Ohlins basic kit, everyday effect

[pattonme]

can I trouble you for the SKU from the oil bottle?

[bugeyes]

can I trouble you for the SKU from the oil bottle?

Not sure what that is, it says 98.1 cSt at 40 C if that helps

[DewMan]

can I trouble you for the SKU from the oil bottle?

Not sure what that is, it says 98.1 cSt at 40 C if that helps

FYI: SKU is the number below the barcode label on the bottle. 

[pattonme]

it says 98.1 cSt at 40 C if that helps

 
are you serious? Good lord. It's working for you?

[Mproject]

Couldn't stop myself, pressed the button for the Ohlins kit

I know the feeling (rofl)  

[bugeyes]

it says 98.1 cSt at 40 C if that helps

are you serious? Good lord. It's working for you?

Don't know what those numbers mean but yes, the bike feels good.

[bikeinstyle]

I agree, completely, bike has been transformed with the Ohlins rear, especially 2 up.

[zsoci]

I agree, completely, bike has been transformed with the Ohlins rear, especially 2 up.

So here is my quick view on it. I had a chance to ride for ~4000 km with stock setup, than changed to Öhlins full kit and had another ~2000km including where half was riding to work (some city some highway) and the rest spent on twisty roads and even couple of laps on the Nürburgring.
- High speed: the old setup above ~150 km/h speed became wobbly and not reliable, while with the new setup even around 200 km/h (here in Germany it is legal  ) it was still stable and no wobbling
- Braking: the front suspension was bouncing back (I’m around 95 kg) and then being pushed down again, basically I had the feeling that the front of the bike is jumping up and down. With the new setup this feel is absolutely gone and absolutely reliable behavior of the front forks can be expected. No bouncing.
- Cornering: this was the biggest change for me. With the stock setup during more aggressive cornering I had the feeling that the rear is just “letting go” and if the rear would slide all over after the apex mainly during acceleration. It was quite alarming that I could not predict when I will start have the feeling and panic due this. Other bikers following me sad that they saw that the rear of the bike compressed than starts kind of wobble, while the wheel was still stable and not sliding. So I had the feel of losing grip due to the rear of the bike moving up-down as the weight transferred during the corner probably. With the new setup similarly to the front it feels very stable, no sign of losing grip in the same corner.
 
Does it feel more stiff on bad roads? Maybe, but I try to avoid bad quality roads… and invest in a confort seat 
Could the Nürburgring show its limits? Not really, I was scrapping pegs before the shocks would show a sign of losing the battle, and yes in some cases I was a p*ssy as when a Porsche GT3/Nissan GTR/Ferrari ect is in the corner next to you so close you can touch it, you better let it go O_o
 
Overall: best way to spend some cash on your bike!
 
 

[crsnhppr]

I bet with this kit + some Drop in pistons it would be super, might give it a go and let everyone know.

[bugeyes]

Having had it for a while now I start to feel that the forks are a bit too stiff, might go for a ligher oil for next season.

[gregjet]

Hadn't sen this thread before.

zsoci, That wobble /slide feel even the wheel is stable is what I call "the preload blues". First discovered it in the early 80's on a Yamaha XV100R . The bike had a superb motor, great chassis and AWEFUL ridiculously soft rear suspension. 2 up it would bottom on everything. In those days suspension stuff was next to unavailable especially for the top tube monoshock design of the bike. I made a preload collar to try and get the suspension to at least stop bottoming.

Well... The bike handling improved hugely...as long as there were no bumps...of ANY kind... If it hit a bump it would feel like it was wobbling all over the road. Frighteningly. The suspension is hard to begin with , then because of the soft spring rate, blows through the travel once the preload is exceeded.

Taught me the value of a spring rate that needs min preload and gives the proper travel. At least nowdays we can have a choice and good availability.

[cornerslider]

Just thought I'd weigh in on this, as I did a similar set-up.... I went with the same Ohlins rear (that's a no-brainer). I went a different direction with the front end though. I did Racetech straight rate springs (sprung for my weight), and Racetech fork emulators, and an some cheap preload adjusters (Ebay). I researched the "Fork Emulators" VERY thoroughly before going this direction. It sounded "to-good-to-be-true", and I was highly skeptical.... These emulators, make the forks behave like cartridge forks when properly set up. The install requires some hand-drilling of one of the OEM parts (one per fork leg). The directions do a pretty good job explaining when needs to be done. The emulators come with 2 sets of springs, for an infinite amount of tuning. These springs are for tuning the emulator ONLY (they're about an inch long), and are NOT to be confused with fork springs. I think the recommended/starting preload on the spring was 3 turns. I gave mine an extra 1/2 turn as I'm 80% track, 20% street. I went with a 15wt. fork oil. My understanding is that oil wt. controls the rebound with this set-up. I ran this for most of the season, and was very pleased. I added the front preload adjusters in August. That allowed me set the sag  (front & rear) per the Ohlins recommended settings. That tied the front and rear together perfectly. I couldn't be happier. My buddies at the track went with full cartridge AK-20's up front our their FZ-07's (about $1200.00). I dropped only about $285.00, and achieved pretty much the same result.... Racetech did their homework on these. I think even the most aggressive rider could run the emulators at the recommended  settings, and be totally amazed!!! I've done the full-on, high tech, infinitely adjustable, race shocks/forks  on several bikes in the past. I found what I call a "analysis-paralisis" situation- TOO MANY ADJUSTMENTS!!!! Now, I run with K.I.S.S. philosphy (Keep-It-Simple-Stupid)...... I'm 48 years old, I track ride for FUN, and I'm not chasing championships- I'm VERY happy with this set-up!!!!

