Bandit helper springs
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Mine should be here tomorrow too according to the tracking number I got. Hope the install goes smooth and easy as it looks.
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That’s why a lot of us are replacing them with the Bandit Tender Springs.
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Mine are on the way, look forward to getting them installed, not that the ride is "harsh" per se, but the kind of riding I do, I don't need springs tailored to also soak up air time. Would gladly trade for more plush ride.
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634 Posts
Put a go pro on the stock setup and you will see it works. Keeps the wheel following the terrain when it unloads and softens the settling back into the main spring when it comes back down.
Like this?
Not knocking the Bandit tenders, I'm sure it's an improvement, just saying that the stock setup does real nice......not saying I won't upgrade the tenders in the future, just that I really have no major need to improve over stock like I did on my X4.
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I agree with what Danielplace stated as well as MO. A lot of it is a matter of opinion. It’s so much better than a Gen 1 or X model it hard for me to be disappointed.
A couple things I’ve noticed:
1st when I jack mine up the big spring doesn’t really move. It’s holding up the machine. The full spring is there to help soak up that landing when air born or dropping off a big boulder/ledge. The tender spring is mostly the only spring moving when you jack it up. When the A arm moves a lot the tender would be extended at this point and soften the transition into the large spring. This however has little benefit for going down the road over 3-4” rocks. We’re feeling all that in our butt because the front tender is compressed and the rear is mostly compressed and not able to be a benefit at all in this small stuff. So as far as crawling around in big boulders I call it plush. For running around at a faster speed over small rocks, I don’t think it’s horrible but there’s room for improvement!
2nd, I just noticed on the video yesterday by Dirt Tracks on the 4 seat model they go over the difference in shocks on the 2 and 4 seat. The 4 seat is designed for more rider comfort, and when they showed a short clip of the front shock the tender spring wasn’t compressed at all. MO, Perhaps this has more to do with why your initial impressions of the ride quality being better in the 4 seat than the 2 seat and it’s not only related to the longer wheel base. The shot I saw of the front tender spring on the four seat showed it being very open at a resting position where it has room to work! Is that how your 4 seat looks? Or was that an illusion to my eye in the video?
EDIT: That was a rear shock close up I saw in the video, not a front, but does show the tender more open than the 2 seat version is. Still curious about the front one however!
![AE96E3F9-E07B-45AD-AACE-9A7BEE26063C.png]()
A couple things I’ve noticed:
1st when I jack mine up the big spring doesn’t really move. It’s holding up the machine. The full spring is there to help soak up that landing when air born or dropping off a big boulder/ledge. The tender spring is mostly the only spring moving when you jack it up. When the A arm moves a lot the tender would be extended at this point and soften the transition into the large spring. This however has little benefit for going down the road over 3-4” rocks. We’re feeling all that in our butt because the front tender is compressed and the rear is mostly compressed and not able to be a benefit at all in this small stuff. So as far as crawling around in big boulders I call it plush. For running around at a faster speed over small rocks, I don’t think it’s horrible but there’s room for improvement!
2nd, I just noticed on the video yesterday by Dirt Tracks on the 4 seat model they go over the difference in shocks on the 2 and 4 seat. The 4 seat is designed for more rider comfort, and when they showed a short clip of the front shock the tender spring wasn’t compressed at all. MO, Perhaps this has more to do with why your initial impressions of the ride quality being better in the 4 seat than the 2 seat and it’s not only related to the longer wheel base. The shot I saw of the front tender spring on the four seat showed it being very open at a resting position where it has room to work! Is that how your 4 seat looks? Or was that an illusion to my eye in the video?
EDIT: That was a rear shock close up I saw in the video, not a front, but does show the tender more open than the 2 seat version is. Still curious about the front one however!
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1,239 Posts
You are correct, on my 4 seater none of the tenders are collapsed. I thought maybe it was just that I didn't have enough miles on it for the springs to sag or collapse. I also notice everytime we get out of it, you can hear the springs decompress and visually see the the body slightly move up. I need to load it up with gear and put the family in it and see if I can get a pic of the tender springs.
Just a couple things. The Dirt Trax review is both right and wrong: The RMAX4's main springs have a higher rate than the RMAX2, not softer.
