# Proper set up for agressive trail riding..



## mjn (Feb 20, 2012)

Looking for some advice from those of you that trail ride your Brutes a lot..

Right now, my 09 is completely stock. I've cranked the preload up on all 4 corners to flatten it out for dirt/gravel drifting and to ease steering effort, but obviously that doesn't do much for rough off-roading..

*Tires/wheels; Gonna go with either Grim Reapers or Terra Crosses on 12" SS212's. I figure 12's are smarter ... more rubber between the rocks and the wheel..

*Clutching; With 1100 miles on it, it is time to pull apart the belt side and see what the deflection is. I figure since I'm in there, I'll change the springs to something that better matches my riding style and the 26" tires I'll be putting on it.

*Suspension; I just spend part of a day in an area near me called Juniper Dunes. Awesome place.. but I found out quickly that it is not set up well at all for the woops.. Just too darned stiff. I know adjustable shocks will help.... but how much? Is there a downside to them? (other than the cost :aargh4: )

Elka's look seriously cool.. but what differences will I notice? There are other brands out there as well; Works, and Fox are the other two I've seen.. Who has had experience with these?

I'm no racer, but tend to ride fairly agressively on trails & would like my suspension to soak up the bumps better..

What do ya think?


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## brute for mud (Jul 15, 2010)

As far as clutching I would go with a black secondary and maybe a pink primary these are Epi springs


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

I consider myself as a serious trail rider and I found the 26" Grim Reapers to be the best I ever had. I run the 26x9/11x14s on 14x8 SS112 wheels. As for clutching, I do trails, hills, high-country riding and desert and after several years of testing and trials, I have settled on the pink primary,almond secondary, and a balanced set of 56 gram weights and always keep the deflection between 22 & 24mms. I also went with the Precession Pro steering stabilizer. Best investment I ever made for my shoulders and overall control. As for shocks, well all will make a big difference but Elka is the top of the line. I just ended my suspension mods with a set of stage-3s and let me tell you...set right its night and day difference between the stock shocks. Being able to have a ride like a Polaris one minute and 20 seconds later be ready for XXc racing (almost) was well worth the money I spent.


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## jbb (Dec 20, 2011)

i run the 26" tires with the ss wheels. i tried different clutching. tried the maroon primary and the almond secondary. for tight trails it hit hard and worked well. on the more open stuff i found it lost to much on top end. plus it felt like you were always in low range(rpms were higher) if you like speed, dont go any bigger then 26". on a flat straight a way i top out at about 96kph with the 26". and i run a big gun slip on and a vdi box. shock wise i just cranked my settings harder. it works ok.


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## 2010Bruterider (Jun 20, 2010)

I run 27" Reapers on my brute. I run the stock shocks on the next to the highest settings. I have a Vforcejohn clutch, so I don't have any problem turning them. Brute's are a blast in the trails.


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## narfbrain (Sep 25, 2012)

if your doing your clutch with only 26'' tires i wouldn't do too much to the clutch at best maybe a maroon primary and set your deflection......and for suspension if your on a budget you can look around at different systems if you want the best ELKA'S....just put stage 4's in an 800 can am as well as stm primary and secondary but its a whole new bike......you will not find better than suspension than elka.....even stage 1 will be an awesome difference when you order them they are built to you and your bike......not just taken off of a shelf and onto your bike


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## mjn (Feb 20, 2012)

Well.... installed EPI pink primary, almond secondary, and EPI's severe duty belt. Ripped it around for a minute, & it feels good! Headed to camp with it tonite..


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## team_mudnut (Mar 6, 2013)

i have been running the radial reptiles and they are a awesome trail tire and perform good in the mudpits too for what they are. best of all is the price.


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## gtsum2 (Aug 29, 2012)

all I do is aggressive trail riding and my setup is as follows:

2012 Brute EPS - eps is a must...can modulate steering much better as well as reduced kickback in the bars

Rox Risers with Fly aero taper bars - my latest addition and it makes a world of difference. Raises the bar hight a bit and the bars are about 1.5 inches wider with less sweep in them....much better riding posture, easier to turn, and much nicer to drive when standing up (which I do quite a bit on long days). ODI Rogue grips also.

26 inch terracrosses. For hatfield mccoy type riding (rocky, hardpack), they are almost impossible to beat for aggressive trail riding imo. Better turn in on high speed corners then BH2's, and can break the rear end out will to steer with the rears. They are not the best for sand as the front wanders a bit. They also wander a bit over 55mph on the road. I have 1100 hard miles and not a flat yet and looks like I could get another 1100 miles out of them easily. 

ITP SS108's - gives a little more offset than the stockers which increases stability, especially on off camber stuff. Downside is the tires stick out a bit from the fenders and you will get a lot muddier than stock

Elka Stage 2 shocks - night and day difference between stockers. Stock brute shocks are horrible. They bottom way too easy, yet they are stiff feeling (go figure?). You will lose ground clearance with aftermarket shocks due to static sag. Figure about 30% of the shock stroke is going to be static sag. This helps flatten the quad in corners and gives the baja truck type ride in the rough stuff. 

As good as they are, I have found the limits of the stage 2's. I have adjusted them a good bit from where Elka sent them to me and they are very, very good, but I could use Stage 4's. I sent Elka a video of us riding at HM and they said I needed Stage 4's if I was riding like that often. Having the ability to dial in both low speed and high speed compression dampening independently would be nice. I am still considering sending them back to convert to stage 4's....

The Brute is a great trail machine, especially if you like spirited riding. The torque of the vtwin is fantastic corner to corner, and it weighs a LOT less than an outy or renegade for sure, but the Brute is rough around the edges and certainly needs some help to make it lethal on the trails (tires, wheels, eps, and shocks...and bar/riser). I still run stock clutch, but have adjusted my deflection two times now. I run mine right around 22mm...it squeals while in gear when stopped, but does not creep forward, so I know I am on the low end of the adjustment range, but the snappiness is great. If I keep the Brute, I will look at a Muzzy full exhaust and MSD tuner and VFJ clutch to get more snap and more mid range power (I dont care about running 70-75).


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