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Question: When I adjust the compression dampening screw for the rear shock (the screw on top) nothing changes. I click it all the way to full hard and when I push down on the seat it feels the same as if it was full soft. Now when I adjust the rebound dampening screw (the screw on the bottom) to full hard and then push the seat down, the bike just stays down and takes a long time to return to its original position. This is what I would expect. So why is it not harder to push the set down when the compression dampener is set to full hard? Is my thinking way off here or do I perhaps have a bad canister or leak somewhere? Thanks for the help fellas.

It's for high speed hits. Not slow sitting on you @ss hits....

What the nice man is trying to say..............

In suspension land there are HSC and LSC.

High Speed Compression and Low Speed Compression movements.

It's not the mph your moving, either..it's shock speed (fork speed..whatever).


Consider a sharp edged rise (tree on the trail, rock) to be high speed and a braking whoop to be low speed.

You're not going to compress it fast enough by hand to be HSC. Well... sorta. Smack it real hard and you might get the idea.

In any case, you cannot 'feel' compression adjustments as easily by bouncing the bike up and down as you can see rebound adjustments doing the same thing.

Try it maxxed both ways with a test ride over some rough/varied stuff. You should easily feel the difference.

Shocks are sensitive to a poor maintenance schedule. If yours is a few years old and has never been serviced, it prolly doesn't do much of anything it's supposed to.

The nice man says, 'Thanks for asking.'

Thanks CC...the KDX only has one compression adjuster on the shock, yes? Would this be HSC, LSC, or "both"?

It is LSC. The adjustable NUT is the HSC, which the KDX KYB's don't have.

Thanks for asking!!!

Because I realized I (again) spewed forth without thinking.

A correction is in order.

IF a shock has an HSC adjustment, it will have a moveable nut AROUND the screw. The slotted screw is LSC.

LSC is basically a needle-tipped screw moving further into/out of a hole. An adjustable check valve sort of thing.

HSC is basically coming from the stack setup..and, strictly speaking is NOT externally adjustable.

Before anyone starts yelling at me..realize that the whole mess (any sort of valving) largely overlaps. External HSC adjustment is generally considered to be the upper end of the LSC range.

Got a headache, yet?

Read THIS!

Oh...the clickers are LSC!

HSC adjusters (the nut) don't click.

A btw...but the LSC clicker moves WITH the HSC adjustment..but that does NOT change the LSC adjustment!



My point was (and still is) that it is harder to 'feel' compression adjustments than it is to 'observe' rebound adjustments. In the KYB anyway. Not all (you knew THIS was coming) shocks are the same in that regard.

IF there is NO CHANGE with the clicker at the edges of adjustment, your shock has a problem. It is either so far past a reasonable service date that the whole mess is plugged up with crud, or a hamfisting of the screw has taken place..and it's ruined.

THANK YOU for asking the question!! I am abashed, ashamed and otherwise mortified that I didn't catch the error in the first place!!

AND...I see that I took so long looking up backup for all of this that brad spoke up and made it simple.

He's right.

During my tuning of the Showa shock to take the edge off the acceleration bumps I ended up actually increasing the HSC 1/4 turn and decreasing the LSC 2 clicks. And this took the LS feel back to original. They overlap and affect each other more than I thought. Now I have a wider level of adjustability that I never had before. I can tune one area and not sacrifice the other. I can have my beer and drink it too.

Thanks for all the input fellas. Looks like I need to take a closer look at the rear spring/shock and get it serviced. I do know it is the original rear suspension (2001 KDX220) and not sure if it has been serviced. I have all winter to tear the bike down as I live in Michigan and we are blessed with cold weather and snow for about 3 -4 months. I hate it.

Things could be worse....

Uh........

Well..........


...give me a minute...................

I know!! You could live in Minnesota!!!

That's true. At least we have the Michigan Wolverines, the Red Wings, the Pistons, and we had the Tigers. We won't talk about the Lions though. Actually, I plan on riding my KDX in the snow. Should be fun.