Upgraded suspension YSS shocks and parts

[Tonyx]

I want to share my experience upgrading the suspension on my PCX150. I started with the rear shocks based on the collective wisdom on this forum and promptly ordered the YSS XXL shocks from Bikerbitz.com. It took little long to arrive(got hung up at San Francisco of all places) but was easily swapped for factory shocks.

Front forks were next. I received a lot of help from forum member Obayun who was one of early adopters of the fork cartridge emulators also made by YSS. They call this gadget PD Valve. It gets installed between the damping rod and the spring in the front fork. Following were the details in case anyone is interested on this install which required disassembly of the forks from the bike and disassembling the forks themselves.

* PD valve preload - 1 turn(this based on my experience with the Gold Cartridges from RaceTech)
* 15W Silkolene fork oil at 60mm from top
* No additional fork spring preload shim besides the PD valve
* Damper rod compression holes enlarged to 7mm

It took me about 3 hours from start to finish to get this done.

Result: This transformed the bike from having jolting ride to one more like full size motorcycle. The roads in Michigan are battered by freeze/thaw cycle and this suspension set up really help to cope with the expansion and compression peaks. That was my main reason for the modification. Also because of better damping both in compression(PD Valve) and rebound(better fork oil and viscosity) it becomes more controlled ride in all situations, higher confidence.

If anyone is on the fence about upgrading their suspension, I highly recommend what I did to improve theirs.

[lolofigo]

I want to share my experience upgrading the suspension on my PCX150. I started with the rear shocks based on the collective wisdom on this forum and promptly ordered the YSS XXL shocks from Bikerbitz.com. It took little long to arrive(got hung up at San Francisco of all places) but was easily swapped for factory shocks.

Front forks were next. I received a lot of help from forum member Obayun who was one of early adopters of the fork cartridge emulators also made by YSS. They call this gadget PD Valve. It gets installed between the damping rod and the spring in the front fork. Following were the details in case anyone is interested on this install which required disassembly of the forks from the bike and disassembling the forks themselves.

* PD valve preload - 1 turn(this based on my experience with the Gold Cartridges from RaceTech)
* 15W Silkolene fork oil at 60mm from top
* No additional fork spring preload shim besides the PD valve
* Damper rod compression holes enlarged to 7mm

It took me about 3 hours from start to finish to get this done.

Result: This transformed the bike from having jolting ride to one more like full size motorcycle. The roads in Michigan are battered by freeze/thaw cycle and this suspension set up really help to cope with the expansion and compression peaks. That was my main reason for the modification. Also because of better damping both in compression(PD Valve) and rebound(better fork oil and viscosity) it becomes more controlled ride in all situations, higher confidence.

If anyone is on the fence about upgrading their suspension, I highly recommend what I did to improve theirs.

Hi where did you get that PD valve from?
Cheers

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[Oyabun]

Great writeup Tony. Thanks for sharing your experience.

@Lolofigo
I bought mine from brooks barn parts in the UK. Wemoto also stocks them, as well as Yss USA seems to have them on stock. I gues you can search around which one has the best conditions for you.
Installation is really a no issue, and if you search the forums Mario has also posted an istall report with pictures.

[Tonyx]

Thanks, Oyabun

Lolofigo,
Believe it or not I got mine from the same place, Brooks Barn parts in UK albeit through eBay. It took awhile to get to USA but no issues from me.

[outlander]

How come you did not replace the forks with ncy forks instead?

[Oyabun]

@Outlander - the answer is fairly simple. The NYC front fork does not change the way the original suspension works. It might have a little different valving and potentially a bit stiffer spring - but it is essentially the same damping rod suspension as the original. The PD valve makes a real difference for much less than third of the price.

[namthip]

Thought it was time to upgrade the rear shocks , so went to the local scooter shop and got a pair of YSS Z model ,off center shocks. XL size (75 to 90kgs). Cost about 55 uk pounds. First they look great ,excellent quality. The ride ,well they take the shock out of the bumps so not so jarring ,also dont have any of the po go ing with a passenger on board.Might be my imagination but the front feels better too ? Would recommend these if your looking to upgrade.
By the way iam 85 kgs and i know these may be more expensive in your country.

[namthip]

Heres a picture of it fitted. Its off set so a bigger tyre can be fitted without fouling the coils.

[Tonyx]

Good job on the the rear shock install. Now go do the front forks!

[Toonman]

What PD valve did you use? As in MM

[k2apache6.0]

What PD valve did you use? As in MM

Hi Tooner,
This UK seller has the YSS PCX Valves here, the O.D is 23.8mm
http://www.ebay.com/itm/For-Honda-PCX-1 ... Nj&vxp=mtr

[Tonyx]

Apache beat me to it:) That the OD and how YSS lists their PD Valves.

[tomtomclub2005]

* PD valve preload - 1 turn(this based on my experience with the Gold Cartridges from RaceTech)
* Damper rod compression holes enlarged to 7mm

I'm surprised you just used one turn? How much do you weight with full gear on? Anyway, welcome to the PD valves club

[Tonyx]

I find I prefer low compression damping thus 1-turn on the PD valve. Other applications I've seen even go down to 0-turn. That works to lower compression but doesn't change the rebound damping which is the main advantage of using PD valve.
Btw, my all up weight is around 210lb.