[topazsparrow]

53 minutes ago, cornerslider said:

Just thought I'd weigh in on this, as I did a similar set-up.... I went with the same Ohlins rear (that's a no-brainer). I went a different direction with the front end though. I did Racetech straight rate springs (sprung for my weight), and Racetech fork emulators, and an some cheap preload adjusters (Ebay). I researched the "Fork Emulators" VERY thoroughly before going this direction. It sounded "to-good-to-be-true", and I was highly skeptical.... These emulators, make the forks behave like cartridge forks when properly set up. The install requires some hand-drilling of one of the OEM parts (one per fork leg). The directions do a pretty good job explaining when needs to be done. The emulators come with 2 sets of springs, for an infinite amount of tuning. These springs are for tuning the emulator ONLY (they're about an inch long), and are NOT to be confused with fork springs. I think the recommended/starting preload on the spring was 3 turns. I gave mine an extra 1/2 turn as I'm 80% track, 20% street. I went with a 15wt. fork oil. My understanding is that oil wt. controls the rebound with this set-up. I ran this for most of the season, and was very pleased. I added the front preload adjusters in August. That allowed me set the sag  (front & rear) per the Ohlins recommended settings. That tied the front and rear together perfectly. I couldn't be happier. My buddies at the track went with full cartridge AK-20's up front our their FZ-07's (about $1200.00). I dropped only about $285.00, and achieved pretty much the same result.... Racetech did their homework on these. I think even the most aggressive rider could run the emulators at the recommended  settings, and be totally amazed!!! I've done the full-on, high tech, infinitely adjustable, race shocks/forks  on several bikes in the past. I found what I call a "analysis-paralisis" situation- TOO MANY ADJUSTMENTS!!!! Now, I run with K.I.S.S. philosphy (Keep-It-Simple-Stupid)...... I'm 48 years old, I track ride for FUN, and I'm not chasing championships- I'm VERY happy with this set-up!!!!

Do you have a list of part numbers or links to any of that stuff by chance?

[pattonme]

It would also be helpful if you guys would specify exactly what brand and family of oil you're using. '15W' provides no meaningful reference.

You're probably running a 40'ish cSt@40 oil if I had to guess.

 

springs are RT FRSP 3534 aka Sonic 3534 no doubt. The GVE is also listed on their website.

http://www.racetech.com/ProductSearch/2/Yamaha/FZ-07/2015-17

[gregjet]

Cornerslider.

How long ago did you put the Gold valves in. I bought mine in 2014 and put them in then. Followed the guide for the valve spring. I couldn't get it right . It was always too harsh even changing oils. Gave up and bought pattonme's Showa cartridges and got them working pretty well OK.

When I went to sell the gold valves and fork springs I looked up the racetech site again to advise the new owner and found they had CHANGED the recommended spring for the valves to the softer one and  the setting baseline. When I had a think about it , the new recommendations would have worked better ( particularly the softer spring). If you did the change recently and followed the recomendations they should be fine , but it worth a check.

Edited November 14, 2017 by gregjet

[cornerslider]

On 11/13/2017 at 9:23 PM, topazsparrow said:

Do you have a list of part numbers or links to any of that stuff by chance?

These are the part numbers off the www.racetech.com website:

 

Fork springs (specify your weight w/gear)      FRSP S3534 

Fork Emulators                                               FEGV S4101

Emulator adapters (required on FZ-07)          FPEV-AD4103P

 

I would recommend buying via www.revzilla.com, or similar..... The prices are identical. Racetech doesn't have a good online order system yet. As for the preload adjusters- any 41mm should work . I went with the "M-Factory" brand off Ebay. $26.80 + like $6.00 shipping. They have many different colors available. Just an FYI: you need to remove the o-rings off the OEM fork caps, and put them on the new preload adjusters

 

 

[cornerslider]

On 11/14/2017 at 4:21 AM, pattonme said:

It would also be helpful if you guys would specify exactly what brand and family of oil you're using. '15W' provides no meaningful reference.

You're probably running a 40'ish cSt@40 oil if I had to guess.

 

springs are RT FRSP 3534 aka Sonic 3534 no doubt. The GVE is also listed on their website.

http://www.racetech.com/ProductSearch/2/Yamaha/FZ-07/2015-17

I went with "Bel-ray" 15wt. mineral oil-

[cornerslider]

22 hours ago, gregjet said:

Cornerslider.

