KaiB

Yes, the lower nuber is softer. You want to be near the highest of whatever range you get for track work.

The H&R bars should have two holes for adjustment. Set them at the outers, this ain't "full soft" at all; why create an issue until you have a good feel for the car beneath you.

FWIW - the H&R bars remain as indicated above on my race car now, as they did prior to the build (i.e. in it's "street" version). I ran PSS10s on it back then and the car worked very well indeed.

Veloce Raptor

I am not sure that stiff of settings are a good starting point for Putnam, but whatever...

KaiB

On the PSS9's, that's not that stiff at all.

KJM9

Thanks for the feedback. Can you explain your thinking? I am familiar with Putnam, but not familiar with optimizing suspension settings. Want to learn more, however.

Cheers,

Matt Romanowski

A great $2.99 to spend to learn about shocks http://drivercoach.net/ebooks/

trygve

I don't believe this correct. On the PSS9's higher numbers dial in increasing softness. #1 is the stiffest setting. #9 is the softest. Think of them as being naturally really stiff (compared to stock). Then you can dial in more softness by cranking up the number. And usually you'll want very little if any of that for the track.

Veloce Raptor

IMO on a relatively bumpy track (IIRC) you want a relatively supple car.

KJM9

Thanks!

I will also check out the e-book on shocks.

KaiB

I stand corrected.

Any and all advice I've given here should not be considered and I'll do my best to keep my litle mouth shut for a while.

Perhaps as much as a week or so...sorry David.

ProCoach

The E-book from Ross is your best resource.

Instead of taking other's recommendations, it's not too difficult to begin schooling yourself. Sounds like you're open to that and on your way, so good deal!

I know that for many, suspension tuning is a black art, and much of it depends on the individual control input rate and amplitude of the loose nut behind the wheel.

I hear more fairy tales about "setups" and specifically shock settings around the paddock and on forums than anywhere else.

This is why I've sold a TON of shock pots, AiM and MoTeC measuring hardware in order to allow drivers to OBJECTIVELY set the damper settings, instead of guess...

I like a softer car, generally. I love mechanical grip. But the faster the car, the more stable the platform has to become, especially when aero is involved.

Take a look at Michael Krumm's new book "Driving on the Edge" too. Full of good, factual advice.

Cheyenne

So, if one doesn't have access to measure things objectively, is there a subjective feel one can aim for, that gets one closest to what the data would tell you is the better setup?

For instance, I had a car with (very mildly) adjustable shocks. I could make the car really stable, but kinda dull, or less stable, but more "pointable" and lively feeling.

I know I like the car more lively, but if I was being timed at a track, would I be more likely to turn a faster lap with the dull feeling setup or the lively feeling setup? Does that sort of subjective feeling ever lead anywhere, or is it always just a mess of the subjective obscuring what objective data would tell you?

I realize that there is always a point at which data can tell you more, but I figure the closer you can get before you start using hard data, the more meaningful the data might be.

ProCoach

Understand completely, but I would use Ross' guidelines (very clearly addresses what subjectively to look for and how to evaluate it) in his E-book as a start.

Sort of like "testing," which most drivers use as gratuitous, additional track time. By integrating a simple plan (Test, change, test, change, test, change, then write it all down so you remember what happens), you can really achieve much more.

Matt Romanowski

I don't have a ton of data from my shocks, but I have found the data to be very good in confirming what I'm feeling. It's nice to be able to make a change, feel the difference in the car, then look at the data to see what it looks like quantitatively.

Cheyenne

I read the ebook, I believe it answered my question. Edit: I'll expound...Don't ask what your car can do for you, ask what you can do for your car!

I also read the other one at the site, the Mental Imagery Guide...which was very good. I highly recommend it.

Also just got Krumm's book in the mail today, haven't gotten very far, seems alright. I like his attitude.

KJM9

Thanks for the advice. Liked the E-book. Will try Michael Krumm's book as well.