FE/FC Looking for suggestions for sag settings 16 501s

The technical data portion of my owners manual suggest a static sag of 30mm and a Riding sag of 100mm.
WP website as you see says differently at 35 and 112 but I do realize they don't specify S model and it (the non-S) may have different valving (something over my head at this point) what do you guys recommend?

I have stock 4cs forks and springs and weigh 160lbs without gear so I'm on the light side for the springrate and the bodyweight is spread thin at 6'2". I'm not too picky but would like to set my bike up right for maximum stability, control, etc.

Btw, as she sits the current static sag is 34mm and rider sag is unknown because I have had nobody help me measure. Anyways, I'm just trying to gain knowledge before I visit my mechanic to help me put new shoes on her feet. Figured I could dial in my sag while we're there.

I liked mine at 106-108.

Set the sag with you on it, and then check the static which will tell you how your spring rate looks.

2015 501 FE. OEM spring, forget the spec, it is the middle of the three spring rates in the manual, I am at the edge of the max weight, I weigh 185 in street gear, with another 20 lbs in a back pack, I set the sag at 105 with stock spring up front and tubes to the bottom line in the t-clamps. I have to think it was set at 100 from the factory, the bike didn't turn very well, huge improvement. I will probably go anther full turn when I load it with soft bags. Static was 34. Measurements were done with an electronic reader and my suspension tuner, so very accurate.

Appreciate your guys' input. I'm planning on replacing stock tires with the GT216AA up front and Pirelli Scorpion Rally behind and then checking/setting sag. These tired are bigger than OEM so it makes sense that installing may alter the bikes geometry somewhat. I'm really excited to try this Fatty that I have read so much about!

No excuses,, here you go

https://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/1056/67048/Motool-Slacker-Digital-Sag-Scale-with-Auto-Zero

Powerlift,,,, maybe if it wasn't soo expensive but I would store it out of sight near the moped. At least the sag scale is needed if you live alone.

Well guys, still no power lift in the garage, but this handy tool showed up today!

I have one of those. great for a single guy!

I'm married with kids... It's just easier this way lol. I haven't been out to my bikes yet but it'll be nice to finally know where the sag has been set.

Not meant as a single not married guy but a person that does work by himself.

My sag numbers have been pretty far off from where they should be so I'm looking for some sound advise. I'm over 6' tall, only 160lbs, 180 pounds with riding gear.

So I measured my sag without any gear and got a measly 90mm race sag, 39mm static sag.

With my DS gear on I measured 94mm-100mm race (depending on body position) and 36mm static.

So I rotated my shock two full rotations which brought my race sag into spec at 100-106mm but now the static or free sag is even higher at 42mm.

I'm sure I'm just too light for the stock fe501s rear shock but I'm trying to gain weight!

So rather than swap springs, where might I find the best performance until I manage to gain 10+ pounds?

sounds like you're pretty close and IIRC from my 15 501s, you should be pretty close to being in the range of the stock spring.

you can experiment with your sag until you find a setting that you like for your type and style of riding. I think most like these bikes somewhere between 105-110, but that doesn't mean you will, but 107ish is a good starting point.

also, another thing to keep in mind is that the HS comp setting on your shock will have some degree of overlap with the sag, as it will affect ride height a bit also.

I posted this over on TT to get more input as CH seems pretty low on traffic lately.. At least in this 4T Austrian forum. Anyway,
The only problem with the stock suspension is a lack of traction.. But I feel that's pretty normal for a light guy on a 500. I've never messed with tuning before, I just like to read up on bike stuff and ride a lot but I'm hoping to put my learning to good use..

Will increasing/decreasing the high speed compression help even out the gap?

It's been raining, and today is my wife an I's 6th wedding anniversary so it's hard to say right now if I've made my bike handle better or worse just looking at the numbers.

i agree CH is kinda slow sometimes...but we can liven things up a bit!

One thing to keep in mind as you start changing settings, any change in setting that causes an improvement in one area can cause a possible decrease in performance in another area. i.e. a bike setup for desert is not going to be awesome for tight mountain single track. so you have to have in mind a target of what you want your bike to be good at. Or are you trying to cover multiple areas with one setting as best you can?

and for traction issues, first off, tire type, pressure and condition are a huge variable in traction so are you confident that those are dialed? if you're looking for traction on dry hardpack dirt and you are at 25psi with a sand tire, you need to change that before you start chasing suspension settings. and really, you can find pretty big change in traction with just a couple of psi change in your tire. there is a BIG difference in 15 vs 12 psi, although either could be ideal depending on riding conditions. How often do you check your tire pressure, and what are you running it at?

Not to mention body positioning and throttle control. Huge factors. Ever seen a vid of graham jarvis climb a hill while passing like 40 other guys who stalled out and couldn't make it? its not really because of his suspension or tires, although his bike setup is pretty much excellent in every way. Its mostly due his body position/throttle control skills that allow him to find traction where almost no one else can.

But yeah, your suspension settings can/will change the character of the bike possibly drastically, and the more specifically you can define your problem the better.

Suspension wise, for lack of traction, or any other issue you run into, a few more specifics would be helpful to figure what change you might want to try.

Such as:
which end of the bike: do you mean front, rear or both?
under what condition: while accelerating, braking, cornering, power sliding, or something else?
on what type terrain: level ground, uphill, downhill, off-camber
what kind of dirt: hard pack, loam, gravel, roots, sand, loose rock, slick rock, pavement, etc
moisture level of the dirt: wet, mud, groomed perfect MX track, dry hardpack, or mixed

My rear tire is the one losing traction, and I only really mind it on steep hills from 0mph when it just spins and digs a hole behind me. Then I get way over the back to try to weight it and loop out.. Lol or on offcamber rocky uphill runs when the rear slips and down the hill we slide.
My tire could be the problem too. I replaced the stock one with a 150width Pirelli Scorpion Rally tire 200 miles ago. It's lugs are all parallel, no patterns or whatever we are used to seeing on mx tires. It is supposed to be a great DS tire and excellent hillclimb tire but so far I disagree. I usually run 20+psi until i get off-road and then I use a good gauge to drop it down between 10-15psi depending on conditions. Since I don't like this tire much at all I am thinking I should try it at like 7-8psi and look for improved grip at the expense of increased wear (who cares)
I ride whatever I can find up here and it's mostly 4x4 trails and creek beds. Its typically very rocky, hardpack, some sand washes, mostly it's wet and slippery, summer time it gets real dry. Basically I ride everything besides a well groomed MX track because there are none within 4 hrs of me. I am trying to find a good baseline to work well all-around, that I can basically fine tune if need be for specific conditions outside of what I described.

dude, sounds to me like the scenario you are describing is about 95% technique for finding traction. tire type/pressure about 4%, suspension setting about 1%...I'm picturing you starting from 0mph, uphill, with one or both feet on the ground.

the rally tires do last a while, but are generally heavy, and are usually pretty stiff which means for tire compliance you can probably run lower pressure on the scorp rally than you would on a lighter tire...