Our original Platinum Valve fork emulators have proven extremely successful—especially in the Suzuki DR650—delivering consistent, controlled damping and long-term reliability across a wide range of riding styles and conditions in an easy to install at-home package.

If your bike has damper-rod forks, this Platinum Valve is one of the simplest ways to make the front end feel smoother, more stable, and more confidence-inspiring without turning the bike into a full custom suspension project. It replaces the crude “fixed-hole” damping with shim-controlled damping, so the forks can respond to small bumps more gently while still giving you support under braking and in corners—meaning less harshness, less dive, and more control. It’s designed to run on light 2.5–3 wt oil, which helps the stock damping become largely irrelevant, and it means no drilling of the damper rods is required. On top of that, it’s tuneable, has improved low-speed sealing for consistent feel, and uses durable nickel-plated solid brass construction for long-term reliability.

The Platinum Valve was a major step forward from our earlier V4R design, using a completely new internal architecture, improved sealing, and shim-controlled damping. These changes resulted in significantly better compliance, control, and consistency—and the design has remained unchanged since.

This version uses exactly the same Platinum Valve internals, shim stacks and damping philosophy as the original DR650 Platinum Valve. Both products are still in production and perform identically. The only difference is the external form factor, which allows this version to fit a broader range of motorcycles using 41 mm damper-rod forks. Each version exists purely to suit different fork configurations.

What makes the Platinum Valve different

Designed for 2.5–3 wt fork oil

• Light oil renders stock damper-rod orifice damping largely ineffective
• Better suited to shim-controlled damping with reduced fluid mass
• No requirement to drill damper rods

Controls compression damping

• Provides controlled compression in a drop-in damper-rod system
• Improves compliance without sacrificing support

Tuneable shim stack

• Uses 6 mm shims
• Supplied setting suits most applications
• Bleed shims on both faces allow adjustment of low-speed damping

Improved low-speed sealing

• Four outer sealing rings reduce bypass and improve damping consistency

Current construction

• Machined from solid brass
• Nickel plated for durability

Recommendations

For best results, fork springs should be matched to rider weight. Installation instructions are included.

Note: New OEM fork oil seals and dust wipers have higher initial friction, which may slightly affect performance until broken in.