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Suspension -non oem front and rear for Tourer

  • Baloffski
    Baloffski
    2 years ago
    This subject has been covered , but not to the extent of oil, but things evolve, products change and new ones are released. I'm after some information to help me transform my 2012 Road Glide FLTRX ya everyday custom, into a better handling motorcyle, not like my old Laverda type riding on rails but a safer, more comfortable ride,  re-instilling confidence on my old abilitys.
    The rear: Currently have Fornales, but going to ditch them as they are too lightweight for a Tourer, plus they need a service badly and is just too much of a fuck around.Magnum lightweights, aluminium, not suitable for a heavy mother fucker Roadie.
    Firstly lets hit JRI , those that have rear installed what are your thought after living with them on the rear? 
    Has anyone installed cartridges or springs on the front?
    Secondly Ohlins, not the gold plated rear pairs, just adjustable with good rebound.Had on my MG V11, front forks and single on rear not bad .
    Burley, have just recenly heard of them, but wouldn't buy them just on principal of name, like burley up when ya go fishing.
    YSS Have had didn't bond withem.
    Legend, know zero abut them?
    What are progressive like? Did have them on fatboy, didn't like em on that ride and took em back. Scored new Fornales which were great but too much rolling around in the dirt to fucken adjust undersofty, not the issue with Road Glide
    Any other rear shocks I'd appreciate any suggestions.

    The front:
    Have had Racetek and gold valves,Ktek. Now that was amazing transformation on my Fat Boy, absolutely night and day. $600  fitted 25 years ago.Now would be more.
    Progressive I see them advertised everywhere , Ebay, even Amazon. Obviously they work ok, just don't know if wantto go down that road again, lol.
    Will be installing myself as no suspension specialist where I'm at now, and not using HD dealer to do, so need set up to wack in.
    New years eve is near on us, I'm happy talking bikes, asking for advice rather than partying drinking , drugs, sex and what have you. Shit I do that anyway.lol
    Have a great safe new year, it's gotta be better than the fucken last two.
    Mick
  • tussuck
    tussuck
    2 years ago
    And do not forget ICON shocks, made in Aussy but do not hold that against them.  Least worth ringing them or looking on their website as I had a pair on the Sporty for a few years and found them bloody awesome. 


  • steelo
    steelo
    2 years ago
    What shocks did you get Binnsy?
  • paulybronco
    paulybronco
    2 years ago
    Quoting Baloffski on 31 Dec 2021 12:43 PM

    This subject has been covered , but not to the extent of oil, but things evolve, products change and new ones are released. I'm after some information to help me transform my 2012 Road Glide FLTRX ya everyday custom, into a better handling motorcyle, not like my old Laverda type riding on rails but a safer, more comfortable ride,  re-instilling confidence on my old abilitys.

    The rear: Currently have Fornales, but going to ditch them as they are too lightweight for a Tourer, plus they need a service badly and is just too much of a fuck around.Magnum lightweights, aluminium, not suitable for a heavy mother fucker Roadie.
    Firstly lets hit JRI , those that have rear installed what are your thought after living with them on the rear? 
    Has anyone installed cartridges or springs on the front?
    Secondly Ohlins, not the gold plated rear pairs, just adjustable with good rebound.Had on my MG V11, front forks and single on rear not bad .
    Burley, have just recenly heard of them, but wouldn't buy them just on principal of name, like burley up when ya go fishing.
    YSS Have had didn't bond withem.
    Legend, know zero abut them?
    What are progressive like? Did have them on fatboy, didn't like em on that ride and took em back. Scored new Fornales which were great but too much rolling around in the dirt to fucken adjust undersofty, not the issue with Road Glide
    Any other rear shocks I'd appreciate any suggestions.

    The front:
    Have had Racetek and gold valves,Ktek. Now that was amazing transformation on my Fat Boy, absolutely night and day. $600  fitted 25 years ago.Now would be more.
    Progressive I see them advertised everywhere , Ebay, even Amazon. Obviously they work ok, just don't know if wantto go down that road again, lol.
    Will be installing myself as no suspension specialist where I'm at now, and not using HD dealer to do, so need set up to wack in.
    New years eve is near on us, I'm happy talking bikes, asking for advice rather than partying drinking , drugs, sex and what have you. Shit I do that anyway.lol
    Have a great safe new year, it's gotta be better than the fucken last two.
    Mick

    Hey Mick have had Ohlins many times on various bikes......not cheap but a really impressive piece of kit. The major problem with the tourers is that with just a few inches of travel to play with the shock has a lot to do in a very short space of travel starting off with taking some of that travel up just in static sag. 
  • Baloffski
    Baloffski
    2 years ago
    Just got back from a 6 hour ride, and it was bloody awesome. Set mobile/gps to destination , ended up on some of the most shitty fucken roads in country I have never been through>This has whole heartedly steeled my resolve to get new suspension, as had a few  near death experiences a few times and too old for crap shocks on crap roads.
    Tussuck I didn't forget Ikon, will check out the website tonight, thanks for reminding me Aussie product.
    Steelo, think binnsy got progressive.Was hoping to hear how he bonded with them.
    PB , yes you are correct, Ohlins are up there for sure, as the premium product .May well hit them once again, as have had no bad issues with the product.
    But after tonight, getting home at midnight, I'm not procrastinating any more. Will order shortly, front and rear.
    Also apologies for my long winded initial query, just running things through to you guys for opinions, I don't get out much at all socially. Now where did I put my credit card.
  • tussuck
    tussuck
    2 years ago
    Gotta agree that the roads even around Melbourne ALL seem to have a dose of COVID and are in the worst condition I have seen ever!.  Bloody odd that they still took our money and the poor sods must have been forced to pay themselves giant bonus's cause the funds did not hit the tarmac! 
  • Neale
    Neale
    2 years ago
    My humble opinion, for what it’s worth. Is that you’re only going to get what you pay for.
    I had a suspension guru rebuild my rear shocks on my old Electra, he told me to never waste your money on YSS as he reckoned they were garbage.
    I’d love ohlins  gear on my bikes but I’m too miserable to fork up the dough.
  • binnsy
    binnsy
    2 years ago
    Quoting steelo on 31 Dec 2021 11:12 PM

    What shocks did you get Binnsy?

