2004 - R1150 RT STANDARD SUSPENSION

[pickersgill1]

Hi

 

Some may say suspension settings are possibly a personal choice, also the settings may differ due to the weight of the rider and passenger when two up with or without luggage. Our 1150 RT has the standard and original suspension, with all of the experience on this forum, can someone give me the right advice to set about the right adjustment of the rear shock (screw & knob) for solo and carrying a passenger?

 

Me 250 lbs (well camouflaged muscle - lol) :rofl:

 

Mrs. 147 lbs.

[Richard_D]

http://members.cox.net/slartidbartfast/bmwfix/shock-oil/shock-oil.htm Make sure you do this first so you're getting all you can from your shocks.

[4wheeldog]

I have an '02, and am similar sized to you, and my wife is also about your wife's size.

Back the nob for the rear shock full off........Turn it in until you feel resistance. This will account for missing jack fluid. Then, for your weight sole, I would put in six "Clicks, or 3 full turns. Five more clicks for your wife, and 3 more for luggage when full. That is a starting point......You will need to experiment from there.

Rebound.......Found on opposite side, adjusted with a screwdriver.......Try turning it full in (Turn clockwise until it stops) then back it out five clicks. Adjust from there. I generally left that alone when loading it up. You will find that turning it in will help adjust for wear as the shocks gert old.

 

Good Luck!

[NumbHands]

Max load = 533 lbs. You alone = 47% of max load. With the Mrs. = 75% of max. Assuming the pre-load (knob) cranked all the way down to the max is for max load (533 pounds), and the pre-load all the way up would be for a light-weight solo rider and no gas, say 0 lbs, then the weight range for the pre-load adjuster is 533 lbs. It is probably not linear but let's add that assumption as well. So when you ride alone, the pre-load should be set at about 1/2 and with the Mrs. to 3/4 of the way down. Obviously, this is rough but a starting point to be tuned by trial and error.

 

As for damping, it is mostly a matter of preference. Certainly with the damping (screw) that is the case. -- soft, medium, and hard.

 

The point of the pre-load adjustment is to keep the sag of the rear spring in the correct range regardless of the load.

 

So you can start with these settings and see how it goes. Don't forget luggage.

 

I'm sure others will have better ideas, and perhaps what the amount of sag that should be maintained by the pre-load.

 

Michael

[pickersgill1]

Hi

 

Thanks for sharing your knowledge & experiance.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

With the loading you describe, you should really consider having your rear spring replaced with one of a higher rate. Might want to look at the front as well. Preload will not compensate for a spring with the wrong rate.

 

There have been a number of articles published both here and other places on the web about getting sag set correctly. You should find them and do some reading.

 

Getting the spring rate and sag set correctly are the first steps to making a suspension work properly.

[Jeff_488]

Depending on how many miles are on the original shocks, all the fiddling one can fiddle won't make the ride what it should/could be.

The stock shocks are for a person of about 175 lbs. give or take a bit. A set of after market units will make a world of difference.

[pickersgill1]

Hi, only clocked up 20,000 miles so far.

[pickersgill1]

Hello

 

Thanks for the advice on fluid check on rear suspension, completed the task within 10 minutes when I got in from work this afternoon.

 

Must say when I disconnected the pipe, the unit looked full on first impression and nearly put it back together again. Remembered I would try to depress the piston, the fluid level dropped & disappeared.

 

Yes, the knob now has resistance much sooner when screwed in!

 

[Big_John]

Resurrecting this topic.....

 

The wife and I are the same weight as the OP. We easily bottom the rear shock, especially when loaded. We scrape the center stand in corners.

 

Thinking I need to add a heavier spring to the rear shock.

 

Thoughts?

[AndyS]

First thoughts are have you checked the oil level in your rear shock preload re avoid as linked to in this thread?

[AndyS]

Sorry, auto correct kicked in and screwed up the sense of my post.

So:

 

First thoughts are have you checked the oil level in your rear shock preload - as linked to in the link a few posts up in this thread?

[philbytx]

 

I'm 220, missus 160.

Had my RT since new and I run the bike at 14 clicks from full high (HAUT)for me and all the way down to HAUT for us both with luggage.

 

As Andy stated, have you checked the pre-load remote for fluid loss? Do this first, then you can "fine tune" it to your liking now

 

[Big_John]

I'm 220, missus 160.

Had my RT since new and I run the bike at 14 clicks from full high (HAUT)for me and all the way down to HAUT for us both with luggage.

 

As Andy stated, have you checked the pre-load remote for fluid loss? Do this first, then you can "fine tune" it to your liking now

 

First time back on this forum in a month....so thanks for the tips. I will check this week.