowrH7uWe7JJrJpIwgRgA4qUbynyHdVfzBS4fKgfrES2a5uiJNlGo0lnoszoXBGyusL7bonMtn3%252F3RpKc1%252F5qX8nip74N9gdjPqwWVP7X0lHlUP7U8qscD%252Bm6yBcMaqyo7GHhNkDm2Mb1pkkjKooB0SE3%252B973gH5RIhjE%252FV24qnEMYn56P3NesEQVO9ngVdSO%252B%252FWWYoldSEZJcCMPY7u4McJ1VprVs2KZSfpoR%252Ba7G3%252FbcQsM9fBBhja1urrr0pCwti0wvRsjoTj0QeIYOgP4a68MOmVono6ljMmkPCN01ni4P2aIZoFhPxve4XHiDjPnPcWbSVwdkxLrDFKkbfVCRe3HkhvCA%253D%253D%7Campid%3APL_CLK%7Cclp%3A2047675
Hello there sir, Ideally you would want to add 1 3/4 to 2 " lift in the front to compensate for a 1 3/4" rear lift but the front forks aren't long enough for that on the V-Strom. About 3/4" over the stock spacer is all the that can be added and still retain enough rebound overrun travel to work properly. So I would stick to 3/4" over the stock length spacers in the front forks. The only way to get more lift in the forks would be to replace the front fork tubes with over length tubes.... Hope this helps.. thanks for watching... :)
Hello there sir... good to hear from you... No, lifting the front forks .75 inch should not affect the damping feel of the front forks. It sounds like the front spacers are too long and applying way too much preload on the front springs. The front forks should have at least 18mm of compression with the rider sitting on the bike. If the bike is raised up until the front tire is no longer on the ground there should be 18 or 20mm of compression from that reading with the rider on the bike and the bike on the ground.... Good luck with your projects and thanks for watching... :)
@@jonsmith9892 thanks for answering! One more question: the length of the spacers maybe should be determined also by the weight of the user? I mean, I’m relatively lightweight (154 pounds) so I was thinking that for the spacer instead of 4.75” (total length spacers) should I use less length spacers, like 4.50”?
@@emiliodavilaromero4166 Hey there sir, You really need to measure the sag in the suspension when the rider is on the bike. I would start with the stock spacers installed and measure the sag and then determine how much longer or shorter you need the spacers to be. I set my bike up really tall in the front with very little sag. You may want a little more than what I did. ... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Yes the schedule 40 pvc is much stronger than the thin wall steel tubing used for spacer applications. Suspension builders have been using it for many years in their kits... works fine... thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Yes the seat height raises the same as everything else on the bike so a 25mm lift will raise the seat 25mm. Hope this helps... thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir good to hear from you. I zip tied a couple of wraps of inner tube around my center stand arm where the side stand interferes to prevent any noise... works well... thanks for watching and good luck with your projects... :)
5:20 if I am seeing that right the new lowest point is the far front tip of the brush guard not the center stand anymore. While I like the idea of just adding a link bar to extend the overall height but what I really want is to do so by adding that in overall suspension travel. Gaining both elevation & travel in the mod.
Hello there sir, I bought my links off of Ebay.com at this link.... www.ebay.com/itm/123588567816?epid=19031347629&hash=item1cc673e308:g:DFEAAOSwk-JdwVaG Thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. I wound up lengthening my kickstand 2 inches by cutting it in half and welding in a 2 inch long piece of 1 inch heavy wall pipe. Adding 2 inches made the length just right. I would suggest painting it with a pickup truck bed liner spray paint rather than Krylon. The bed liner will hold up better than spray paint... good luck with all your projects sir... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
@@ozarksbackroads5484 thanks for the feedback. I was thinking the mathod as you. But the doublestand is in the way. 😅 Do have any video/ pictures of your said mathod so I would know how you overcome the doublestand in the way. 😁🙏
@@ozarksbackroads5484 Thats a very clean bike!. I'm from india and have the same bike. Can I also get the picture of side stand extension ? I'll drop a mail. Thanks !
Hello there sir, good to hear from you. I am not sure about the 250sx specs. You could probably get that info from the Suzuki website I would imagine... thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
Hello there again... The spacers are made from 1 inch schedule 40 pvc but I do not remember the length I wound up using, I would have to watch the video again for that info. If you are going to use the Racetech gold valves and the recommended Racetec springs for your application the setup info you get with the valves will tell you how long to cut your spacers. You will also get metal spacer stock with your springs that you can use to cut the spacers from as well. Good luck and thanks for watching... :)
Hello there sir... so far I haven't done anything with it. I am just careful where I set it but I have been getting alone pretty well with it. I will do something with it over the winter probably... thanks for watching... :)
@@ozarksbackroads5484 Liking the videos. Just picked up my 2021 650 v-storm 5 days ago. Tomorrow I'll do my first oil change and filter. It'll be nice to not be so aware of what the tach is doing while riding. Keep up the good work. Sorry to hear the FJR is gone. Going to pick up another one?
