Wilbers shocks tuning ; result !

[lkyphl]

Having enjoyed aftermarket suspension on my 1150 for well over 100,000kms, I decided to fit similar items to my 1200 in the hope of softening up what I considered a too-harsh ride.
After providing my weight and details of my riding style (% dirt, pillion carried or not, etc) a pair of Wilbers shocks were ordered, the rear having remote hydraulic preload and high & low speed compression damping adjustment.
The shocks arrived and were fitted, and the ride was extremely harsh.
I fitted a cable tie around the fork legs of both bikes, and rode them both at a similar speed over the roughest (sealed) road I know. The cable tie on the (Wilbers equipped) 1150 was pushed up the fork leg 69mm, and the cable tie on the 1200 was pushed up 37mm, demonstrating how harsh the ride was. Both shocks are fitted with the same springs, despite the 1150's extra 30kgs. After many calls to the importer I took both front shocks to him and asked for the (compression) shims in the new 1200 shock to be made identical to that of the 1150's. Upon disassembly he found the new shocks (front and rear) had been assembled with incorrect shim stacks at the factory, hence the harsh ride. (to say the least ! )
After refitting the reworked shocks I reckoned the ride was still too harsh compared to the 1150's, so asked for the shims to be softened off further. The smallest shim was removed, which resulted in a slightly improved ride. Still the ride was too harsh, so I asked him to make a significant change, and he removed all bar three of the original eight shims.
Finally the ride is quite similar to that of the smooth 1150. There is enough damping provided by the remaining shims to prevent the bike bouncing on the spring only, and minor adjustments to the feel can be made by adjusting the rebound damping. I have set the rear high-speed compression damping to near minimum, and have reduced the low-speed damping also.
I would say the ride now is excellent for normal everyday riding and touring, but the front is definitely too soft and vague for spirited riding, especially tight bumpy down hill sections such as our Reefton Spur, for those Australian riders who are reading this. The front end feels like it wants to tuck very slightly; more preload on the rear seemed to have a negligible effect.
Perserverence has paid off.

Phil

 

[matteb]

I have exactly the same shocks on my 1200GS, and the feeling was the same.
I changed the springs on front and rear to a softer setting and now it's like a new bike. I am 75 kg and riding most solo. Changed rear spring from 150 to 130 N/mm and front spring from 55 to 45 N/mm.
No problem with pillion either, just turn up the preload a lot.

Compared to the KTM950 Adv. I had before BMW's suspension is not at all as good. The KTM was perfect just out the box and I miss that. The smaller roads in Sweden is often very bumpy because all frost bites after winter.

 

[lkyphl]

I reckon you're right about the springs ; I just took my 1150, fitted with the original standard shocks, out for a couple of hundred kms, and the ride is definitely better than the 1200 fitted with the "tuned" Wilbers.
I shall have to get the importer to take the 1200 for a ride ; I reckon he'll be surprised at how harsh the ride still is. He was very reluctant to change the springs, but it looks like I'll have to try and persuade him !
Thanks for the reply,

Phil

 

[APE]

i found the same with the standard springs on my Ohlins. They come with the same spring rate as the 1150GS which does seem strange given the 12s lower weight. I dropped down to a 48 front and 130 rear which works much better. Personally I think anybody lighter than 85-90 kgs should consider this when they order unless you do a lot of 2 up riding. Also worth noting that the standard rear spring on the 1200GS is a 130.

 

[ampthill]

