Hard or soft spring?
These springs fit the following Oset models:
12.5 Eco, 12.5 Racing, 16.0 Eco, 16,0 Racing, 20.0 Lite, 20.0 Eco, 20.0 Racing and 20.0 Racing MKII
Does NOT fit:
- 12.5 Spider and 16.0 Spider up to 2013 model
- 24.0 Racing Senior and Junior
From factory, all 20.0 OSETs are equipped with a harder spring to be on tha safe side.
Generally the following applies: hard springs and strong shocks prevent the suspension elements from bpottoming out and keeps the vehicle steady at higher speeds.
For Trial the exact opposite is advantageous: you never ride fast enough for the stability of the bike to be a factor. Even pros hve their compression on the forks and shocks adjusted very soft.
The following is much more important:
a.) The strength of the spring helps lift the front wheel and the rear wheel, which is necessary to get over obstacles. The rider pushes down on the foot rests and thereby compresses the suspension, with the result that the suspension immediately opens up again (the spring relaxes) and the bike is pushed up and forward. The rider at this moment pulls on the handlebars and/or weights the rear wheel and/or accelerates.
If the spring is too hard in relation to the rider, then the suspension cannot be suficiently compressed and therfore offers the rider no support.
b.) It is especially important for beginners riders to ride a bike that reacts very easily and responsively tothe riders commands. If the spring is too hard and there is no response from the bike when the rider weightzs the foot rests, then the rider is left with an insecure feeling and there is no learn effect.
The original installed springs:
- OSET 12.5 Eco / Racing: 250 lbs
- OSET 16.0 Eco / Racing: 250 lbs
- OSET 20.0 Lite: 450 lbs
- OSET 20.0 Eco / Racing / MKII: 650 lbs
These are our recommendations dependant on rider weight:
- up to 25 kg: 250 lbs
- 25 - 30 kg: 350 lbs
- 30 - 35 kg: 450 lbs
- 35 - 40 kg: 550 lbs
- 40 - 45 kg: 650 lbs
How do I know whether the spring is too hard:
If the rider weights the foot rests or jumps off a pallet and the distance between the rear fender and the wheel stays the same, then the spriong is too hard. Tip: Make a video in slow motion to see how the suspension reacts.
Ideally, the rider should be able to almost completely compress the rear spring by simply jumping on the OET while the bike is standing still. The can be viewed by watching the rear fender.
PS: The same applies to the front forks. The air cushion can be adjusted with the help of a MTB fork pump, to adjust the forks to the correct pressure. The same applies here: hwen jumping on the OSET, the forks should almost compress completely.
CAUTION: the suspension should only bottom out once per training. If the suspension bottoms out more than once, then the spring is too soft, or the air in the forks is too low.
Spring length 82 mm, suitable for original OSET shocks with a total length of 165 mm.