@@dantadrick9769 Hello there sir, good to hear from you. Congrats on the new ride, sounds like you aren't wasting any time putting some miles on it. I plan on getting another bike to travel on next year but I am not sure if it will be an FJR or something different... thanks for watching... enjoy that new bike and keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you... Those were the Dunlop Trailmax Mission tires on the V-Strom. Thanks for watching... keep safe out there... :)
@@keithdosik The Mission tires are a very good 50/50 tire. I would say that they are just as good off road as they are on road. On road they are quite good. The rear tire sticks like glue on the twisties. The front tire is also pretty good on road but it is comprised of lugs so it doesn't have the grip of a street tire but it is surprisingly good. I have had my front tire slip a bit on the painted center lines a few times but never when on asphalt or concrete. Off road the front tire is pretty good as well. It holds pretty good on gravel and the side grip is not bad on the front tire. The rear tire on gravel is pretty good. It digs in an gives good drive on gravel. It tends to track straight under acceleration and not kick out to one side or the other. The tires will last a very long time.. I have a set I ran on my Tiger that I ran 10,000 miles and still had more to give. The tires are a bit expensive up front but you will get it back over the long run.... thanks for watching... :)
Hello sir.. good to hear from you.. the radiator guard is from Ravetech.com the same as the skid plate... thanks for watching...keep safe out there... :)
Hello there sir, good to hear from you.... after raising the V-Strom I could not tell any difference in the handling of the bike, it felt the same to me. I have been using PVC pipe for spacers in motorcycle forks since I was a new rider back in the 70's. It has been very common practice for a very long time. I have never had or heard of anyone having an issue with PVC spacers in their forks. So I am confident in saying that PVC pipe will last indefinitely when used as spacer material in the front forks of a motorcycle. Do be sure and use schedule 40 pipe not low pressure thinner walled pipe... thanks for watching and keep safe out there... :)
On this kind of bikes, it will work really well, much better traction/rear braking, do to ever so slightly shifting the center of gravity on the back, but with stiffer/higher suspension on the front, it will make it more nimble and precise also, without loosing balance, with better ground clearance. The only downside is that it's not be able to swing anymore, on fast curved roads, but i don't know anyone trying that, on this kind of bikes..
Zdravo gospodine, ne znam dužinu cijevi viljuške na V-Strom-u, ali sam siguran da su informacije dostupne na internetu... hvala na gledanju... čuvajte se tamo... :)
@@predragkrunic8469 Bonu à sente da voi, signore, questi sò i distanziatori di precarica per stabilisce a precarica nantu à e molle di fronte... RaceTech ricumanda chì u PVC sia usatu cum'è materiale di spaziatore invece di i tubi di metallo a pareti sottili... grazie per a vigilazione... tenete sicuru fora. là... :)
Hello there sir, looks like that seller no longer has a page on ebay. That was a year and a half ago so its not surprising that the page is no longer active. There should be other sellers that have the lowering links for the Suzuki V-Strom 650. Do a search on ebaymotors.com for the lowering links to find an active seller... thanks for watching... good luck with your projects and keep safe out there... :)
Mettere del pvc in sostituzione del canotto di acciaio pregiudica tenuta e sicurezza e denota incompetenza tecnica. Spero che tolgano questo video pericoloso.
Mi dispiace informarla signore che lei è totalmente sbagliato su questo argomento. È stato dimostrato molte volte che il pvc Schedule 40 è molto più resistente sotto compressione rispetto al tubo in acciaio a parete sottile che viene comunemente utilizzato per le applicazioni dei distanziatori delle molle della forcella. Inoltre, i produttori che costruiscono componenti per sospensioni spesso raccomandano di utilizzare tubi in pvc per distanziali a molla nelle loro istruzioni di installazione fornite con i loro prodotti, così come il produttore degli emulatori di cartucce che ho installato in questo video... hai semplicemente pubblicato una risposta istintiva da parte di un individuo disinformato. A proposito, a quali problemi di tenuta ti riferisci? Sai qualcosa sulle forcelle idroliche?
