R1150RT Ohlins questions

[RT Russ]

I recently got a bonus for some long hours worked and after taxes it's about $23 short of a set of Ohlins for my RT. WooHoo! I am planning to order them through Max BMW (on recommendation from Deadboy). Max BMW has been easy to talk to about them so far but I haven't yet placed the order. My question(s) are...how tough will it be to install them myself and....should I buy them closer to home (Bay area Ca.) in case there are any issues? Any advice on the Ohlins and installation from some more knowledgable (than me) folks out there?

[Ken H.]

Don’t know your level of mechanical expertise, but for the average medium skilled DIYer it’s a piece of cake. Hardest part, and even it’s not that hard, is pulling back the tank to get to the upper bolt of the front one. Go for it.

[10ovr]

Check out Wilber shocks at www.beemershop.com Ted is a great guy to work with and can get you set up right,,He also carries Ohlins,,

[russell_bynum]

I recently got a bonus for some long hours worked and after taxes it's about $23 short of a set of Ohlins for my RT. WooHoo! I am planning to order them through Max BMW (on recommendation from Deadboy). Max BMW has been easy to talk to about them so far but I haven't yet placed the order. My question(s) are...how tough will it be to install them myself and....should I buy them closer to home (Bay area Ca.) in case there are any issues? Any advice on the Ohlins and installation from some more knowledgable (than me) folks out there?

 

It's really important to order your shocks from someone who knows what they're doing. They will likely need to be customized (the spring at the very least, and maybe the internal valving) and that's not something you're likely to get from the guy at the dealership parts counter. (Note: I don't know squat about Max BMW. Maybe they've got a suspension guy on staff. But, no dealership that I've ever dealt with has had that level of expertise on staff.)

 

You'll want to have a good lengthy conversation with the suspension tech and talk about your weight, your passenger's weight, how often you ride solo vs 2-up, what sort of roads you like best, what your riding style is, etc. All of this info is critical for them to build you a shock that will give you the best performance.

 

If I were in your area, I'd give Dan Kyle a call. http://www.kyleusa.com/

 

Also, once you get and install the shocks (installation is easy if you've got basic mechanic's skills. And we've got enough members in the Bay Area, you could probably offer a case of beer and get a half dozen or more folks show up to help), you need to spend time setting them up. This isn't rocket science and can be done quite effectively by the average rider if they're willing to spend some time and be methodical. On the other hand, if you have a chance to work with a professional suspension tuner, that will get the job done even faster and better. This is not a "drop the bike off and pick it up when it's done" scenario. You'll need to take some measurements, adjust the shocks, then go ride for a few minutes. Then come back and talk about what you felt, and where you want things to feel different. It will probably take 2-3 cycles of this working with a professional tuner or a half day or so if you do it on your own. I can recommend a suspension tuner in your area if you'd like to go that route.

[moshe_levy]

I tested Ohlins shocks for months for my article in Motorcycle Consumer News. Bottom line - proper setup is MORE important than hardware, and the Ohlins arrived needing a good deal of fine tuning. I would add spending some money on a competent professional setup before I would consider spending any of my own money on a shock upgrade. Otherwise, at least to me, there was none of this "night and day" difference we so often hear about.

 

http://www.mklsportster.com/Articles/mcnsuspension.pdf

 

-MKL

[russell_bynum]

I tested Ohlins shocks for months for my article in Motorcycle Consumer News. Bottom line - proper setup is MORE important than hardware, and the Ohlins arrived needing a good deal of fine tuning. I would add spending some money on a competent professional setup before I would consider spending any of my own money on a shock upgrade. Otherwise, at least to me, there was none of this "night and day" difference we so often hear about.

 

http://www.mklsportster.com/Articles/mcnsuspension.pdf

 

-MKL

 

Assuming we're talking about good aftermarket stuff (Wilbers, Ohlins, Works, etc) then yeah...I agree that small differences in the quality of the hardware aren't really important. Whatever you go with, if it isn't setup properly, it isn't going to work properly.

 

I've used a pretty wide range of suspension brands on various bikes and all of them have required quite a bit of fine tuning to get them working to their potential.

 

I maintain that you don't NEED a professional suspension tuner to get acceptable results. I did it myself on most of my bikes and I'm quite happy with what I got. But...if you have access to a good suspension tuner, that's MORE than worth the $50 or so that it'll cost. There's also tremendous benefit in working with them to learn a bit about what's going on.

