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Racetech Emulators

timothy st.john

timothy st.john

Cruisin' Guzzisti
Joined
Oct 28, 2014
Messages
134
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15
Location
Vancouver
Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if anyone is running RaceTech 'emulators' on their V7. They never replied to my email which asked simply if they had an emulator that was suitable for a 2014 Moto Guzzi V7 with Kaifa forks.

I like the idea of being able to easily adjust the compression without effecting the rebound, because 'mess inducing' maintenance is difficult in my urban townhouse complex.

Ill be ordering a Matris fork spring kit from Todd as soon as I've got a read on the stock unit, and I would want to do the install all at the same time.

Thanks!

Timothy St. John
 
I used them on my 2012 V7 Racer. They work pretty well for what they are. There is nothing "easy" about adjusting them. You need to remove the fork caps, the springs, then reach down through the oil to lift them out with a grabber of some sort.

By the way, when you install them, you need to remove the damping tube in the bottom of the fork (the bolt is visible on the very bottom of the fork), and drill new holes in the tube. You're basically rendering it ineffective so that the emulator can do all the work. The process involves removing the forks from the bike. All-in-all it's not a bad job, but perhaps not something you want to do in your "urban house complex".
 
Hi John,

Thanks very much for the reply. I actually learned about the installation modifications, but had since forgotten about them (despite their physical necessity) in my zealousness to purchase instant gratification. Does 'working pretty well' translate as barely perceptable improvement? I wonder if this mod only reveals itself under greater than normal fork duress. What do you think?

Timothy St. John
 
The intent with the product is to "emulate" cartridge forks. I would have to say, they don't hit the mark. However, they are an improvement over standard damper rod forks (which is what you have). I can't believe how many times I took them out of the forks to make adjustments. I ended up drilling a couple extra holes in the valve plate after talking to Racetech (there are dimples in the plate to aid with the process). The problem was lack of movement for small road imperfections. It handled the big ones well (the whole valve opens), but little ones were troublesome. Drilling the holes did the trick.

Is it a worthwhile modification? Yes.
 
Thanks John, agreed. I've installed many here. The Mupo kit for Marzocchi forks is pretty amazing out of the box, and the Matris kit for Kaifa forks with a flow-valve is very good too once finely tuned. Both require nothing but draining the forks, dropping the parts in, and refilling. A nice leap from RT's 'drill and tinker' tuning... not that they can't be made to work very well.
 
I'll report back in a bit. We installed RT kit in my Stone-but it's still winter here!
We're going to school on my bike to get proper baselines.
 
Thanks for updating this thread.

John reawakened my concerns about this product. I value his opinion, and he seems to have had rather less success with this product than I would have hoped for given Todd's opinion on Race Tech.

As serious riding is still a ways off for us fair weather riders, I would appreciate further updates on your experience.

Timothy St. John

P.S. If I knew anything, I would share it, but I'm a neophyte where Guzzi is concerned.
 
My buddy Jim has been a RT set up guy for quite a while. So, what the heck. We'll all learn something along the way. Happy to share what I'll experience for the greater good.

If it turns out anything like my Tiger 1050 I'll be more than pleased-but my Triumph is adjustable for pre-load, tension, and compression. Not the V7.
 
Thanks! I like the theory behind the device. Let's hope it plays out in practice. Good luck! Hope to hear soon about your success.

Timothy St. John
 
I'm a dealer for RaceTech, and I've got to know the current Techs there as I visit almost once a month. The emulators are very good when finely tuned, so I won't take away from them as they have proven themselves over a very long time now.
The downside is installation (mostly complete disassembly and drilling out the damper rods), and fine tuning with oil and spring tension on the emulator itself (along with also drilling out the emulator orifices as John noted earlier).
Both the Mupo and Matris kits are drop in, and go... and the Matris kit offers near mandatory and very cool adjustable spring preload caps, which is critical in proper suspension set up.
 
These work terrifically well for the Honda Hawk GT crowd and did a nice job for me. However, there were hundreds of guys who tried them over a lot of years and ultimately all the details about drilling the rods, oil weight and adjustment was fine tuned.
 
Drummer said:
These work terrifically well for the Honda Hawk GT crowd and did a nice job for me. However, there were hundreds of guys who tried them over a lot of years and ultimately all the details about drilling the rods, oil weight and adjustment was fine tuned.
Click to expand...
How far back do you go with the Hawk? I raced one in the early 90's, as was on the ListServ HawkGT group as 'RacerX' - hence a hidden part of my screen name here.
Again, yes the emulators work, they just rely heavily on knowledge and willingness to tune them... as well as install them and the labor that is involved.
 
GT-Rx® said:
How far back do you go with the Hawk? I raced one in the early 90's, as was on the ListServ HawkGT group as 'RacerX' - hence a hidden part of my screen name here.
Again, yes the emulators work, they just rely heavily on knowledge and willingness to tune them... as well as install them and the labor that is involved.
Click to expand...

I was on the original list in the late eighties for about 15 years or so. Went to all the ECHR and FEHR rallies and designed most of the rally T-shirts. A wonderful bike and a great bunch of guys. The List has morphed into the HawkGTforum but there are still a few of the old guys around. In fact, in the last year or so a few of the old guys have come back. Hard to the Hawk out of your blood. A bike before it's time.
 
Hello,

Had a Hawk myself. Great bike, well ahead of the market. Sold it to my friend when I went Harley for a while. He still rides it; stock! For reference, I dumped the Harley only two years into it.

Timothy St. John
 
Hi everyone,


It is time for me to move on the V7's suspension, so I was hoping to reengage the King of Fleece to learn of his experience with the Race Tech Emulator Kit that he had proposed for his bike. When last you posted you were too much gripped by winter, so I hope that spring has sprung, and that you have some experience to share.


John had some very good feedback (thanks for that John), but the temperate nature of that recommendation cooled my hobbyist enthusiasm for the Race Tech route. But, Todd believes in the brand (and that means something), more so it seems than language in current posts support. I wonder, might not better results some how be won by some alchemy of tuning than are yet realized?


I know that the Mupo doesn't fit (which is a shame, because its advocates are passionate), and that the Matris is 'pretty' good, by which its proponents seem to mean that it is better than stock, but I'm concerned about the lack of passion posted alongside the descriptions of the Matris's effects.


I would rather make a greater effort to win a greater reward, than pursue mere utility through economy if such can be had. I don't believe in things supernatural, but I do believe in synergy and synchronicity. Some things just work brilliantly when dialled in perfectly, but only modestly when fractionally mistuned.


Hope to hear soon! Thanks for the courtesy of an education.


Timothy St. John
 
Feeling rich? Money to throw at your bike?

No one mentions Traxxion - http://www.traxxion.com/index.cfm - (and having exactly zero experience with them I can neither recommend nor disparage their products or services).

They sell a cartridge kit they would need to custom fit to your forks - http://www.traxxion.com/AK-20-Axxion-Cartridge-Kit/

You could do some research on the company and talk to them about your ... desires.

I am certainly tempted to do so but there are limits to my wife's indulgences.

Or for at least twice that much $$$ you could get these guys - http://revivalcycles.com - to carve some custom triple-clamps and you could mount Ohlins USD forks.
 
OK. 1400 miles on the bike. The RT kit is ok-but just ok. Nowhere near as nice as my Tiger 1050 front end. I'll fiddle with them some at the end of the season's oil change for forks. I'd go with external adjustments if I was you knowing how these worked. MUCH better than stock but that's not saying much.
 
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