How can I keep factory suspension travel and lower the front end of the bike?
The Legend Suspensions standard height AXEO will deliver exactly this for you.
Our standard height AXEO system will retain the factory length of suspension travel. However, with built-in suspension sag, this will bring the bike down approximately 3/4" once installed and give you the best of both worlds. You would not lose suspension travel and it will get you slightly lower.
We design our AXEO standard-length cartridges to maintain the fork's stock static length without the weight of the motorcycle on the suspension, however, we have engineered a certain amount of sag into our cartridges to ensure the correct ratio of up and down travel available to keep the ride compliant and the front tire on the ground.
The general rule is that 1/3 of the overall travel is reserved for sag, which on the AXEO cartridge equates to approximately 3/4". Motorcycle suspension is designed to be ridden with about 1/3 of the overall travel used when the rider and luggage are added to the bike. This will allow the motorcycle to have 2/3 of its suspension travel available to absorb the upward movement of the wheel and 2/3 of travel available to let the wheel drop down into dips in the road or uneven terrain to keep your tire in contact with the ground. When the sag is set correctly the bike will ride down the road level with the suspension positioned with the correct ratio of up and down travel available to keep the ride smooth and the tires planted firmly on the ground. It also ensures that the correct geometry is achieved allowing proper steering and handling.