brake or suspension upgrade first

Ducati Forum

Help Support Ducati Forum:

C

cycler

Joined
Feb 9, 2016
Messages
1,226
Location
Long Island
I have a base 1299. And Ive posted on other brake threads asking brake advice and suspension threads asking suspension advice. Right now Im only able to do 1. Either upgrading my braking system with brembo master cylinders, and caliper or upgrading my front and rear suspension.

Im sure this will be a good thread and debate on what is more important first. I do 8-10 track days a year. The rest is street riding and I swap my 1299 with S1000R and S1000RR so the 1299 isnt my only bike to ride to work during the week. That being said which would you guys recommend to do first and why?
 
Upgrade or not, it's more important to get the suspension sorted for your weight and riding style.

That said, I'd upgrade suspension before brakes. You can always try different brake pads/compounds to better suit your style/favorite track(s) for a lot less than changing components.
 
If you're not experiencing noticeable brake fade and lap times are important to you, then suspension first. Hell, just getting it dialed in would be enough if you're not having problems with the oem suspension. No need to really spend money upgrading unless your at the limits of your suspension. After getting it dialed in properly, if it still doesn't work for you, then you should do suspension.
 
IMHO, I would take care of the suspension first. Since you do track days, suspension makes a world of difference. I am not talking about putting Ohlins forks on your bike. Instead, there are a voluminous number of good guys/companies that can set the correct sag on your suspension. From there, the tech will determine if your spring rate is in the ballpark for your body weight. The tech will determine if there is too much preload to reach the correct sag, which indicates you need stiffer spring(s). If the preload is backed out too far to reach the correct sag, then you are too light for the OEM spring rate. Also, don't overlook installing different valving in the forks. Different characteristics of valving increase or diminish fluid flow which affects pitch when you are braking. If you have any hardcore motocross buddies, some of them may have only changed the valving and/or spring rate. You don't see lots of motocross guys buying an entirely new suspension. Instead, they set the sag and go from there (i.e. spring rate, valving).

With respect to brakes, you can convert to steel braided lines which resist swelling under extreme conditions. Also, I have a friend that raced a factory Yamaha TZ 250 back in the AMA days and he introduced me to Performance Friction brake pads. They are expensive but "wow", do they work!

If you take the time to set the sag, use the correct spring rate, add steel braided lines and get a quality set of brake pads, you should have some great fun at the track. And, none of this should cost you an arm and a leg.

Good luck with your bike. Peace. Highside49
 
double0 said:
If you're not experiencing noticeable brake fade and lap times are important to you, then suspension first. Hell, just getting it dialed in would be enough if you're not having problems with the oem suspension. No need to really spend money upgrading unless your at the limits of your suspension. After getting it dialed in properly, if it still doesn't work for you, then you should do suspension.
Click to expand...

As I was reading what you wrote I thought he is right. Im sure I havent reached the limits of my suspension. I wont lie and say Im a pro on the track either. But I no slouch either. After riding my buddies base 1299 with bitubo drop ins and rear bitubo shock it felt way better. I was going into turns and coming so much better and faster. My lap times decreased. Since my buddy is also a parts dealer he was going to sell me the bitubo front and rear at cost. That price I can justify paying doing up to 10 track days a year and the rest street riding. Retail cost not so much.

Oh after my back and forth with you about the rear sprocket. I went with your set up and the cush drive and DID chain. My buddy ordered me the CNC racing sprocket, carrie and flange.
 
I agree with the others above. Suspension first as it’s important to get it dailed for you and your riding style.

If/when you do the brakes I would change pads first, then maybe MC, and then rotors before I’d spend the big $$$ on calipers. The M50 calipers are plenty good.
 
What are your guys thoughts on the Bitubo front ech29 cartridges and the xxf31 rear shock? My buddy whose bike I rode on the track had the ech29 cartridges and the xxf61 rear shock.
 
Unless you are racing, you do not need to do the brakes.

Go to a suspension tuner and get the suspension dialed in for you.
 
If it was an SV650 there might be a debate on which one first, but on a Panigale no one really "needs" to upgrade the brakes. If you're getting fade on the track, put some Motul RBF-600 fluid in and some SBS pads. If you want "no-brainer" suspension upgrades, you aren't going to go wrong with the Ohlins TTX-GP shock/NIX-30 fork cartridge combo, this is a proven solution, works perfectly every time, has wide industry support with a large network of dealers and tuners who know how to set it up, comes sprung for you so all you do is install, and then get your preload dialed in/tuned. If you have a competent local suspension tuner/shop to do it, even better. Every other solution out there is measured against Ohlins, and some work just as well (Mupo for example). I've never found anything that works BETTER than Ohlins, and I've tried lots of different things over the years.
 