How long ago did you put the Gold valves in. I bought mine in 2014 and put them in then. Followed the guide for the valve spring. I couldn't get it right . It was always too harsh even changing oils. Gave up and bought pattonme's Showa cartridges and got them working pretty well OK.

When I went to sell the gold valves and fork springs I looked up the racetech site again to advise the new owner and found they had CHANGED the recommended spring for the valves to the softer one and  the setting baseline. When I had a think about it , the new recommendations would have worked better ( particularly the softer spring). If you did the change recently and followed the recomendations they should be fine , but it worth a check.

Yeah, I just did mine in May of 2017. I just followed the directions word-for-word, exactly as they were written (but added an extra 1/2 turn on the recommended Emulator spring). My most frequented track has a pretty rough surface, and is in dire need of being repaved. This set-up smoothed that track out the same, if not better than my previous track bikes with much more expensive suspension set-ups...

[pattonme]

17 hours ago, cornerslider said:

I went with "Bel-ray" 15wt. mineral oil-

49 or 53 cSt@40 give or take.

[darinja]

On 11/15/2017 at 10:57 AM, cornerslider said:

These are the part numbers off the www.racetech.com website:

 

Fork springs (specify your weight w/gear)      FRSP S3534 

Fork Emulators                                               FEGV S4101

Emulator adapters (required on FZ-07)          FPEV-AD4103P

 

I would recommend buying via www.revzilla.com, or similar..... The prices are identical. Racetech doesn't have a good online order system yet. As for the preload adjusters- any 41mm should work . I went with the "M-Factory" brand off Ebay. $26.80 + like $6.00 shipping. They have many different colors available. Just an FYI: you need to remove the o-rings off the OEM fork caps, and put them on the new preload adjusters

 

 

I just looked them up, and they're located in Corona, CA, only 10 minutes from my house!  Definitely going to swing by and chat with them about these options.  Can probably swing front suspension for now and do rear later when I can afford it.  

[pattonme]

5 hours ago, darinja said:

Can probably swing front suspension for now and do rear later when I can afford it.  

Or do springs, oil and bushings and put the balance to a decent rear shock. Ride that for starters and it may be good enough till you find another 300-500 to revisit the front.

[bugeyes]

On 2017-12-19 at 11:40 PM, pattonme said:

Or do springs, oil and bushings and put the balance to a decent rear shock. Ride that for starters and it may be good enough till you find another 300-500 to revisit the front.

Yes, the rear was the biggest improvement so put the prio there

[darinja]

On 12/19/2017 at 2:40 PM, pattonme said:

Or do springs, oil and bushings and put the balance to a decent rear shock. Ride that for starters and it may be good enough till you find another 300-500 to revisit the front.

I was talking to a guy yesterday about the suspension.  Kind of made it also seem like cartridges would get me most of the way but wouldn't really do anything for rebound damping.  We talked about the rear shock and he was telling me about the K-Tech Razor-Lite and K-Tech Razor, but said the Lite was a lot harder to work on so would cost a lot for maintenance if it needed it, so I should just go with the full Razor.  He quoted me about $1400 for the K-Tech Razor installed along with the emulators/springs/adapter installed give or take.  I'm just not sure I have that much in my budget right now.   Any advice?  Maybe a less expensive shock?  I've read good things about the Ohlins which sells for only $575 give or take but I've been told it's not fully adjustable either so not sure if that's a big deal.   

[stickshift]

A budget aftermarket shock (like the Ohlins) and Cogent's DDC valves for the forks will make a massive improvement to the handling and you'll get a lot of change back from $1400...

[pattonme]

8 hours ago, darinja said:

Any advice?  Maybe a less expensive shock?  I've read good things about the Ohlins which sells for only $575

> Kind of made it also seem like cartridges would get me most of the way but wouldn't really do anything for rebound damping.

Huh? The whole reason for going cartridge has to do with rebound damping changes. GVE/DDC etc. have very little if any rebound adjustment capability - you have to screw around with oil viscosity. The difference in rebound between full open and full closed on a cartridge system is dramatic and trivially observable. 

 

>  the Lite was a lot harder to work on so would cost a lot for maintenance if it needed it,

The shock bodies and internals are almost identical. The placement of the separator piston is basically it. Of course he wants to sell you a $750 shock vs a $500 unit.

 

> $1400

ch*st, where are you that you're paying thru the nose for labor?

 

The Ohlins doesn't have ride height which IMO is a silly omission. Nitron, K-Tech, Bitubo, Matris all do.

 

I've got some new, left-over Matris F15K's (4-piston cartridge) I need to off-load. Install is so simple anybody can do it - 1 bolt, shake upside down, install cartridge. ~$570 delivered (CONUS), a bottle of oil, new bushings, and a Razor-Lite and you're just over a grand.