Rear Suspension

[radman]

Or pay me later. Frank's an 05, with 16,XXX miles now, picked up late july 04. Doing maintainance while the snows fly, and pulled the rear apart first time since new. Some observations.

Swing arm-bearings nice, plenty of lube, in good enough shape to clean, repack, and good to go.

Relay Arm-whole different story. Not rusty, but end Torringtons dry as a bone, and use plastic roller retainers that fall apart when attempting to clean. Center Torringtons (the ones that support the 2 arms) use metal retainers, and are good to go. University motors is gonna be stocking the end ones and seals, after talking with Gary, he mentions 2 orders this summer, now me, so into inventory they go. Lube well, and lube often the moral would be.

I would love to install a nicer shock/spring assembly, but with Ohlins at a grand, Wilburs next at 6 bills or so, Penske may be my shock of choice. Anyone used it on the Feej and how do you like?

 

[twowheelnut]

Wait for the Wilber's buy. Sounds like it should launch next month.

 

[radman]

Curiouser and curiouser. The bearings I mentioned, made by NTN, use what they call "solid grease". What appears to be a roller retainer is actually some type of hard formed lubricant, which precludes the need for any other lubrication, or service it would seem. It would explain why mine were dry, yet semed undamaged. I guess as long as the seals are kept lubed, to prevent moisture intrusion, they are relatively maintainance free. Weird.

And the GB may be just the ticket.

 

[opt8low]

Radman,

You should really look into the Penske. From what I have seen and heard from the racing community is that the Penske is the shit.... There is another thread on here about the Penske and everyone that has one really likes it.

You can get one for about 800.00. If you want low and high speed compression adjust it is a little more. I would call GP Suspension and talk to Dave. He is a Penske shop and could hook you up right.

Just my 2 cents,

Dana

 

[nusman68]

I would love to install a nicer shock/spring assembly, but with Ohlins at a grand, Wilburs next at 6 bills or so, Penske may be my shock of choice.

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

 

[twowheelnut]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

Snigger.

 

[FJRandy]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

Only two companies for Jap bikes. Showa and Kayaba.

Honda owns Showa, and I don't believe Yamaha owns Kayaba but they might have their hand in there somewhere.

Yamaha buying Ohlins?? SWEEET!

 

[PapaUtah]

Yamaha either owns or has a large stake in Ohlins already.

 

[twowheelnut]

They own Ohlins long time, baby.

 

[sportryder]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

The name is Soqi. They make the forks on the FJR and also the FZ1. I believe they also make the shocks for both of those bikes also.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

The name is Soqi. They make the forks on the FJR and also the FZ1. I believe they also make the shocks for both of those bikes also.

Thankyou!!! All I could think of was Sachs, but I knew that wasn't it. I believe Soqi was also responsible for the stock rear shock on my R1, that's the only reason I remember it at all.

 

[twowheelnut]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

The name is Soqi. They make the forks on the FJR and also the FZ1. I believe they also make the shocks for both of those bikes also.

FJR's forks are made by Kayaba.

 

[sportryder]

Good to know...some interesting trivia for you...my neighbor (and fellow motorcyclist) who is an engineer w/Shell Oil told me last week (after one of his business trips) that Yamaha is set to buy Ohlins....hmmmmmm.

Doesn't Yamaha already own a suspension company??? Can't think of the name now............??????

The name is Soqi. They make the forks on the FJR and also the FZ1. I believe they also make the shocks for both of those bikes also.

FJR's forks are made by Kayaba.

Sorry, but you are incorrect. They are not Kayaba forks. They are Soqi parts and have identical internals to the FZ1 forks which are also manufactured by Soqi. Care to place a bet on it? I could use the money.

 

[madmike2]

Rogdeb bought a Penske or Works (long before the Wilbers group buy was available)and is really happy with it.

 

[FJR-Dude]

I can take a picture of the Soqi valves that came out of my FJR forks if you don't believe Lee.

I have the Penske on my FJR. It's sweet. Also has separate ride height adjust on it.

 

[Pacman]

I can take a picture of the Soqi valves that came out of my FJR forks if you don't believe Lee.

I have the Penske on my FJR. It's sweet. Also has separate ride height adjust on it.

I'm not sure I understand. Penske with a hydraulic remote preload gadget or with a ride height adjust? What's your weight and what rate spring did they installed?

 

[FJR-Dude]

The Penske does not have a remote adjuster for ride height or pre-load. But both can be changed. Independant of each other.

I can't remember the spring I got on mine. I would have to check on that. I think it might be on the shock chart that came with the shock.

 

[sportryder]

The ride height adjuster is at the bottom of the Penske shock. It is NOT a spring preload adjuster. It allows the eye to eye length of the shock to be extended or lengthened. This is used for making geometry changes to the chassis.

I also measured my Penske this weekend and compared the length of it to the OEM shock. It is approximately 5 mm longer from eye to eye than the OEM shock.

The Penske does not come with a "default" spring. These shocks are built custom based on each purchase order. The weight of the rider, the bike, the riding style, and the amount of gear normally carried are all taken into account when we take an order at our shop.

I selected a 950 lb/inch spring for my FJR. I went for a ride on Sunday with my wife. Our combined weight is approximately 350 lbs. I found the 950 to be just about right. It sure magnified how soft the front end is now. After the holidays, I've decided to install our Traxxion Dynamics AK-20 cartridges and 1.10 kg/mm fork springs to balance the package out.

Something to make a note of is this - when you get the correct springs for your weight, bike and "purpose" installed, there really is no need to make changes to the spring preload just because you add a passenger or gear. Minor changes may be necessary if your passenger is real heavy or you pile on loads of gear though.

Spring preload "fiddling" is something we are taught to do because almost all motorcycles are shipped from the factory with springs that are too soft for the bike and rider. Too soft springs are also masked by the manufacturer using too much highspeed compression damping to minimize the hobby-horse effect and "over-stroking" of the suspension components caused by the use of overly soft springs. That is the worst tactic to use because the side effect is a harsh ride over sharp-edged bumps. That translates into a jolt through the handlebars or a nice slap in the backside when crossing rough pavement.