rear shock

Any suggestins for a rear shock (besides olins) for a 1999. Still have stock shock with 27,000 on it. Anyone bought a oem replacement?

 

I've had my eyes on a WP for my 1995. They are also available for the 5th gen.
Search up some of RVFRs posts. He's got an install thread that piqued my interest months ago.
I'm pretty sure Penske will have an application for you too. Ohlins, WP and Penske should all do your ride justice. See who will match your preload requirements and give the features you're looking for. I don't think you can go wrong.

 

I have 51,000 miles on my original. Still seems fine.

 

Penske makes a sport shock you can put on that does not have a remote reservoir. I think it is about $550 from Traxxion Dynamics.

No way a stock OEM shock is with 27,000 miles, let alone 51,000 miles is going provide proper damping. Most OEM shocks are toast by 8,000-10,000 miles at the outside.

 

The preload will be dependent on the rider's weight and the application (street or track); I think you're referring to the shock mfrs providing the correct spring rate.

 

Post how the install goes. Good luck

 

Yup.:smile:

 

Yesiree; I have an Ohlins for my 2000. Its a three way adjustable unit. Its a marvelous piece of engineering and real purrity too. Anyway, you have several shocks to choose from; Penske, Ohlins,a German shock company by the name of Wilbers and I have forgotten the name but there is another Sweedish company that makes a shock for the fifth gen. I wish I would have researched this subject more thoroughly than I did. I just dropped the big bucks for the name without studying it. Do your homework!!!

 

I have a Penske on my F4i, and it is excellent. An advantage for riders in Northern California is that Penske is in Lodi, CA, and can send out springs, or service or revalve your shock quickly and return it in just a few days. Another nice thing about Penske is if the valving doesn't suit you, you can send it back to them and they will revalve to your taste at no charge. But, you have to know exactly what you're asking for....

I'm going to put an Ohlins from Kyle Racing on the VFR as it has a remote hydraulic preload adjuster, which will be handy. Going with Dan to do the work on the forks, he is "just down the road" from me....

 

Puma; I am kind of dissappointed with the external pre load adjuster on my Ohlin. Seems it makes almost no difference,no matter if the adjuster is max.in
or max out. I am not knocking the Ohlins as yet,because I have done little else than install it. Over the winter I need to get some measurments on both front and rear suspension. When I told the Ohlin rep. that I was not so pleased with my purchase, he said in order for the rear shock to work properly the front forks need to be modified/reworked,new frork springs and such. He also said the 5th gen front forks were pretty antiquated and that I should possibly look into newer cartridge forks,and not the add on cartridge type,but the real from the factory cartridge type. So if I can relate my experiences with my new rear shock,dont expect miracles,but do expect to
spend some time balancing out front and rear suspensions, eddie

 

Reg71, I'm really interested to see how you like the Penske. I've got the "double-clicker" Penske on my SV650 (after trying a Progressive 420), and really like it. The standard shock on my '07 VFR isn't terribly bad, particularly for an OEM, but I do want to replace it eventually and was considering the Penske. Have you modified the forks at all?

Sorry, gang; I'm kinda taking this thread off on a tangent. I know that has never happened before...

 

What was wrong with the Progressive 420?

BZ

 

It was a huge improvement over the stock Suzuki shock, but it did not have adjustable compression damping, and it had a progressively wound spring. The only way to vary the compression characteristics was to alter the sag (preload) and find the happiest compromise position. I could not find one that worked to my satisfaction, the biggest issue being square-edged bumps over about 50 MPH. It kicked the back of the bike up.

The other issue was that the rebound adjuster has 5 settings, and for me, it was either too loose or too stiff. I weigh about 180, and I think if I weighed about 20 - 40 pounds more, it may have been closer to what I was looking for. It just felt oversprung and overdamped.

I installed the Penske, adjusted the sag to about 33mm, and was grinning like an idiot within about 3 miles. All of the harshness was gone, and the suspension was much more fluid in its operation.

There are some bumps on westbound Highway 80, in the fast lane between Reno and Sacramento, that were absolutely brutal with the stock suspension. The Progressive was a lot better, but still kicked a bit. The Penske is silky-smooth.

 

Thanks Lgn001!

I was curious because the Progressive is in my price range, but that seems like maybe thats a bad idea to purchase one.

BZ

 

Lgn, sounds exactly like my experience with my Penske. They really are an excellent product, and Penske will work with you an no charge to get the shock valved exactly the way you want. If you want a custom digressive compression valving, they will do it for you. The catch is you have to know what you want. That's what's great about suspension upgrades, you notice the improvement even at street speeds like 25 mph.

 

Bubba Zanetti, Penske does make a "single clicker", similar to the Progressive in function, that is up-gradeable to a "double clicker". I seem to remember it being about $600 versus $850 (from Traxxion Dynamics). The neat thing about it; it is the high performance shock without the remote reservoir, so the only difference is that you can't adjust the compression damping. I think that everything else is the same (that's a guess).

Either way, it is kind of expensive, and it will spoil you. With regard to the Progressive for the SV, the factory did not offer any other springs or damping mods as options (I called and spoke with a tech). So you get what you get, and if it doesn't work for you, there isn't any practical way of dealing with it. That alone would prevent me from getting another one. If somebody gave me one that was low mileage and my stocker was shot, I'd probably try it, just to see.

 

Lgn is correct, the shock he describes is called the Penske Sport Shock. I think it sells for about $550.00. It is same shock as the 2-way adjustable, but w/o the remote rear reservoir and the compression damping adjustability. The cool thing about it is that it is upgradable, so if at a future shock service by Penske, you decide to upgrade to a remote reservoir shock, you can do so.