HMarc
Guest
I just created this Webpage:
http://www.r1200gs.info/howto/mountWilbers.html
BASELINE DATA: Bike had 13k miles on the original stock suspension, rider is 5'7" and weighs 175 pounds ready to ride, riding style is fairly agressive but smooth. Bike is currently shod with Bridgestone BT020s, front and rear.
I took it for a quick ride today with the personalized settings as delivered by the factory, and it is a definite improvement. Not as huge as was putting the Ohlins on my old R11GS, but very noticable. And a much more postive change than putting an Ohlins on the back of my FJR1300. Should be even better after I get a couple friends over to help me set the static sag, and tweak the compression/rebound settings a bit.
With the stock front shock dialed to no preload at all, the front forks never sagged, just the rear. When I sit on it now, with the Wilbers, both ends sag about the same amount, just like they should.
As I left the driveway and rode over the curb to the street, it felt more plush and more firm at the same time. The front end felt a bit "higher", but maybe that's an illusion. The rear shock is only about 1-2mm shorter, and the front shock only about the same amount longer than stock, so I wouldn't think that little a difference would be noticable. It feels more taut, but at the same time plusher, if that makes sense.
Riding down the hill and around the first S-curve, the front end feels much more stable and planted than before. Cornering performance is definitely improved. Can't wait to take it on the track and push it a little bit. I'll bet the stability in a cross-wind is also improved, but I have yet to verify that.
The overall ride is more comfortable and it now semi-glides over the little bumps and pavement irregularities whereas the stock suspension resulted in me feeling every little irregularity. The big potholes and stuff are still kinda harsh, but not quite as harsh as stock. Plus I expect that I can tweak the rebound and high-speed compression on the rear to smooth that out.
With the stock suspension, for me and my weight and riding style, I always felt the ride was more "harsh" than it should be, given what I know about suspension. Now, with the Wilbers, I don't get that "harsh" feeling when I ride it.
Overall I'm pleased, so far. It's a lot of money, but the stock suspension really wasn't very good. When I rode a Suzuki DL650 on a trackday side-by-side with my R12GS and found the little Suzuki to have better suspension, I knew I had to do something.
I'm thinking I might buy a carbon-fiber inner rear-hugger from http://www.ilmberger-carbon.de/ -- that way I can leave the shock unobscured out in the open where folks can see it. It's such a pretty piece of hardware!
So far, I see no reason to need to lower the rear shock height.
http://www.r1200gs.info/howto/mountWilbers.html
BASELINE DATA: Bike had 13k miles on the original stock suspension, rider is 5'7" and weighs 175 pounds ready to ride, riding style is fairly agressive but smooth. Bike is currently shod with Bridgestone BT020s, front and rear.
I took it for a quick ride today with the personalized settings as delivered by the factory, and it is a definite improvement. Not as huge as was putting the Ohlins on my old R11GS, but very noticable. And a much more postive change than putting an Ohlins on the back of my FJR1300. Should be even better after I get a couple friends over to help me set the static sag, and tweak the compression/rebound settings a bit.
With the stock front shock dialed to no preload at all, the front forks never sagged, just the rear. When I sit on it now, with the Wilbers, both ends sag about the same amount, just like they should.
As I left the driveway and rode over the curb to the street, it felt more plush and more firm at the same time. The front end felt a bit "higher", but maybe that's an illusion. The rear shock is only about 1-2mm shorter, and the front shock only about the same amount longer than stock, so I wouldn't think that little a difference would be noticable. It feels more taut, but at the same time plusher, if that makes sense.
Riding down the hill and around the first S-curve, the front end feels much more stable and planted than before. Cornering performance is definitely improved. Can't wait to take it on the track and push it a little bit. I'll bet the stability in a cross-wind is also improved, but I have yet to verify that.
The overall ride is more comfortable and it now semi-glides over the little bumps and pavement irregularities whereas the stock suspension resulted in me feeling every little irregularity. The big potholes and stuff are still kinda harsh, but not quite as harsh as stock. Plus I expect that I can tweak the rebound and high-speed compression on the rear to smooth that out.
With the stock suspension, for me and my weight and riding style, I always felt the ride was more "harsh" than it should be, given what I know about suspension. Now, with the Wilbers, I don't get that "harsh" feeling when I ride it.
Overall I'm pleased, so far. It's a lot of money, but the stock suspension really wasn't very good. When I rode a Suzuki DL650 on a trackday side-by-side with my R12GS and found the little Suzuki to have better suspension, I knew I had to do something.
I'm thinking I might buy a carbon-fiber inner rear-hugger from http://www.ilmberger-carbon.de/ -- that way I can leave the shock unobscured out in the open where folks can see it. It's such a pretty piece of hardware!
So far, I see no reason to need to lower the rear shock height.