Im all for Ohlins as well if your going to rely on others to tune them for your riding style tyre setup and weight, as Jarel mentioned there is a lot of NIX 30 and TTX knowledge. That's why I chose Ohlins and at some stage if you need to sell the bike or just the suspension they'll be more saleable.

On your original question I'd say suspension upgrade before brakes for sure.

It's going to be a nice ride when your done, or are we ever done? :)
 
double0 said:
If you're not experiencing noticeable brake fade and lap times are important to you, then suspension first. Hell, just getting it dialed in would be enough if you're not having problems with the oem suspension. No need to really spend money upgrading unless your at the limits of your suspension. After getting it dialed in properly, if it still doesn't work for you, then you should do suspension.
Click to expand...

If you needed to change out the front or rear suspension first for financial reasons which would you go with first. The rear shock or the front suspension? Im going back and forth with the Bittubo or Ohlins. Since I have the base 1299 how do the fork cartridges compare to a full ohlins full fork set up? Or would the cartridges be fine if Im only tracking the bike up 10 times a year and the rest is street riding.
 
My front forks were shot so i went with the fgrt203 forks. Did I have to? No. I got a warranty replacement of my marzocchi forks but decided to leave them in the box. My upgrade reasons are for bling factor only. Cartridges are just fine if you wanna save a few hundred. If suspension is a must for you, rear shock first for sure.
 
Do the one that's causing you a issue . What's wrong with the brakes you will hard pushed to out ride them .
 
wilkson said:
Do the one that's causing you a issue . What's wrong with the brakes you will hard pushed to out ride them .
Click to expand...

Ill do the rear suspension first and upgrade my brake pads. Im getting a nice deal on the bitubo. But if I decide to go with the ohlins rear is it worth the extra money for the DU 466 over the previous generation DU 360? Ive seen nice deals on the DU360 rear shock. Im no pro on the track and Im not a novice but is there a huge difference between the DU466 and DU360 that someone like me would notice besides the DU466 being the newer model
 
cycler said:
Ill do the rear suspension first and upgrade my brake pads. Im getting a nice deal on the bitubo. But if I decide to go with the ohlins rear is it worth the extra money for the DU 466 over the previous generation DU 360? Ive seen nice deals on the DU360 rear shock. Im no pro on the track and Im not a novice but is there a huge difference between the DU466 and DU360 that someone like me would notice besides the DU466 being the newer model
Click to expand...

Brake pad up grade is a good move I have been using the EBC GPFAX race pad which I like might not be great on the street might run a bit cold .
I would go with the upgrade shock I know with my DU360 I had it re valved as it wasn't great I would think the upgrade would have fixed that issue but not sure .
Upgrade stuff as you see fit no point spending money if you don't need to .
 
wilkson said:
Brake pad up grade is a good move I have been using the EBC GPFAX race pad which I like might not be great on the street might run a bit cold .
I would go with the upgrade shock I know with my DU360 I had it re valved as it wasn't great I would think the upgrade would have fixed that issue but not sure .
Upgrade stuff as you see fit no point spending money if you don't need to .
Click to expand...

what brake pads would you recommend as an upgrade that would be a middle ground for street and track riding. Youre right about the rear shock. If the DU466 fixed the issue then Ill take a look at it and the bitubo xxf31
 
I have give thumbs up to Ohlins USA. Obviously their performance is top notch. But more importantly, as big as they are, they have always answered my calls, responded to my emails regarding setup, spring rates..

I had sent a set of forks in for repair, they were on top of it through out, took time explained everything to me, kept me updated on progress.
 
DucatiTerminator said:
Upgrade or not, it's more important to get the suspension sorted for your weight and riding style.

That said, I'd upgrade suspension before brakes. You can always try different brake pads/compounds to better suit your style/favorite track(s) for a lot less than changing components.
Click to expand...

+1^^
 

Similar threads

C
Brembo RCS Corta Corsa + Hyp 950 SP
Replies
0
Views
56
Curly
C
J
Need opinions
Replies
9
Views
420
Jg327
J
K
Ducati 1299S
Replies
8
Views
367
PerfectGnome
P
S
For Sale 2017 1299 base - complete part out (second thread)
Replies
7
Views
265
SirJAG
S
S
  • Locked
SOLD! 2017 1299 base - COMPLETE PART OUT
2
Replies
36
Views
1K
SirJAG
S

Register CTA

Register on Ducati Forum! This sidebar will go away, and you will see fewer ads.

Recent Discussions

Recent Discussions

Back
Top