ohlins adjustment

[bulgarianfalco]

Thanks for all the support everyone, I'm getting used to the riding position gradually and now starting to make some other adjustments. I've bought Paganman's old bike and it was set up for his 18st frame.........

I'm 12 st and the roads here in BG are bumpy (and none too grippy) and I'm getting shaken around all over the place with the crashingly hard suspension. Tyre pressures checked but it doesn't feel too confident....

I'm not sure what I'm doing with the shock, an '03 Ohlins RSVR with a heavy grade spring. Luckily the standard spring came with the bike, so I'll swap that over during winter, but until then what should I be fiddling with to make it softer? I backed off the preload a few turns, but that seems to have made little difference (maybe even feels worse)...............

Now on my TDM, you just had to move a lever under the seat (fingertips) to HARD or SOFT..... :p

[anzacinexile]

Somethings amiss here - my Ohlins is sublime over the bumps - very plush but very controlled.

Sounds like your spring is way to stiff. Whats your sag settings, that should give us a clue

[flatlander]

No idea but at least I'm not ignoring you

[bulgarianfalco]

errr, not sure how I should measure this..........

[furygan man]

Asked a similar question- hope this helps curtesy of Falco9, i would guess might be worth doing when you've put the original spring on


The most important thing to do first is to set your "static sag" this essentially makes sure the bike is balanced and you have the correct amount of preload on the front & rear suspension for you personally (I always set my sag with my riding gear on although its not accurate to a millimeter)
Once this is done you can use the pdf files that Dale is sending to get a "base" setting for the supsension settings. Then follow Aladins advice by going out for a few rides and making one adjustment at a time till the bike feels right for you. This is very important as what "feels" right for one rider won't for another of course. Bikes and the way we have them set up is always a very personal thing

Settting the sag instructions below:-

Measuring: Preload on the spring/springs is very important,
because it affects the height of the motorcycle
and the fork angle. Consequently, handling characteristics
can be changed, even negatively.

Proceed as follows (it will be much easier if done
by two persons):

A Place the motorcycle on a stand.
B Lift up the rear end to a fully extended
position.
C Measure the distance, eg, from the
lower edge of the rear mud guard or
from a point marked by a piece of
tape, immediately above the rear wheel
axle, to the wheel axle. (R1)
D Make a similar measurement on the front
axle, e.g., from the bottom of the upper
fork crown to the front wheel axle.
The fork must also be fully extended. (F1)
E Allow the motorcycle (without rider) to
apply load on the springs and repeat
the measuring procedure. (R2, F2)
F Then take the same measurements
with the rider and equipment on the
motorcycle. It is important that the
rider has a correct riding posture,
so that the weight is balanced on the
front and rear wheel in the same way
as when riding. (R3, F3)

The measurements may not differ from the
following sizes:

Without rider:
Rear: 5-10 mm (R1-R2)
Front: 25-30 mm (F1-F2)

With rider:
Rear: 30-40 mm (R1-R3)
Front: 35-48 mm (F1-F3

These are the instructions taken from the Ohlins manual and the ones I always use

[bulgarianfalco]

cheers for that, but blimey it's complicated...... I'll follow those to the letter when I put the standard spring back on and get all scientific.

For now, think I'll just back off the preload a bit more to allow for me being 50% lighter......then there are some black knurled rings at the bottom of the shock to fiddle with - anything else?

[furygan man]

cheers for that, but blimey it's complicated...... I'll follow those to the letter when I put the standard spring back on and get all scientific.

For now, think I'll just back off the preload a bit more to allow for me being 50% lighter......then there are some black knurled rings at the bottom of the shock to fiddle with - anything else?

Tell me about it!!!! I didn't bother...'find a man who can' that's my moto, thing is these things are usually more complicated to read than actually do, better when you're around someone who knows what they're doing!

Falcopops also emailed me some 'set-up' PDF's if you're interested, they go right down to basics, if you PM me your email address i'll forward them onto you

I think the rings at the bottom are for ride height?