After providing my weight and details of my riding style (% dirt, pillion carried or not, etc) a pair of Wilbers shocks were ordered, the rear having remote hydraulic preload and high & low speed compression damping adjustment.
The shocks arrived and were fitted, and the ride was extremely harsh.
I fitted a cable tie around the fork legs of both bikes, and rode them both at a similar speed over the roughest (sealed) road I know. The cable tie on the (Wilbers equipped) 1150 was pushed up the fork leg 69mm, and the cable tie on the 1200 was pushed up 37mm, demonstrating how harsh the ride was. Both shocks are fitted with the same springs, despite the 1150's extra 30kgs. After many calls to the importer I took both front shocks to him and asked for the (compression) shims in the new 1200 shock to be made identical to that of the 1150's. Upon disassembly he found the new shocks (front and rear) had been assembled with incorrect shim stacks at the factory, hence the harsh ride. (to say the least ! )
After refitting the reworked shocks I reckoned the ride was still too harsh compared to the 1150's, so asked for the shims to be softened off further. The smallest shim was removed, which resulted in a slightly improved ride. Still the ride was too harsh, so I asked him to make a significant change, and he removed all bar three of the original eight shims.
Finally the ride is quite similar to that of the smooth 1150. There is enough damping provided by the remaining shims to prevent the bike bouncing on the spring only, and minor adjustments to the feel can be made by adjusting the rebound damping. I have set the rear high-speed compression damping to near minimum, and have reduced the low-speed damping also.
I would say the ride now is excellent for normal everyday riding and touring,

Phil

Am I missing something here?

Surely after you have paid some considerable sum of money for some replacement shocks - for which you had specified your requirements - the least you would expect is for them to work properly when fitted and not have to end up doing development work for Wilbers along with the time and hassle of negotiating with your supplier for alterations?

Have to say having read of your experiences Wilber would be one shock that I would not touch with the proverbial bargepole.

Peter

 

[lkyphl]

Peter,
strangely, the importer reckons the owners of every other 1200GS to which he's fitted Wilbers have thought them fantastic; perhaps they hadn't experienced aftermarket shocks before. The bloke is genuinely mystefied as to why the ride on mine's so harsh.
I also consider this R & D I seem to be doing for them unacceptable, especially considering the importer's over an hour away, however I'm not prepared to ride the bike with the original suspension, and I'm not going to sell these Wilbers just to buy Ohlins. The Wilbers on my 1150 are excellent, and I see no reason why these new shocks can't be as good.

I'm surprised no-one else with Wilbers on a 1200 is complaining.

Mike,
I was unable to find out from BMW Australia the original spring's rates. I'm hoping a 45/130 will be enough of a change; I'm tempted to try a 120 rear and then play with the preload. Currently I have 55/140, never ride with a pillion.

Phil

 

[APE]

Phil,

I think you would find the 120 too soft. There is a big difference between the 140 and the 130. I would have gone for a 135 if it were available (I weigh 65kg).

Mike

 

[matteb]

Phil, how is it going with your springs?

Just got back from a 2000 km tour in Norway. I must say the suspension on
my bike works fine now. Would not get softer spring than my rear 130 N/mm.
Front suspension works fine too, but very big bumps still feels in the handlebars. I quess I would have to live with that.

The tour to Norway was a bit disapointing since snow started to fall this weekend at the higher mountain roads and some roads was impossible to pass. This is crazy, I think I should move to Australia instead.

Matte

 

[ECM]

Norway.. couple of weeks ago

My club managed to get off the pass ... just yet. It was closed behind us, for the first time in 38 years on that date.

 

[lkyphl]

Matte,

Have had the front 55 replaced by a 45, and the rear 140 replaced by a 130 ; certainly an improvement riding over larger square-edged bumps, but still not as compliant as my 1150. There's a noticeable improvement with a full tank of fuel.
With the rear 130 I still have zero high-speed and zero slow-speed damping dialled in ; when the importer returns from OS I'll get him to lighten up the shim stack so the damping adjustment can be, er, adjusted.

This has taken a ridiculous amount of time considering the shocks are "built to your specs". Not impressed.

Phil

 

[matteb]

Hi Phil!

Keep us (me) posted how it works out.
As you said, it's not impressive to have to do all these changes when the
shocks are ordered for a certain weight.
I quess they works best out of the box if you are like 130 kg or allways drive with pillion.
Is it possible to make the front shock handle the really big bumps as well?

It's strange that there is so little discussion about this problem in forums.

Matte

 

[Burra boy]

Phil, I've also got Wilburs on my 1200 (they came with it) and I agree that the ride is quite harsh. I set the preload according to the info I got from the US mob and it improved things slightly but again, same as you, my old 1150 had a better ride with 130000kms on the original shocks. Can you keep me posted on how you go? It's a fair ride to Melbourne for me (I'm near Cooma in NSW) but would like to get the shocks sorted. Thanks mate.