A bit of an update on suspension and handling.
For what its worth my riding has been mainly on sportsbikes and the S40 is my first cruiser style bike so it has taken a bit of adjusting to.
Ive been riding it in a pretty relaxed way, and not pushing it or expecting it to handle or perform like my sports bikes. I have enjoyed the experience greatly, especially the easy going undemanding nature of the bike and the nice fat torque.
One issue was a feeling the front end felt a bit vague and the front wheel tramlines on some road surfaces. My main issue was the horrible rear shocks. Hard jarring things and of course, the first time for me to experience cruiser positioned shocks, that sent the shocks right up my spine!
I pretty much figured it was the limiting factor for me in thinking about touring on the bike, because i felt battered after an hour on it, on anything but smooth surfaces.
However Ive had plenty of experience with Suzuki rubbish suspension units in the past and knew aftermarket shocks can be great, or sometimes a unit from a higher spec Suzuki model if its a monoshock.
As you know I fitted a Superbrace to the front forks and Progressive 412', 11.5 inch shocks to the back. Both made an immediate difference on short 50km rides as initial impressions.
Today tho I was able to give to give the bike a good workout up into the hills on a demanding road of steep hills, swooping bends, tight bends, smooth surfaces and some pretty cut up surfaces and potholes. I covered 276 kms riding gently, pushing it hard and everything in between!
To say i was really surprised would be an understatement. The front end felt much more solid and tied together. But the main surprise was the rear end! It was both supple and comfortable, yet still taut with great rebound damping, it has completely transformed the bike. I even aimed at some potholes just to feel the shocks deal with them! Colour me impressed lol. ( im 64 kgs, i found the shocks worked best for me at 2 clicks up from the softest position ).
No longer distracted by crappy rear suspension units i was also surprised and pleased with how rigid the frame is. I guess the relatively low power and light weight helps, but it really seems a well designed frame for the bike .