The main springs for the RMAX4 F/R are 300/400 in/lb
The main springs for the RMAX2 F/R are 195/345 in/lb
This makes sense since the RMAX4 will have heavier loads
The tender springs for both RMAXs F/R are 400/300 in/lb
As stated in their video, the Carnage tires have really soft sidewalls. I suspect a lot of the smoothness comes from that alone. You can see how squishy they are here:
The slightly longer wheelbase also helps with ride and handling.
The main springs for the RMAX4 F/R are 300/400 in/lb
The main springs for the RMAX2 F/R are 195/345 in/lb
This makes sense since the RMAX4 will have heavier loads
The tender springs for both RMAXs F/R are 400/300 in/lb
As stated in their video, the Carnage tires have really soft sidewalls. I suspect a lot of the smoothness comes from that alone. You can see how squishy they are here:
The slightly longer wheelbase also helps with ride and handling.
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1,239 Posts
Front and rear RMAX4 unloaded
Attachments
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1,239 Posts
Rear with about 720 lbs of feed. The pig squats some. This is with the shocks set in the middle. I should have set them to firm.
Attachments
So whats the specs, clearance before, after, ride report, how did you adjust, per specs or?
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1,239 Posts
Factory specs and springs but not sure what those are. I haven't measured clearance, Amazon sells some Fox 2.0 spanner wrenches, I haven't done any adjustments yet. Pics are how I picked it up. Sorry I don't have more info. More to come as I use it more. Ride is pretty good from the factory. I don't have aftermarket tenders, I was just sharing what the factory RMAX4 setup was.
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I still think that open tender spring on the 4 seat is a big compliment to the ride quality.
If you watch close on MOs video, going through the mild stuff, the main spring hardly moves while the A arm goes up and down. Most of all the movement is happening in the tender spring. That front tire can hit a 4-6” rock and the tender is going to soak it up.
On the 2 seat model the tender can only assist after the A arm drops and it gets a chance to open up. That’s why it feels plush crawling in boulders. As you drop off a big rock the suspension reaches for the ground and opens up. It can’t can’t soak up anything when you go up over a small rock, or rock step! I ride a lot of jagged rock country and when I’m riding and hit a 4-6” rock step in the road it’s harsh. We’re feeling all that in the main spring.
I have to jack the front end up quite a bit to get the tender spring to begin to open on mine. It’s as though the lighter rate of the main spring on the 2 seat required them to add a gob more preload to get the ride height where they wanted it which just compressed the tender all the way!
If you watch close on MOs video, going through the mild stuff, the main spring hardly moves while the A arm goes up and down. Most of all the movement is happening in the tender spring. That front tire can hit a 4-6” rock and the tender is going to soak it up.
On the 2 seat model the tender can only assist after the A arm drops and it gets a chance to open up. That’s why it feels plush crawling in boulders. As you drop off a big rock the suspension reaches for the ground and opens up. It can’t can’t soak up anything when you go up over a small rock, or rock step! I ride a lot of jagged rock country and when I’m riding and hit a 4-6” rock step in the road it’s harsh. We’re feeling all that in the main spring.
I have to jack the front end up quite a bit to get the tender spring to begin to open on mine. It’s as though the lighter rate of the main spring on the 2 seat required them to add a gob more preload to get the ride height where they wanted it which just compressed the tender all the way!
Well installed mine this morning was the easiest install ever maybe 20 min per corner max. Didn’t even have to remove the shock assembly to install the tender spring. I just used a ratchet strap to compress the spring jacked up the SXS tapped on the top spring lock nut with a screwdriver to get it loose the spun them by hand to the top and then used a 14mm and 17mm ratchet to remove bottom bolt and pulled springs off slid the new ones on the put it back together. I did use a sharpee to mark the location of the top spin nut so it went back to stock spot for now.
![90737]()
Before
![90738]()
After.
looks like it raised it a lot more than expected. The ride is so much better when flying across a tilled up field didn’t even feel most of it.
Before
After.
looks like it raised it a lot more than expected. The ride is so much better when flying across a tilled up field didn’t even feel most of it.
Took it on a long ride and it settled out and lost an inch from 46” to 45” so I got about an extra 2” of lift with the new tender springs. The ride is a lot better I feel it’s smoother across washed out roads, not as tight around sharp corners at higher speeds I might have to to do some adjustments to get it tuned in the way I ride.
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