[Jerry Duke]

+++1 for what Russell and Moshe say, setup is more critical than saving a few dollars. Go with someone that will do the entire job, shocks, installation, and setup.

[russell_bynum]

+++1 for what Russell and Moshe say, setup is more critical than saving a few dollars. Go with someone that will do the entire job, shocks, installation, and setup.

 

I didn't say that.

 

Installation is a snap...no reason to pay someone to do that if you've got basic mechanical skills. Also, it's probably not a good use of your money to pay a suspension guru to to the install. That would be a bit like hiring Lewis Hamilton to back your car out of your garage for you.

 

In a perfect world, you'd get the shocks ordered/configured/setup by the same guru, but that's not a requirement...setting up suspension is setting up suspension and it doesn't much matter if the person twisting the adjustment screws is the person who assembled the valve stack.

[moshe_levy]

Right, I think Russ and I differ in that I too don't think *installation* is difficult - it's not - but set up and tuning are best left to a competent pro unless you have all day to go by trial and error yourself. YMMV

 

-MKL

[russell_bynum]

Right, I think Russ and I differ in that I too don't think *installation* is difficult - it's not - but set up and tuning are best left to a competent pro unless you have all day to go by trial and error yourself. YMMV

 

-MKL

 

Nope...that's pretty much my opinion as well.

 

When I did my Works Performance suspension on the RT, I got the sag set pretty quickly. Then I spent the better part of a day riding the same section of fun twisties, making adjustments and taking notes about what I was feeling after each adjustment. Eventually I settled on a setting that I liked.

 

One benefit of doing it that way is I got a much better understanding of what each setting does. But...I did have to spend the better part of a day riding a really fun road over and over again. It's a tough job but someone's got to do it.

 

I have nothing but the utmost respect for the real suspension tuning gurus. I had the opportunity to work with Dave Moss at Catalyst Reaction (he was Chaz Davies' suspension guy in AMA Formula Extreme 2 years ago) setting up the suspension on my CBR. The guy is half scientist and half magician. If you have that option, it's well worth your money.

 

If you don't, you can do a pretty good job on your own if you're willing to dedicate some time to the task.

[RT Russ]

If I were in your area, I'd give Dan Kyle a call. http://www.kyleusa.com/

Russell, I had already e-mailed Dan and have now received a reply...the good news? His quote is nearly $175 cheaper than Max BMW. There will be California tax added that will cut into the savings but at least I will get them "somewhat" locally.

[RT Russ]

I tested Ohlins shocks for months for my article in Motorcycle Consumer News. Bottom line - proper setup is MORE important than hardware, and the Ohlins arrived needing a good deal of fine tuning. I would add spending some money on a competent professional setup before I would consider spending any of my own money on a shock upgrade. Otherwise, at least to me, there was none of this "night and day" difference we so often hear about.

 

http://www.mklsportster.com/Articles/mcnsuspension.pdf

 

-MKL

 

Moshe....I read your article a few months ago and quite enjoyed it. Thanks!

[russell_bynum]

If I were in your area, I'd give Dan Kyle a call. http://www.kyleusa.com/

Russell, I had already e-mailed Dan and have now received a reply...the good news? His quote is nearly $175 cheaper than Max BMW. There will be California tax added that will cut into the savings but at least I will get them "somewhat" locally.

 

The other good news is that Dan is an Ohlins tech. So...he won't just order a shock for you from the factory....he can actually take it apart and customize it for you. That sucks about having to pay CA sales tax (highest in the nation), but this is definitely the best way to go.

[Eckhard Grohe]

I had the problem that the front shock wanted to turn when tightening the nut on top and I felt I couldn't hold it with the feature provided. I eventually bought a 1 1/8 inch wrench, cut it in 2 and then thinned down the open end and bent it about 30 deg. I then could put it on the flats at the top of the shocks, through the slot on the left side of the steering head casting of the bike(R100RT), and hold the shock when tightening it. If I were to do it again I would fab an open end wrench out of 1/4" thick aluminum.

[Bill_Walker]

When you're removing the front shock, take note that there are rubber spacers on both the top and bottom of the upper mount. It's easy to miss them, because after they've been on there for a while they sorta look like a solid part of the frame. You'll need to transfer these to the new shock.

[RT Russ]

I pulled the trigger....Ohlins on order from Dan Kyle Racing. I can't wait!