If you've ever added a wider set of a-arms and shocks to your ATV you have
probably noticed the steering at high speeds seems a bit more 'twitchy'. Widening the front end puts more leverage on the
handle bars. This causes the steering to be almost too responsive and will
also cause much more 'arm pump' for the rider. We were able to test one of
the best steering dampeners on the market, the GPR Steering Stabilizer!
Randy Norman has been involved in racing
motorcycles both on and off road for many years. He was sponsored by the
original "GP stabilizer" company and in 1999 he bought the company and
changed the name to GPR. He completely redesigned the old style dampener and
finally decided on version; 2.0. The GPR Stabilizer is available
for just about any street or dirt bike along with most ATV?s. Randy can be
seen in the GPR support rig at most street and off-road races on the west
coast. The GPR unit is completely made in house except the
color anodizing, o-rings and screws. This includes machining the main bodies
from a solid piece of 6061 aircraft grade aluminum down to the precision
unit it is. Internal parts such as the vein are also made in house. They
even have a laser engraver in house to engrave their logo on it! Each unit
has a built in selector knob for easy adjustment on the fly.  |  | | Before and
after machining | Close-up
of the body |
The stabilizer works by the vein (arm
inside the body that passes through fluid) passing through fluid in the body
of the dampener. The selector knob, with 1-6 selections, controls the depth
on a channel in the body that the fluid can pass through. Setting number 1
is the deepest and softest setting. It allows the most amount of fluid by
the vein. Setting number 6 is the hardest and most shallow depth of the
channel. The settings are merely a visual reference for the rider, with
every minor turn of the dial the dampening increases or decreases. This
allows for 120 actual settings in the dampener. The adjustment dial can also
be turned either way (clockwise or counter clockwise), such as going from
setting 6 down to 1 without going back through 5 down to 1. Simply turn it
either way and the adjustment is made accordingly! 
Installation is relatively simple. The stabilizer itself is pre assembled
with the fluid inside. The kit includes the stabilizer body, post mount
bracket, bar clamps, and a custom bar pad. To install the kit first remove
your old bars and steering stem and replace with an anti-vibe steering stem
and custom GPR bar clamps. Tapered bars must also be used. Then the post
mount bracket needs to be installed. It bolts on where the steering stem
mounts to the frame. This bracket provides a solid anchor point for the
stabilizer and must be the proper height. The height depends on the length
of your steering stem so make sure you let GPR know the length of your stem
when ordering. At the top of the bracket is a pin that sticks upward and
connects to a dampener arm coming out of the dampener itself. This pin is
adjustable in height to perfectly align it to the dampener arm. Next install
the GPR stabilizer body and set the proper pin height. Install the handle
bars, clamps, and bar pad and your ready to ride!
We first tried our stabilizer on setting 1. In this setting it does provide
both low and high speed dampening but we found we preferred it to be on a
higher setting. Setting 4 seemed perfect for our riding style. At this
setting the bars are rather hard to turn when the ATV is not in motion. Most
people ask why we like this setting and how are we able to turn using such a
high setting. At high speeds through the whoops or in a rutted out bowl you
don't notice it being hard to turn. You can compare it to power steering on
a truck. If you try and turn the wheel while the truck is not moving it will
be harder to turn than when you are moving.
We found the GPR stabilizer to work flawlessly. The handy dial on the top of
the stabilizer is easy to get to while riding. We are able to easily make
adjustments for the on-coming terrain (tight and technical or high speed).
With our 6" wider front end the GPR stabilizer kept the handle bars from
flopping around and provided an immense feeling of security during high
speed (5th gear) runs through the dunes. We also noticed that we
had much less arm pump while at these high speeds. Over all we are very
happy with Randy's design of the GPR stabilizer. We feel a good stabilizer
is a must have item on any quad, especially one with a wider front end. It
allows you to 'go faster, safer'! The dampening the GPR unit provides is
much smoother than any of the classic 'door stops' (as the GPR crew
referrers to them) push/pull type. To top it off the GPR is fully
rebuildable, American made, and life time guaranteed! Randy will rebuild
your stabilizer free any time you see fit. He recommends sending it in every
couple years (depending how much you ride) for fresh fluid. We have been
running our dampener for 2 seasons and have not noticed a reason to have the
fluid changed. If you're looking for the best dampener on the market give a
close look at the GPR Stabilizer!  |  | | The new Version 3 GPR
Stabilizers! |
The research and
development process never stops with Randy. His newest design is even more
trick than the 2.0 version! He added 2 hydraulic hoses to the front of the
dampener which is connected to a new adjustment knob. This new design allows
the adjustment knob to be located right next to the left handlebar grip. It
slides over the bars similar to the way the grips slide over. It is adjusted
by rotating the knob around the bars rather than turning a dial on the
dampener itself. This allows super-easy adjustment without removing your
hand from the handlebars! http://www.gprstabilizer.com
GPR Stabilizer
8715 Dead Stick Rd.
San Diego, CA 92154
Phone: 619.661.0101 | 
