The first thing that most Ruckus enthusiasts want to do is get
that front end as low as possible. It is a great thing to look at but
many go about the wrong way of doing it. The most common thing to do for
the first time home builder is to modify the OEM shocks. This lets them
get a lowered bike without having to change over to a disc brake. The
first thing that gets done is cutting the OEM Honda Spring. While
inexpensive, cutting a spring not only lowers the bike but will also
change the front spring rate. This is bad because usually it makes the
front end too soft and easy to bottom out. Once you bottom out, you have
no control and will probably have better luck riding a pedal bike on
ice. If the spring can't control the wheel travel, it is useless and
with that train of thought the other thing done is to completely remove
the springs, which is just as dumb an idea as it sounds. Look, I
understand the want of stance, but you have to have control of the bike
even at just 40 MPH. Lower springs do exist outside of Honda, but you do
have to do some research.
So, you want to spend the right money and buy aftermarket forks. Well, the market is full of great products and very bad ones, too. I won't name names or product lines, but I will tell you what to try to look out for. The biggest thing about forks is how they are dampened. What I mean is what controls the spring from springing back and forth, you that law of "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." It is not uncommon to see scooter forks with no dampening control at all. At the speeds most scooters see, especially an unmodified Ruckus GET engine, dampening control isn't important. However, as you modify and start to go faster on any scooter dampening becomes more and more important. The next most common dampening control on scooters is air. Air is easy to come by, free in most places, and is something that can be adjusted on the fly. Need stiffer forks, add more air. Need something softer, take out some air. You can't get any easier than that. Just be sure that the air you use is dry or try using nitrogen.
The least common, and very expensive to boot, is fluid dampened forks. There aren't many on the market for scooters. Again, the speeds that most scooters see do not require extreme types of dampening. However, if you are running yours at very high highway speeds or plan on going off road at high speeds, you may want to try and find a set. Control at these speeds and conditions are crucial and if your forks are not damped or under-dampened, you could be setting yourself up for loss of control. Remember, when you hit a bump with just the spring, it will continue to bound and unbound until all energy is lost. Just like a basketball, your tire will also bound and unbound and will not contact the surface as it is supposed to. That means you don't have complete control and, again, is not a good thing to be in.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dravor_Spencer
So, you want to spend the right money and buy aftermarket forks. Well, the market is full of great products and very bad ones, too. I won't name names or product lines, but I will tell you what to try to look out for. The biggest thing about forks is how they are dampened. What I mean is what controls the spring from springing back and forth, you that law of "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." It is not uncommon to see scooter forks with no dampening control at all. At the speeds most scooters see, especially an unmodified Ruckus GET engine, dampening control isn't important. However, as you modify and start to go faster on any scooter dampening becomes more and more important. The next most common dampening control on scooters is air. Air is easy to come by, free in most places, and is something that can be adjusted on the fly. Need stiffer forks, add more air. Need something softer, take out some air. You can't get any easier than that. Just be sure that the air you use is dry or try using nitrogen.
The least common, and very expensive to boot, is fluid dampened forks. There aren't many on the market for scooters. Again, the speeds that most scooters see do not require extreme types of dampening. However, if you are running yours at very high highway speeds or plan on going off road at high speeds, you may want to try and find a set. Control at these speeds and conditions are crucial and if your forks are not damped or under-dampened, you could be setting yourself up for loss of control. Remember, when you hit a bump with just the spring, it will continue to bound and unbound until all energy is lost. Just like a basketball, your tire will also bound and unbound and will not contact the surface as it is supposed to. That means you don't have complete control and, again, is not a good thing to be in.
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