Unstable crf?

[garyboy]

I had a crf250 L and that was reasonably bad .. ie, not too bad on suspension.
I now have a crf250Rally.. and it's not just abysmal.. its downright dangerous.
Everyone else seems to think these are just wonderful, but I've been trying for 4 years to get the front end fairly stable.
Without much success.
Rear has YSS shock .. its OK.
Front has 1 new Ktech spring, some sort of Ktech mid valve, and now 15w fork oil.
It still jumps eratically around on loose stone, and in wales, there's loads of that horrible stuff strewn around along many or most, trails.
It's driving me mad .. am seriously thinking of changing bike, when the HP is up next year.

The last episode of Itchy Boots.. it showed her 'off' and broken collar bone, and Dutch incompetence punctured lung.

She re-rode the same bike, recently, .. crf250Rally.. and she was visibly wobbling and unsure. on tarmac.
('This feels strange, after Franky', she said )
Is this from the same front end problem?
Or is it just me???

[Richard Simpson Mark II]

Fit a steering damper?

Or rotate the bars a bit further forward?

[Tramp]

Check your ride height as if front high it'll shaken it's head..ass low ...adjust rear preload , but you've changed so much it's hard to have a idea what the original ride heights where...measure someone else's bike that's set level then compare against yours

Also tyre type makes the world of difference as does rising style...weight the front no time to sit down .

[Magnusson]

My 250 Rally handled like on rails. Previous owner had installed HyperPro suspension, Renthal handlebars and Mitas E7 tires. And Camelback fuel tank, Oxford heated grips. Man I miss that bike.

[garyboy]

Fit a steering damper?

Or rotate the bars a bit further forward?

Cheers, Richard ..
I've always been frightened of the idea of a steering damper, as I usually need, very urgently, to swivel the bars very quickly to stay upright.

Actually, I had the bars forward, to help in standing up, but my palms hurt on the outsides, due to their twisting, so I pulled them slightly forward again.

Didn't seem to make much difference tbh.

[garyboy]

Check your ride height as if front high it'll shaken it's head..ass low ...adjust rear preload , but you've changed so much it's hard to have a idea what the original ride heights where...measure someone else's bike that's set level then compare against yours

Also tyre type makes the world of difference as does rising style...weight the front no time to sit down .

Thanks for the reply, (Chris?) ..
You're absolutely right .. I've messed withe suspension so much, I'm dizzy thinking about it lol.

The comment about the tyres.. I'm thinking now in that direction.
I put some tape around the rim inside, and the guy who fitted the mousse had to put 2 rim locks in to stop the tyre slipping around.
I think this has made the tyre much harder/firmer? I think he's messed up somewhere? It's improving as it gets softer, but I don't want to spend another 100 or whatever, soon.
He fitted a crap Risemousse last year .. cost me lot a dosh to replace both mousses. I gave him another chance as its a manufacturer thing?
Maybe I should try someone else .. though to be fair, this front has always been a problem for me.
I'll see how it goes?

[garyboy]

My 250 Rally handled like on rails. Previous owner had installed HyperPro suspension, Renthal handlebars and Mitas E7 tires. And Camelback fuel tank, Oxford heated grips. Man I miss that bike.

Thanks for the reply, Magnusson, I may actually try the Mitas tyre, but probably the xt+ as its getting good reviews down here in wales?
But the ones I got will have to last a while longer.

Good to hear someone was happy with the crf250Rally.

[garyboy]

Thank you for the replies, which I really do appreciate. Hope I didn't sound too negative..

[Tramp]

I had a mate who continualy messed with tyres and suspenion he always complained and spent more money ...i rode his bike and did a few simple rechecks and it was okay....he then sold the bike and bought a road bike and was happy...

Im Russ not "chris" lol...ive learnt as i got to 60 that my days of offroading are now simple gravel tracks ...ride another totaly standard crf rally or test ride the 300 version and see how it compares to yours without all the "changed this and that"

[garyboy]

Hi, Russ .. thanks for the correction.
You won't be surprised to hear that I feel exactly the same way
All I ever wanted to do was buy a bike, jump on it .. and ride.
I knew the crf250Rally.. and indeed the crf300Rally.. would need suspension upgrades. But the failure to resolve issues quickly and easily was a great disappointment tome, especially when others were just getting on with it.

I've come to the conclusion that the 250Rally is a budget bike, and always will be, unless ..cb600 forks, crf450 forks, rally raid cartridges etc etc.. expensive stuff, is applied.

The weight will always be an issue, but overall a change of expectation and usage is in order.

I'll probably keep the crf250Rally.. mostly coz it Looks so good, lol, but it's good for adventure use, long distance and roads, etc
despite the tyre issues, too hard at front, possibly .. to grippy and unstable on tarmac at low speeds etc etc

But eventually get say a ktm husky gasgas 350 or 500 whatever ...... basically, a lighter, better sprung bike.

Maybe a van / campa.
Long term planning.. .. even at my age. Lol.