Update, Springs Installed - Anybody have Bandit Springs they want to sell?

[CTDpower]

Just curious if anyone upgraded from just tenders to a full set and would like to sell their Bandit tenders? I think Bandit may have them pretty soon, but I figured I might as well ask and see if there are any used ones out there. For an X model...

Thanks!

 

[CID]

A bit OT but maybe helpful - I just disconnected the sway bar on my Talon R (removed both links and tied the SB up to the frame), it made a noticeable difference in the ride quality. Since I'm not a racer, a little body lean won't negatively affect me.

This works because a sway bar ties the left and right suspension together, making both spring rate and shock valving a bit stiffer. It's a free and easy experiment.

 

[CTDpower]

Definitely planning on that! I just ordered wheels and tires (along with a bunch of other useless crap LOL). I got 32's and 14 wheels. Hoping that the huge sidewall at 8 psi will make a difference. After I test that for a minute, I'll remove the sway bar and see how much difference that makes. Then the last thing will probably be bandit springs once I can find a set.

I'm sure removing the sway bar will help. I don't care how stable it is either. Unless the factory sway bar is really weak I bet it will make a very noticeable difference. Since day one I've felt like the rear end moves up and down as one unit, as if the sway bar is very stiff. I've never had a trailing arm sxs before though, so I wasn't sure if it was the sway bar, or if it is just by design...

 

[TerryH]

I removed my sway bar as part of the spring testing I'm doing for Bandit. Made a lot of difference. Definitely will not be putting it back on.

 

[Code54]

I removed my sway bar as part of the spring testing I'm doing for Bandit. Made a lot of difference. Definitely will not be putting it back on.

Did you notice a lot more roll on road. We are now allowed to license them so I would like to run it 5-10 miles up the road to the trail and don't want it to be unsafe. On the trail I rarely go over 15 mph so I doubt it would matter there.

 

[CID]

Did you notice a lot more roll on road. We are now allowed to license them so I would like to run it 5-10 miles up the road to the trail and don't want it to be unsafe. On the trail I rarely go over 15 mph so I doubt it would matter there.

I think low tire pressures cause me more cornering concerns than the little lean I get without the SB. With stock springs, the X is stiffer than the R so you should have even more control w/o the SB. It's an easy experiment, give it a try, decide for yourself. Note that on the R, the SB will interfere with the upper trailing arm if only one end is disconnected. If the X is the same, you'll have to remove both links and tie the SB up.

Bungee'd up to the frame so it won't contact the upper trailing arm (with brake line).

 

[TerryH]

Did you notice a lot more roll on road. We are now allowed to license them so I would like to run it 5-10 miles up the road to the trail and don't want it to be unsafe. On the trail I rarely go over 15 mph so I doubt it would matter there.

We almost never ride on the roads. Have been on some faster trails and have no issue with lean. I am running Bandit's full spring kit but guessing it would improve the ride with the factory springs even more.

 

[CTDpower]

My tires didn't come in time for this ride, so all I did was remove the sway bar. I can definitely tell a difference at moderate speed trail riding over rocks and stuff in the roadway. You can really feel each rear tire working independently. However, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference for slow speed crawling or flexing. Going to definitely leave it off though.

 

[CTDpower]

Oh and for lean, there is for sure more body roll on the paved roads. Just swerving back and forth on the roadway id say it is similar to having flat tires or something. For me, nothing to be concerned with. There is a lot of rock fire roads where I ride and going up hills on these washed out rocky/bumpy roads having no sway bar was a big I improvement. With the sway bar the whole back end seemed to hop on the bumps which would let the tires slip and create a rough jerky ride. Now that the tires can move separate, when one hits a rock it just goes over it and the back end stays planted.

 

[CTDpower]

Bandit tenders were back in stock so I got a set and installed today. Nice improvement for sure. $200 is a lot of money for me and I don't regret it. If I was a richer man, itd be a no brainer.

All ya need is a couple 17mm sockets and ratchets (maybe one 1/2 and one 3/8 drive), a short extension for the 1/2 drive, flat screw driver, hammer, and a tape measure. I also used a sink drain spanner wrench and snap ring pliers to make it a bit easier. Some wd40 and rags are nice too, and a wobble extension for the 1/2 drive wrench would have been really nice for the passenger rear upper bolt.

Took about 2 hours on a park bench away from home in stupid heat for me to swap them lol. Not a hard job at all.

I ended up doing 3.5" in the rear from the bottom of the cap down to the preload ring, and 4" in the front. This put my ride height just above stock.

 

[CTDpower]

These measurements raised the ride height .5" front and rear. I'd say now it is as squishy as my pioneer 1000-5 just cruising down the trails, but with way more travel and never bottoms out lol.

 

[rbtnt]

I put my springs on this week as well. Took me about 3.5 hrs from start to finish. A 1/2"wobble extension didn't hardly fit for the passenger side upper bolt. I used a 3/8" wobble extension once I broke it loose. A set of spring compressors would have made it a lot easier. I went 5" to the lock nut on the front and 4" to the lock nut on the rear. It raised the front 2" and the rear 1.5".

 

[CID]

My tires didn't come in time for this ride, so all I did was remove the sway bar. I can definitely tell a difference at moderate speed trail riding over rocks and stuff in the roadway. You can really feel each rear tire working independently. However, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference for slow speed crawling or flexing. Going to definitely leave it off though.

I'd venture a guess that that's due to the effectiveness of the i4WD. If you video'd crawling the same section with and without the swaybar, you'd see the SB causing a front to lift much more than with it disconnected. This would only be true if the crawling was rough enough to need the additional articulation available with the SB disconnected.

I have a spot I need to video doing exactly that, with and without SB. The first time through with SB connected my left front 'reached for the sky' and spooked the poop out of me. Later, with the SB disconnected, I don't think the LF left the ground, it was almost boring. 🤔 The problem is that when I'm riding, I'm in no mood to be wrenching (maybe two separate rides would work). I should note that I'm becoming much more comfortable doing stoopid s*** in the Talon so that may explain it.