Any experience with Works Performance Shocks?

[RFW]

I have an '86 K100RT that I bought a few years ago used. A former owner had installed a Works Performance (triple spring) rear shock that, by the time I got the bike, was pretty thrashed. Since the bike was ridden from Sweden to India and back I suppose that was understandable!

 

I rebuilt the shock (new seals, new oil and a did a nitrogen recharge), but one after the other, each of the springs broke over a period of 2 years.

 

Trying to get new springs from Works Performance was a real pain, not because they didn't have any, but because they apparently have no part numbering system, or other way to identify them, when supplied with the actual dimensions (mean diameter, wire diameter, free length, number of turns etc.). On several occasions, they sent the wrong springs. Another time they sent the right seal kit, with the wrong sized bushing that sits right next to the seal!

 

Eventually I gave up and bought a brand new one, but it had an obvious leak where a weld was improperly done, so I had to send it back for repair only a few days after buying it.

 

So my question is: Has anyone had any experience with Works Performance shocks? What do you think of them?

 

Personally, I am not terribly impressed. From an engineering viewpoint (and I am a mechanical engineer), their system of stacking 3 springs of different spring rates, that are separated by collars that slide on the shock body, seems rather hoky to me.

 

First off, because the springs themselves are not always perfectly "square" on their ends, this causes the sliding collars to be a bit crooked, and bind when they try to slide along the shock. I actually had to oil the outside of the shock initially, to stop the squeaking noise! Besides, the result of normal use is that the sliding collars rub through the zinc plating (or chrome plating if you pay extra), leaving the steel shock body to rust. Not overly clever.

 

Secondly, at least one of the springs (the main one) tends to jam inside its sliding collar and grind away some of the aluminum inside the collar.

 

Anyone had any experience with Works Performance? Is my opinion of them being a rather M. Mouse outfit justified?

 

Bob.

[ghaverkamp]

Anyone had any experience with Works Performance? Is my opinion of them being a rather M. Mouse outfit justified?

 

If you do a search on Works, you'll find lots of posts. My general impression from what I've read: people who have had their shocks have tended to be happy. Some people who have needed customer service, whether for rebuild or order have been happy. Some people who have needed customer service, whether for rebuild or order, have been very unhappy.

 

At this point, you've got the shock, so I assume you want to get it fixed and stick with it. Else, I'm always happy to recommend Wilbers, having had good service (though never a rebuild) and quality getting shocks for my K12RS and for my K75.

 

Greg

[hANNAbONE]

wHEN i bUY...I'll be purchasing Wilber's. Granted my steed is a 2003 KRS but I believe that they are the best for the $$money$$.

[smiller]

I can't comment on the earlier products, but I own a set of the the current Works units intended for the oilheads and am very satisfied. Far from M. Mouse, they are very well made and wouldn't look out of place installed on an aircraft. I have had them rebuilt once in the 8 years I have owned them and the rebuild service was prompt. Also, not sure why the spring confusion... they use Eibach springs and I can't imagine these failing. And I don't expect to have plating problems either as mine were machined from billet. Maybe quality improved over the years or something but I would put their current product (or at least the one I am familiar with) up against anything on the market.

 

As far as handling goes, you will find some that say they are better than Ohlins and some that say they are not as good so take your pick. Of course any such subjective comparisons are pretty much meaningless unless they are made by the same rider on the same bike with each shock set up optimally and I haven't seen that yet.

[RFW]

Also, not sure why the spring confusion... they use Eibach springs and I can't imagine these failing. And I don't expect to have plating problems either as mine were machined from billet. Maybe quality improved over the years or something but I would put their current product (or at least the one I am familiar with) up against anything on the market.

 

Interesting. My comment about plating referred to the shock body (which is always made from steel) being exposed to the rubbing action of the plastic bushings between the springs.

 

On a side note, machining from billet may sound high tech, but it really isn't a plus with respect to strength. Usually the reason stuff (especially aluminum) is machined from the solid, is only because production volumes do not justify stronger fabrication methods such as extrusion or forging.

 

Anyway, as for the springs breaking, there's no doubt that it happened! Mind you, with the new shock (once they replaced it due to lousy welding), the springs stopped breaking. But I still was less than impressed by the way the adjuster was not straight sue to the ends of the springs not being "square" (in fact, it is highly unlikely the could ever be over time).

 

The "grunching" noise that one could hear when bouncing on the seat, was finally cured when I machined a set of the bushings that slide over the sbock body, from Acetal (Delrin), to replace the stock bushings that are made from glass-filled nylon (a rather inappropriate choice of resin for this purpose).

 

Basically, the shock seems OK now, but I was just wondering if others had similar experiences as I did.

 

Bob.

[smiller]

Anyway, as for the springs breaking, there's no doubt that it happened!

 

Sorry, I wasn't commenting on how your shocks were constructed or whether your springs failed, only noting the construction practices used on the Works shocks that I own. I really think that there must of been some significant changes made between the 80's and now as we really don't seem to be describing the same type of hardware at all.

[Tri750]

Ask 10 carpenters thier opinion on how a house is framed and you will get 10 answers, all of them correct. Ask 10 mechanical engineers how something was designed and you will likely get 12 answers, all of them correct. Thats normal, its what makes a good engineer a good engineer. Its who you are and what you do. Had you sent the first shock in for them to rebuild, you would have had a much easier time and likely not had to buy a second one. The labor is crazy cheap. 50.00? They would also have revalved and resprung the thing for your weight and riding style. The single spring shocks (like my RT) are marked with spring rate and part number. The older single spring and twin shock multi spring units do not have the rate printed on them. I have used and sold Works for about 10 years now with 97% satisfaction in all areas. That aint bad. I have works on 4 of my bikes and am very happy. I had Ohlins once on a '96 900 Triumph Trident as they were the only ones who made shocks for that bike. Not impressed. Pretty but the rate was all wrong. Progressive Suspensiion is very good too but they dont do newer BMW single shocks.