OHLINS Shock Where to begin? Let's see... The stock shock is shit, yup that should suffice. This is the best mod I have done so far... I pulled the shock out of the box & slapped it on the bike. Instant gratification!!!!!!!!!!!! Now before I go to far let me say that I didn't have a spare hand this evening (or morning as it actually is) so I couldn't set the sag, but with the 11.0 spring & the shock bearing which adds to the initial preload (since I didn't re-adjust the preload collar for the thickness of the shock bearing) the ride doesn't feel much smoother over bumps & ripples in the road etc... BUT the first time you flick it into a corner you have complete confidence in the bike which is something I have lacked thus far. I mean the whole bike just does what it is supposed to do entry to exit, even hard on the gas with the semi-cold rear tire spinning up the bike stayed composed & just let me flog her without any type of resistance. I will add more once I get a chance to play around with the settings & ride height adjuster, but for now anyone that is sitting on the fence about buying a shock needs to get up off their ass & GIT'R DONE! cause the stock shock ain't gonna do it period! UPDATE: Just got back in from an extended ride. The bike is transformed. Before it had a feeling like it was going to bounce the rear wheel into the air when bringing the bike upright in the middle of a quick left/right transitions & any pavement less smooth than a sheet of glass made the rear end search for grip at even a mild sport pace. Now don’t misconstrue the stability has always been there, but the grip from the rear tire wasn’t. In my opinion the Ohlins shock is basically an instant bolt-on 100% improvement in the handling of the bike. It’s so good you don’t even think about it! They aren't exactly cheap, but they are worth every single penny if you are serious about your riding. As I mentioned on the main page the rear shock is simply designed from the factory to carry a max load of 366lbs so the spring is oversprung for riding solo & the damping rates inside the shock are just plain screwed up no matter how much weight you have or don't have... UPDATE: 06/12/04 Really put the Ohlins shock to the test today. The settings I have currently settled on are 25mm sag, +3mm of ride height, +3 clicks of rebound & +1 click of low speed compression. The roads we were on today varied from new smooth ribbons of asphalt to roads that look like they haven't been repaved since before I was born... The new settings on the shock made it all too easy & I am more than surprised at just how well the shock kept the tire in contact with the road no matter what the condition of the surface. The chassis stayed completely composed & I was able to just keep pushing harder & harder without any hint of protest from the back end of the bike. In fact I feel that the stock front end is truly the limiting factor at this point & look forward to getting the re-work done very soon.
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