Shocking

[jamais]

I've got almost 39K on the bike now and I believe the shocks are starting to get spongy, like wallowing in the turns. Do you guys have any experience with Works Perfromance or Wilbers shocks?

[BobFV1]

Sorry - I don't, only stockers and Ohlins. BTW, San Jose BMW does lots with Ohlins and you may be anle to get a "friend of Dean-O" discount....

[geechie]

Not being blessed with deep pockets, and being blessed with a wife I'll describe as "frugal", I went with the Works Performance front and rear on my R1100R. They're not Ohlins for sure, but they are a considerable step up from stock and are rebuildable. I found the folks at Works to be friendly, intelligent and knowledgeable. They asked about my size and riding style and the shocks came set very close to right on.

Good luck.

George

[DarthRider]

Alan -
Depending on how long you plan to keep your bike and how much you want to spend on some new boingers, you might just opt for some lo-miles OE take offs. I bought a set with 400 miles for under $200 on the old board to tide e over until I pop for some aftermarket upgrades.
Many of the "non-gold anodized" brands are excellent shocks, maybe without as much adjust-ability and are rebuild-able as Geechie says. I had a Works on the back of a '94 R100R Mystic hot-rod and it was tits!

[jamais]

Thanks guys. I don't know anything about after market shocks. For that matter, I don't know anything about shocks at all! Its sobering that new shocks could approximate nearly 15-20% of the wholesale value of my bike!

[Wild Will]

I don't know about your bike, but the ones that came on my 1100 GS were made by Shoei, and were cheap-assed crap. I hated the bike until I broke down and bought Ohlins for and aft. After 50,000 HARD miles they're still going and going. You'll love a good set of shocks. Penske, Wilbers and Ohlins are top notch, as are WP (White Power, but they can't say that any more...). I've looked at the Works shocks and they appear to be really well made, but almost all the guys who need performance shocks use Ohlins.

[geechie]

...but almost all the guys who need performance shocks use Ohlins.

Well, maybe. But I suspect that most of those who think they need performance shocks would be just fine with the Works stuff.

And Will; you are almost certainly and exception to that statement. I, on the other hand, am its embodiment.

George

[Pacific]

There's a stock front shock for the r1150r on ebay, if that helps.

Jay

[jamais]

Thanks for the heads-up Jay. I believe when I change the shocks, they'll both be changed at the same time. Although I've been satisfied with the stock shocks, I've read that better after market shocks could transform the bike, making me want to keep her for a very long time.

[R4R&R]

Spending $1200-1400 at one time is hard to swallow, so if you were to replace one then the other, which would you do first?

[jamais]

Since the bike's rear tends to wallow a bit in high speed turns, I believe the rear shock should be replaced first.

[DarthRider]

This may not make sense but often symptoms of a suspension problem in one end of the bike will first show up on the opposite end.
Maybe some of our engineers can give you a better explanation, I just know it's so.
Either way, changing one worn shock will only cause the other one to misbehave. I'd change the pair if I could.

[jamais]

Dave, I agree with you. Suspension is a science. I read whatever I can on the subject but after getting into the subject I become a dog watching television, not having a clue what is really going on.

The obvious becomes the complicated, not answerable with one adjustment. I probably need shocks that are good and rebuildable but aren't too sophisticated with respect to racing adjustments. Frankly I only make two adjustments after the overall setup is complete. One for solo riding and one for solo/bags.