[6986]

Just a thread to get overall opinions of the OEM shock from those who have sufficient mileage up to have an opinion. I have about 2600 kms on mine currently and I have some reservations. However I will keep them to myself for now pending the views of others.

 

[Mad Frosty]

Good enough , but lacks adjustment , the difference between the lowest and the highest setting on the clickers is hardly noticeable for me .

 

[Davy F]

I just ride it....seems fine so far. Nice compromise between comfort and handling.

 

[Elvisto]

I've not had to change mine from the settings when I took delivery, I've done almost 4,000 miles on most types of roads and surfaces (not motorways though) and never thought it needed any adjustment ,
I do know of friends who mess about with their suspension setting every time they go out,:wink2:

 

[erey]

Depend of your weight. For mine it's not enough. To be replaced. 5'500 kms.

 

[mark]

Mine seems fine. I'm about 180 lbs. I have not done serious off road yet. But riding across a rough field at a moderate pace I was pretty impressed how it soaked up the bumps. Thats with the stock settings and not loaded for travel.

 

[p2rider]

I quite like it. I haven't done any offroad riding yet apart from about 1km of dirt road, but think it's a good compromise for my 80kg without riding gear.

For road riding if anything it's a little firm for my preference, but it will need that firmness for the offroad riding so I'm happy with it as is.

 

[6986]

Hmmm Interesting variety of opinions. I do a lot of adjustments initially but then I leave it alone as soon as I achieve optimum settings.


I am using plenty of spring preload as I ride very rough roads and I need the full travel available on the suspension. I initially backed off the compression damping somewhat but I am now adding back a little as the shock beds in. I am using 28 clicks of spring preload and there are 36 available. That only leaves me another 8 clicks for a full load. Probably enough for now but as the spring sags more it may not be.


As the mileage built up I was adding an occasional click of rebound damping to keep the back end under control and prevent wallowing. With those adjustments I am now only 7 clicks off the maximum setting for rebound. Yesterday I just put the rebound damping to maximum out of curiosity. There was very little difference between that and 7 clicks. That is not the norm with other shocks. For instance on the Wilbers on my Triumph, max rebound would almost lock out the damping, not so on the Honda. That leaves me thinking that as this shock wears, the lack of adjustment will either necessitate a rebuild with heavier suspension fluid and a stronger spring, or replacement.


I can live with it as it is for now but I am not happy with the apparent lack of proper adjustment. I understand Erey's intention to replace. My net weight is about 75kg. With gear and a small amount of luggage that I normally travel with, that weight would increase to about 90kg.

 

[al-Razi]

My dealer has sent me a flyer for a new Ohlins rear shock. It's a version of the STX 46 Piggyback, and the part number is HO 646. It doesn't appear on Ohlins's official site yet, but presumably soon will.

 

[cadoganpier]

The basic shock is fine, it's a little crude but pretty good for an OEM part. What is a problem is the stock spring rate, it's much to lite. Changing the standard spring for a heavier one really pays dividends.

 

[Drago]

The basic shock is fine, it's a little crude but pretty good for an OEM part. What is a problem is the stock spring rate, it's much to lite. Changing the standard spring for a heavier one really pays dividends.

I think you are right about the spring weight, but changing it for a heavier weight spring can sometimes over power the damping.. but I'm going to try anyway! :smile2:

 

[6986]

The basic shock is fine, it's a little crude but pretty good for an OEM part. What is a problem is the stock spring rate, it's much to lite. Changing the standard spring for a heavier one really pays dividends.

I agree that the spring rate is too light but with my loading I can cope with that. My single biggest problem is the lack of sufficient rebound damping. I had thought of just replacing the spring, but then realised that the standard rebound damping would not cope with a stronger spring.

 

[cadoganpier]

Hi Griff

I didn't find the rebound damping was a problem with the new spring, you do need to crank it up but it does cope with the stronger spring. Having said that the spring I fitted was stiffer and longer so it maybe that the rebound damping is working ok in the range of movement it's having to cope with, with a stiffer standard length spring it may struggle when it's being asked to work with the shock at greater compression if you see what I mean!.

 

[6986]

Hi Griff

I didn't find the rebound damping was a problem with the new spring, you do need to crank it up but it does cope with the stronger spring. Having said that the spring I fitted was stiffer and longer so it maybe that the rebound damping is working ok in the range of movement it's having to cope with, with a stiffer standard length spring it may struggle when it's being asked to work with the shock at greater compression if you see what I mean!.

I think I understand what You mean. I suppose also there is the aspect that the rebound damping on some shocks will be better than others. What spooked me was that there was little difference between 8 clicks from Max and the Max setting itself. On my other shocks, Max setting will almost lock out the shock whereas on the AT it doesn't come near doing so. Even my mountain bike shock locks out at max setting.

 

[HoebSTer]

I am having my rear shock built by Konflict Suspension here in Washington. Honda made the shock to be built. It will be revalved and new HEAVY spring installed. I am also doing the front forks higher springs and valves to my riding style.
I ride fast and tip the scales at 325 before gear. I never bottomed out my Tenere after Konflict did my suspension. It was awesome. Alex, the owner of Konflict owns an Africa Twin and is roughly same weight as me. He is a desert rally racer and builds tons of suspensions for various riders. He even had a few riders use his suspension in the recent Dakar Rally. He is doing my full suspension for $1200 both ends.

 

[eltel62]

My opinion posted in this section already. Rear far too soft, front OK but I am heavy. Once you get a pillion and a pile of gear you will have the same problem as me. For everyday road use it is fine, soft, compliant and comfortable but serious touring will expose the rear for what it is.

I would encourage everyone to set the pre-load front and rear though, ignore the stock factory settings. It really does just take 20 minutes from start to finish and requires no super suspension knowledge, no special tools (spanner in toolkit for front preload, hand knob for rear). Just watch a couple of YouTube videos on "Sag" to understand what you are doing. It is very very basic, when you sit on your bike clothed you want to use up about 30% of your total suspension travel. You are just measuring with a tape measure, no rocket science. You may think your bike is setup fine, set the pre-load up and you might find you have completely transformed your bike handling for the better. (and then you realise it wasn't fine).

I think it is a shame a dealer (most dealers, all?) would not setup pre-load for you as part of a new bike delivery as a standard service, it is so fundamental to the bike geometry but so basic.