Talon R Crossover Rings and Tender Spring Information

[CID]

Newbie owner here (2021 Talon 2R) with minimal experience regarding suspension setups. I do very little aggressive driving, mostly it’s just cruising around where I occasionally might get the rear end out on a few corners, and never jump it. I ride exclusively in Baja, 95% of the time I’m on washboard trails or potholed dirt roads. Ride comfort is my main goal, but of course don’t want to make the suspension so loose it’s dangerous.
-ride height and clearance are not major considerations.

After reading as many posts as I can find I’ve come to the following conclusions:

-if I drove aggressively the only solution would be a re-spring and valve job…. but I’m not interested in spending that kinda dough just to make it a more comfortable ride.
- New tender springs seems like it might help (reviews are split on whether they make any difference)

Questions:
-what’s the recommended way to set up new tenders for max comfort with at least a reasonable amount of stability?. If I switch to a longer Tender spring I will then be able to raise the preload and crossover so that I stay on the softer spring for longer (is that correct?) I’m ok with sacrificing some ride height for a softer ride.
-are there any major differences in the various springs available (Bandit vs ATU vs Eibach …any others??) If so, which would you recommend to best accomplish my goals?
- I’m running 32” tires, what’s the minimum tire pressure I can get away with for my type of riding?

Thanks

First question - is this your first SxS or coming from something else? I/we don't want to talk down to you if you already know 'something'.

Tire pressure - because I knew the suspension needed help on my '21 R2, I replaced the stock wheels with beadlocks so I could run lower pressures. The problem I'm having now - I'd rather run 8ish lbs. but anything under 10 and I'm feeling the 'surprises' hit the rim on virtually every ride. That's how to get pinch flats. Baja - I'm guessing you can carry some pretty good speed and still be safe, that will dictate higher tire pressures. There is no simple answer.

Ground clearance defines the engineered chassis geometry, it isn't just for rock crawling. To me, the biggie is CV joint angles, so GC does matter. It'll also tell you if your springs are sacked, if you can't tighten your preload rings enough to get your 15" GC, (I adjusted for your 32" tires) you'll need springs. I can't speak to who's springs, no idea.

I'd start by backing off your crossover rings 20 turns and keep an eye on the zip ties shown in post #4.

If/since you're just cruising, remove both sway bar links and tie your sway bar up, it'll ride softer but it won't corner as well (duh). It's a free experiment, your call. You'll also experience the Trophy Truck weight transfer, weight to the outside rear, trying to lift the inside front. It's fun for awhile but it sucks when you're in a hurry. I got the quick disconnect swary bar link kit (Arco? Long time, don't remember). They could have done a better job but they're good enough. I'll run with it disc for a while and then I'll hook it back up. There's an electronic disc kit available but it's north of $700.

On the Talon R, you have to remove both links and tie the sway bar up or it will hit the upper trailing arm. On an X, you can just remove one link.

Once you go to aftermarket springs, you'll be on your own for crossover ring adjustments outside of what the mfr. recommends. Mess around with the stock setup first, if you can get your GC set.

I'm no wizard or long time SxS guy. I'm retired and enjoy learning about my new hobby (4 years). I share what I think I know but it's worth what you paid for it.

 

[Admin]

 

[13965]

First question - is this your first SxS or coming from something else? I/we don't want to talk down to you if you already know 'something'.

Tire pressure - because I knew the suspension needed help on my '21 R2, I replaced the stock wheels with beadlocks so I could run lower pressures. The problem I'm having now - I'd rather run 8ish lbs. but anything under 10 and I'm feeling the 'surprises' hit the rim on virtually every ride. That's how to get pinch flats. Baja - I'm guessing you can carry some pretty good speed and still be safe, that will dictate higher tire pressures. There is no simple answer.

Ground clearance defines the engineered chassis geometry, it isn't just for rock crawling. To me, the biggie is CV joint angles, so GC does matter. It'll also tell you if your springs are sacked, if you can't tighten your preload rings enough to get your 15" GC, (I adjusted for your 32" tires) you'll need springs. I can't speak to who's springs, no idea.

I'd start by backing off your crossover rings 20 turns and keep an eye on the zip ties shown in post #4.

If/since you're just cruising, remove both sway bar links and tie your sway bar up, it'll ride softer but it won't corner as well (duh). It's a free experiment, your call. You'll also experience the Trophy Truck weight transfer, weight to the outside rear, trying to lift the inside front. It's fun for awhile but it sucks when you're in a hurry. I got the quick disconnect swary bar link kit (Arco? Long time, don't remember). They could have done a better job but they're good enough. I'll run with it disc for a while and then I'll hook it back up. There's an electronic disc kit available but it's north of $700.

