would having two different springs in my forks have adverse affects on function and turning? it seems i have a much heavier spring in on fork than the other, and i dont notice it while going slow, but when going faster (fourth-fifth gear on fire road) it seems like the bike is unwilling to turn, and has put me in the ditch on multiple occasions (nothing broken or injured except my ego for the guys behind me..) the bike is set up for 180lbs aggressive rider, whereas im a 165 novice trail rider, so i dont know if that has anything to do with it, but it just doesnt feel right sometimes, like it doesnt want to turn for me.
Even if you really have 2 different spring rates in the fork, I sincerely doubt it would make any difference in the bike's ability to turn. After 28 years of offroad racing and 5 years with superbikes, I would have to try that to believe it. Hmm, think I will try that this weekend on the EC 300. If the bike is unwilling to turn, here are some things to try, and you will notice a difference in the handling so do not go WFO out of the gate. These adjustments will alter the trail which will affect whether the bike understeers or oversteers. Many people misinterpret what the bike is trying to tell them and adjust incorrectly so let's get a baseline.
1. You mention that you have the fork tubes raised 5mm in the triple clamps so start by dropping them in the clamps 4mm leaving 1mm exposed above the top of the clamp. This will lengthen the trail. If you are reading what the bike is telling you, then this should make the bike more stable at speed and turn slower. Is this what happened?
2. Leaving the fork legs set as they now are, adjust the rear preload so that you have 35mm of static sag (this is the sag on my GG). By decreasing the static sag, we have shortened the trail. The bike should be less stable at speed, but should turn more quickly and easily. Is this what happened?
3. If #2 helped the bike turn more easily, then raise the fork legs in the clamps 2mm so that you now have them raised a total of 3mm above the top of the clamp. This will shorten the trail even more and should make the bike even less stable at speed, but turn more easily. Even go to the 5mm and try this. If the trail gets too short, the bike will try to oversteer. When this happens, the front end will push or try to slide. If this occurs, you have gone too far.
As a 190lb. aggressive rider, here are the springs I run in my '07 EC300. For slow speed technical (tight single track), .42 front and 5.2 rear. The front is softer and gives great feel in the wet. For higher speed riding, .45 front and 5.2 rear. Fortunately, the linkage rear suspension is more forgiving than the PDF on a KTM. I have both so I am not bashing any KTM riders who might be reading; just the facts.
And then you have the effects of compression/rebound. Geez, that is a book unto itself. Hope this helps. Oh, and if you are have had multiple incidents with the ditch; slow down. You may be "riding over your head". Sometimes the ego can be the hardest thing to adjust. Been there; and have the broken bones and scars to prove it.
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