Front shock a bit harsh (non-ESA) woth trying YSS units?

beaver

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Went for a wonder today and ended up at Firefox Racing Ltd in Keighley (they re-build the ESA units and shocks in genral.)

And was telling him about my bike is as much as I find the front (non-adjustable) shock a bit non-compliant.. so he tested it out and agreed with my findings.. said the rear was real good but I would benefit from an adjustable front... I agree.. just like my TU that I got set up right...

But then he said to fif a £280 YSS unit with progressive spring as they are easily as good as the Nitron and Ohlins he sells?

got to say, I've not come accross YSS before....

so 2 questions

1 Are YSS any good... anyone had experiance of them

2 Does anyone with a non-ESA bike find the same thing.. that the front is a tad hard...

:)
 
I can only speak of my old harley, swapped out the stock shocks, put progressive shocks on, did not like them, put YSS on no difference, ended up putting my stock Harley shocks back on, well that was no help was it..............:D
 
Well at least you had something to say?.. where is everyone... talking about 1250 I guess.. :)
 
I’ve got a YSS rear shock on my FJR1300 and it seems to be well built and works well.
 
Wilbers... well here you go.. the bloke who designed for Wilbers got fed up (or so I read) and is now running YSS... this is the reason I think they may be worth a go as Wilbers have such a good following :)

that said, you can get a progressive spring for the existing for around £85... Motorwerks sell them amongst others... I'll give em a call today when they open, see if anyone knows if they will improve the ride... shock does appear to be good... its maybe the spring thats just too hard?
 
I went for ohlins, night and day, on tc and lc gs,
The origional non esa were mediocre at best,

the rear appears okay, but the front is hard and needs backing off a bit... I think its this thats making me feel a but uneasy in fast bends..

Did you swap out the front yourself?... is it a big job?... looks like the air box has to come off... or can you get in there?
 
Wilbers... well here you go.. the bloke who designed for Wilbers got fed up (or so I read) and is now running YSS... this is the reason I think they may be worth a go as Wilbers have such a good following :)

that said, you can get a progressive spring for the existing for around £85... Motorwerks sell them amongst others... I'll give em a call today when they open, see if anyone knows if they will improve the ride... shock does appear to be good... its maybe the spring thats just too hard?

It really is a hard call, as everyone rides differently, and has different expectations, I personally prefer a stiffer front as to not nose dive, but seems you really need a shock that you can dial in to what you feel is the comfort zone for yourself, shocks do my head in, so hard to find the correct one, but if you choose one, at least choose one that can be dialled in, if you go with just the spring, and that aint right, you are back to square one, I have been there before, what is the YSS model they are going to fit on your bike.
 
It really is a hard call, as everyone rides differently, and has different expectations, I personally prefer a stiffer front as to not nose dive, but seems you really need a shock that you can dial in to what you feel is the comfort zone for yourself, shocks do my head in, so hard to find the correct one, but if you choose one, at least choose one that can be dialled in, if you go with just the spring, and that aint right, you are back to square one, I have been there before, what is the YSS model they are going to fit on your bike.

One of the benefits of the Telelever system is that the geometry is arranged to almost eliminate fork dive on braking. This allows the spring rate to be optimised for compliance without having to be artificially higher to help resist fork dive, as can be the case with standard forks, especially conventional as opposed to semi-active systems.
 
One of the benefits of the Telelever system is that the geometry is arranged to almost eliminate fork dive on braking. This allows the spring rate to be optimised for compliance without having to be artificially higher to help resist fork dive, as can be the case with standard forks, especially conventional as opposed to semi-active systems.

My first time with a telelever system, and must admit it is quite nice, and far better than messing around with different oil levels and viscocity, or HD springs etc.........:beerjug:
 
Best not guess, as shocks vary a lot on their spec, find out the correct model and let us know.

The guy who builds them and sets them up for the bike says they don't list one as yet for the LC's.. so he'll have to figure it out using the ends he has available.. he'd need my shock for a couple of days so he can test everything about it and any restrictions i.e. top mounting space envelope....
But guess the base shock is something similar to the one in the link...

They are expensive bike shocks.. just been to my mates who is doing up his TVR Sagaris and is putting Gaz Gold on it... about £120 per corner and they are much bigger unit than a bike one... I know when I got Nitrons for my car, it was about £250 per corner... so why do Nitron charge £1K for 2 on a bike... rip-off...
 
I know when I got Nitrons for my car, it was about £250 per corner... so why do Nitron charge £1K for 2 on a bike... rip-off...

Adjustability of everything
Consistant performance under extreme conditions
Race bred R and D
Race winning proof of quality

It's horses for courses
YSS may be fine for your needs, doubt you'll see many on a BSB grid.
 
Adjustability of everything
Consistant performance under extreme conditions
Race bred R and D
Race winning proof of quality

It's horses for courses
YSS may be fine for your needs, doubt you'll see many on a BSB grid.

Adjustability for the sake of adjustability is a waste of money on a road only bike. The Maxton shocks I put on my non ESA 2011 R1200GSA were set up from the factory to my weight and usage ,taking into account touring and two up work .

The front and rear units were the NR 4 items with adjustable preload (hydraulic on the rear) plus adjustable compression and rebound damping , factory set in 4 years the front unit never needed any adjustment whether solo, two up or two up with luggage .

Similarly the rear required 2 or 3 turns on the hydraulic preload adjuster for two up with or without luggage and nothing else.

Richard from Maxton pointed out that the higher spec GP10 and RT10 units with almost infinite adjustment were vastly over spec for road use and also a lot more expensive.

A YSS/Hagon/ Wilbers unit with a bit of basic adjustability and sprung to the riders weight will still be better than the budget Sachs units on a Basic
 
the YSS and my Nitrons have exactly the same adjustment..

But agree fully with Neil... you don't need the lot for the road.. thats why I don't want to go mad with them and spend £££... even a more sympathetic spring may do the job... TBH, I've been out this aft, and it felt nice.. maybe its at the end of a 200 mile trip it just feels a bit hard?...

May go for the YSS... see what its like ;)
 
On my old r1150gs after 40,000 miles the standard shocks were tired . I bought a used set (to keep the bike on the road) and the used set were overhauled bu ABe and fitted with Hyperpro springs . Huge difference and the shocks were more than good enough for the road
 


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