On the Talon R, you have to remove both links and tie the sway bar up or it will hit the upper trailing arm. On an X, you can just remove one link.

Once you go to aftermarket springs, you'll be on your own for crossover ring adjustments outside of what the mfr. recommends. Mess around with the stock setup first, if you can get your GC set.

I'm no wizard or long time SxS guy. I'm retired and enjoy learning about my new hobby (4 years). I share what I think I know but it's worth what you paid for it.

@CID Thx for the great info. I’m coming from a RZR XP900, lots of wrenching in my time, but little on ATV/UTV’s. Didn’t do my homework prior to buying the Talon, was shocked at how bad the suspension sucks compared to the RZR.

 

[13965]

The Eibach spring kit for the Talon R works great. On my 2020 Talon R it gave a soft enough ride, so I didn't have to re-valve the shocks. It is soft enough to deal with the stock shock settings. On my 2023 Talon R 4-seater the rear tender springs sacked out at 4,000 miles. I installed 10-inch Eibach tender springs on the back to replace the 6-inch stock tender springs. The ride is amazing now. Some of it may be from the longer wheelbase.

@hondabob good info thx. I think I’ll try adjusting the stock setup and if that doesn’t work try replacing the tenders on all 4 corners. With your 2 seater did you replace all 8 springs with Eibach’s or just the 4 tenders?

 

[CID]

@CID Thx for the great info. I’m coming from a RZR XP900, lots of wrenching in my time, but little on ATV/UTV’s. Didn’t do my homework prior to buying the Talon, was shocked at how bad the suspension sucks compared to the RZR.

The Talon's suspension is definitely not up to RZR or Can Am but the dual range 6 speed is magic and more fun than should be legal. I rode in a '23 Talon X Live Valve and its suspension was pretty good, especially considering the X's previous reputation. So there is hope but it's in the $1500 range.

Another point about ride quality - I wanted long tire life so I tried a set of BFG K02 light truck tires. Although I would have gotten ~11,000 miles out of 6 tires (2 fronts, 4 rears), they really rode rough. I won't go back to LT tires again, I'll be sticking with OHV specific tires.

 

[hondabob]

I installed the kit. It was soft so I had to install my sway bar. The improvement was amazing.

Eibach 2021-2023 Honda 2-Seat Talon 1000R/1000RS | Fox Products

Eibach engineers, manufactures, and sells the highest quality performance aftermarket suspension products in the world.

eibach.com

 

[DRZRon1]

@CID Thx for the great info. I’m coming from a RZR XP900, lots of wrenching in my time, but little on ATV/UTV’s. Didn’t do my homework prior to buying the Talon, was shocked at how bad the suspension sucks compared to the RZR.

for what its worth - same deal, had a XP900, stock fox stuff was amazing - great on the small stuff and the harder u pushed it the more it just ate everything up.

went down the gen 1 bandit tender spring road before I put mile 1 on it, fail. it was brutal to be honest.

finally bit the bullet and dropped the $1400 for new springs and revalve - it went from a 1/10 to a 7.5/10, disconnected sway bar took it to a 8.5/10.......it crushed me to spend $18K on a new machine that was suspension wise just plain crap then dump more benjamins just to make it comfortable.....

 

[Dankathy]

The Talon's suspension is definitely not up to RZR or Can Am but the dual range 6 speed is magic and more fun than should be legal. I rode in a '23 Talon X Live Valve and its suspension was pretty good, especially considering the X's previous reputation. So there is hope but it's in the $1500 range.

Another point about ride quality - I wanted long tire life so I tried a set of BFG K02 light truck tires. Although I would have gotten ~11,000 miles out of 6 tires (2 fronts, 4 rears), they really rode rough. I won't go back to LT tires again, I'll be sticking with OHV specific tires.

Do you have an expectation of miles on the km3 yet? You did the 30in as I remember?

 

[CID]

Do you have an expectation of miles on the km3 yet? You did the 30in as I remember?

I'm at 3500 now with ~1000 left on the rears (if I don't go to Quartzsite, man that place is mean to tires) -

So ~4500 x two will be ~9k miles on a set of 6. Much better than the 5700 miles I got on the Chicane RX (again 6 tires) I have a slow leak in the RR, that may p*ss me off bad enough to replace the pair early, if I can't locate it. The KM3s were ~$45 per tire more than the K02s - $174 to $222 IIRC. Yes, I'm on 30's.