You'll also need a 'C' spanner

[D-Rider]

Getting the sag right is key. Most suspension setup people only bother to set it on the bike alone without the rider. What doing it with and without the rider will show is whether you have suitable springs for your weight. So, if you are a different weight to the person who had the bike before you and they may have changed the springs, then it's worth doing the measurements with and without rider. (set it without the rider then sit yourself on it and check again with you sitting on it). You will need a mate to assist.
If you can't get both within range (or not too far out) then you won't be able to just adjust it - you will have to change the springs.

Next is sorting out your preload and rebound damping and for that you are going to need to keep riding the same bit of road and feeling exactly what the bike is telling you. Start with the adjusters in their nominal positions from the manual (MilleR manual for your Ohlins).

[bulgarianfalco]

would anyone happen to have a copy of this ohlins manual?

Running out of time as I try to convince the pillion that 'yes dear, of course we can pop down to the Greek coast in comfort......'

[D-Rider]

I meant the Mille Owners Manual (think it's page 83)
http://www.serviceaprilia.com/public/lu ... SV%20Mille

There are also links to the ohlins manuals on the forum but this should get you started

[Nooj]

First thing... Stop playing with the Pre-load! It has nothing to do with how hard the ride is! Rider Sag is important for the way the bike goes round corners and it is worth getting right. As a rough guide, with you on the bike, the rear shock and forks should settle about 1/3rd of the way through their full travel, that should be good enough for any road riding.

But I'm 99% sure your issue here is too much damping.

If the ride is too hard it's almost always too much damping causing the problem. Because you say it doesn't feel like the tyres are gripping also make me think you have way too much damping. The springs can't move enough to keep your wheels on the road, so the bike is hopping and skipping over rough surfaces, rather than gripping them.

As a rough starting point, set the rear compression damping 5 clicks off minimum (soft) and the rear rebound damping 15 clicks off maximum (hard).

Then starting with the rebound damping only, ride along the bumpiest roads you normally ride and adjust it a couple of clicks at a time only. If it feels better, keep adjusting in that direction a couple of clicks at a time. If it feel worse, adjust it the other way a couple of clicks at a time.

If you go too far in either direction, it will either feel too harsh over small bumps making your eyeballs rattle (sounds like it's there already), or too bouncy over big bumps throwing you out of the seat, it needs to be somewhere between the two.

Once you've found a setting that's OK (not perfect), move on to the compression damping and do the same.

You are never going to find a 'perfect' setting, the roads are too varied for that. You are looking for the best compromise only.

If you are going to take a pillion regularly it would make sense to keep this spring on the bike. There are enough settings in there to find something that works for you.

[Nooj]

http://www.ohlins.com/Products/OwnersMa ... 241-02.pdf
The advice in the manual is mostly for fine adjustments for track riding by an experienced rider, the advice I've given above is what I've personally found best for an 'average' rider looking for a bumpy road setting, based on what I've been told by experienced racers and experts (not blokes in the pub) and what I've read in various suspension books.

The Ohlins manual is full of technical terms and diagrams and can appear a bit daunting, don't be put off by it or by tales of 'dangerous and un-rideable' bikes with bad settings. It's not a specialist thing, or a mystical black art and you won't kill yourself by getting it wrong.

There are only three things to learn here; Pre-load, Compression Damping and Rebound Damping. Anyone can set their own bike up well enough if they are methodical and have only a very basic understanding of how suspension actually works

[D-Rider]

First thing... Stop playing with the Pre-load! It has nothing to do with how hard the ride is! Rider Sag is important for the way the bike goes round corners and it is worth getting right. .

So how are we going to set the sag if we don't adjust the pre-load?

[Nooj]

Preload isn't the issue here, damping is. So playing with the Preload won't sort the problem. May as well set it anyway, but it needs separating out form the damping issue.

[anzacinexile]

Whilst I agree with what Nooj is saying, for the first step I would look to a comparison of static and dynamic sag to get an indication if the spring is to stiff to start with bearing in mind that no amount of dicking around with the pre-load will make any difference to the spring rate

If it is to stiff, anything else will be a waste of time until this basic parameter is right to start with