A Very Deep Dive on Suspension with EXT’s Franco Fratton, Pt. 1

When we first had EXT founder Franco Fratton on Bikes & Big Ideas back in Ep. 110, we had plenty to cover with just the story of his long and remarkable career in suspension design and didn’t delve too far into the technical side of things. But Franco is an incredible wealth of knowledge when it comes to suspension design, so we’ve got him back on the show to share a whole bunch of that knowledge, in part one of a multi-episode series with Franco. So strap in, you’re going to learn some stuff in this one.TOPICS & TIMES:Dampers vs. Shock Absorbers (2:21)Sprung vs. unsprung mass (8:12)Coil springs & the need for dampers (9:32)History of damper design (10:04)Adjustability vs. damper quality (22:01)Orifice dampers (23:55)Valve types (28:36)High- vs. low-speed adjusters (30:15)Range of adjustments (36:22)Damping “knee” (42:20)Twin tube vs. monotube dampers (47:28)Damper design philosophy (59:58)RELATED LINKS:Franco Fratton (Ep.110)Introducing: CRAFTEDIntroducing: Open MicBecome a Blister MemberBlister LabsThis Week’s Gear GiveawayBlister Mountain Bike Buyer’s GuideOUR OTHER PODCASTSOff The CouchGEAR:30Blister PodcastCRAFTED Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.