Check out the original Huck Valve Article!

The latest news letter comes to you from the Indy Trade Show and was finished a little less than a week later. It is always a challenge getting the show torn down and on the road so we can be back in the shop on Tuesday without missing a shift.

I have to say the best thing about the 2010 show is the task I started right after the 2009 show, when Jody Weisel asked me to do a CRF450 for MXA. I was already working on the “witch’s broom” and figured I would have it figured out soon enough. Jody gave me a hell of an opportunity to show what my little company can do. Almost 12 months later we got to see the article for the first time here at the show. As MXA pointed out, the Honda CRF450 (or any 2010 CRF) is not just a suspension test, it is a whole bike solution if you want the bike to handle. So we focused on fixing the handing issue through chassis change and then addressed the suspension issues, and implemented a few new pieces of technology.

The SSBCV or HUCK VALVE came about when I traveled to Texas for the launch of our BSIX5 fork at Oak Hill, I went riding and one night at the “Badlands” I about broke my wrist when I put the front wheel in a chuck hole on the backside of one of the jumps. I had contemplated doing something with a speed sensitive bottoming control before but- I knew the moment was at hand when I followed it up (in the same hole), a lap later.

The age old issue of fork bottoming control has been dealt with many ways through the years, but it’s always been the same basic versions of existing tuning. With the exception of the bumper fork by KYB, and that was met with very mixed reviews.

• You can run stiffer valving or way stiffer springs but your bike rides like a tank.
• You can run larger oil volumes but your fork gets wicked midstroke harshness as the air spring becomes overly progressive.
• You can run a bigger oil lock and piston, but then you get very harsh high-speed bottoming control reaction with lots of travel left unutilized.

What we needed was something that was softer than a V-squared tapered packing device set-up currently used for high-speed bottoming, but something much stiffer when the fork was moving slowly. That’s the classic example of speed sensitivity.

Being the PDS Guy that I am, I was instantly thinking about a PDS type set-up, and I tested many versions.  I tested needles and 1.5 designs before the best solution become clear in my mind.

The HUCK VALVE uses a special Patent Pending valve in parallel with a specially designed cylinder that allows it to be both position and speed sensitive.

The SSBCV or “HUCK VALVE is the first new idea in fork bottoming control that we feel will allow fork design and tuning to evolve. It is soft when it needs to be, and stiff when you need control.

MXA left us to do the follow up work to the bike test, and we were happy to oblige. The core of the test can be divided into chassis work and suspension tuning.

Chassis changes include changing the stock 20mm offset clamps to 24mm clamps. Rick Johnson of TOOTECH has a great explanation as to why the 24mm offset works better. We also recommend a longer linkage arm. The longer arm slows the shock movement through the entire stroke reducing the weighting of the front wheel and allowing the shock to follow the ground under braking without requiring the valving to be softened to the point where the bike becomes unstable in rolling whoops and jump faces. (Stepping out and swapping are typical symptoms of shortened shocks with softer valving.) The final element of the chassis changes includes running the wheel as far forward as possible. This wheel placement efficiently reduced the weight of front wheel improving mass centralization and improving the balance of the Honda.

We have been working with Applied Racing and have a triple clamp package that includes a new linkage so you can get the clamps and linkage as a package if purchased from MXT.

We choose the E7 gas system for several reasons. The CRF’s require a relatively stiff fork set-up to deal with the chassis weighting. The E7 gas system allows running relatively firm settings, while reducing the harshness caused by friction and compounding of spring and air spring effect of the stock fork. This in simple terms means more control and stability with less harshness. The E7 is the perfect mod for the CRF that must be relatively firm.

We did DLC coating to the fork tubes to further reduce friction and improve longevity of the tube surface and bushings. The DLC coated tubes wear much longer without abrasions or scratches caused by typical use. 

As MXA pointed out we needed to do more than just revlave the shock, we honed the shock body with a Levitated Aluminum hone. The honing process reduces the shock stiction and allows the shock to follow the ground better.

We want to thank the following companies for all there help in putting this test together. MXA, Hinson, FMF, Tucker Rocky, Service Honda, HDR, Applied Racing, Twin Air, SDG, Pro Graph-X, Motorex and Injectioneering.  My lead technician Abe Styburski needs a special thanks for all work he did turning our 1 year old test mule into a show piece. Well done Gentlemen. 

If you want your CRF to handle predictably, with greater comfort so you can enjoy the positive attributes of your CRF consider the following.

Chassis set-up: Clamps, linkage.
Revalving with the E7 and Huck Valve, honing and shaft Jet.
Fancy add on's: DLC

We are here to help, and can say one rider to another, your CRF can be an awesome machine. Let’s talk. wilkey@mx-tech.com, richard.s@mx-tech.com