    Legend Revo As steelo.  Haven't had a chance to fit them up yet.  FYI Baloffski the guy I got mine from had a set on his Street Glide and swore they were really good.  He also had Racetech fitted up front and said the difference they made were amazing. Will probably fit some to mine as well when I get around to it.  Not looking forward to pulling the front of the Street Glide down though.

  • binnsy
    binnsy
    2 years ago
    As per my reply to steelo Baloffski the Legend Revo-A shocks havent quite made it onto the bike yet.  Hopefully soon I will get the time.  I had Progressive fitted front and rear on a fatboy I owned and wasnt that impressed with them.  
    Im leaning towards Racetech for the front next, that's only based on opinions I have been given by other riders.  
  • fatbat
    fatbat
    2 years ago
    Mick, is your Road glide a keeper long-term? If so I reckon you already know what the best is 
  • DocGreen
    DocGreen
    2 years ago
    Hey Mick, get the best you can afford mate. I have been very happy with my JRi shocks in 13 inch, considering either racetech springs and gold valves or even bitubo carts in the front. Nutty who frequents here every now and then was pretty impressed by them and he sounded pretty knowledgeable in that department. 
    Cheers
    Doc
  • leachy
    leachy
    2 years ago
    I went down this path a while ago and I would probably do things differently. My bike is a Dyna Low Rider 2016. I fitted 13" Progressive 490 series on the rear and Legend cartridges up front. I probably would fit the Legend cartridges up front again, they are too stiff for me I weigh about 83Kg. The bike handles really well on a nice smooth surface, handles really well but longer distance riding on country roads is tiring. The Rears are ok but again I thought they were a bit expensive, I was expecting something like a modern twin shock naked sports bike and its far from that, they are two over damped for my weight and aren't really adjustable.

    If I had my time again id go Racetech Gold Valves and springs up front. I have fitted them to my DR 650 and it was an amazing different. Id probably spend the extra and go Ohlins fully adjustable on the rear.

    Good luck its not easy to get the money / performance / expectation correct.

    Regards
    Leachy
  • TJU
    TJU
    2 years ago
    Legends Front and Rear .. Revo a`s on the rear and their Cartridge setup on front .. 2017 Road Glide Special .. truly a Amazing difference from stock stuff or should that be stock shit .. and from what i have read and seen they now have an updated version of the Revo A`s with even more adjustability .

    Take into account i and the missus are Not small so the standard stuff did not stand a chance .. as mentioned by others here the front cartridge can feel a bit stiff if rider and companion are of the smaller stature .. so possibly Progressive`s up front .. but like a lot of things they do get better after awhile .  

    Ohlins are of course right up there .. But .. when i got my Legends near on 4 years ago the price of a decent set of Ohlins was close to twice the cost of the Legends .. not sure how the cost compare these days .

    Another thing to take into account is if you are going to upgrade the suspension make sure you do both front and rear .. it`s incredible how much better the bike will handle when both are done .

    Not sure how factual this is but had a Suspension guy up here in Brisbane tell me that the rears account for the comfort level while the front accounts for the handling .. and he went on to say that a lot of people will put some good gear on the rear and get the comfort but then not do the fronts and wonder why the bike still wollows through the corners or when hitting bumps and potholes and so on and then get disillusioned with the whole setup .

    And don`t forget that No Matter how good a setup you have you will Still Feel the bumps occasionally .. There is No such thing as Bump feeling free motorbike ride .. anyone tells you that then they are full of Crap and don`t ride very Hard .

    The good gear just makes a 400 to 600 Klm day ride far more enjoyable .. Cheers .   
  • Baloffski
    Baloffski
    2 years ago
    Thank you to every one that has thrown in their 2 bobs, appreciated your points of view, and just gave self and others am sure reflection on what we expect from our rides. Many thanks. 
    As said FB I know what is the best, but do I need to go down that road. 
    Legends were high on the list, and obviously a well respected, adjustable and reliable product, but thought I'd go with something reasonably new with a shitload of adjustability, that I have never had before, even though they are rather exe. 
    But will see when I get em next week, and throw them on the rear. JRI 13inches.I'm currently 85 Kg, Mrs. is like 60 so not a great weight to support, even the shit load of stuff( you never know when ya might need it in WA or Qld.) I carry in panniers
    For the front I'll probably go with Racetech with gold valves again, they are an amazing addition to the front end of a Harley Davidson in my opinion.
    TJU Ohlins are the best but, your correct, to justify the dollars is hard, when near similar suspension can be bought for much less.
    Thanks again, anything has gotta be better than stock crap suspension.
  • mykol
    mykol
    2 years ago
    have you looked into Wilburs LDC for tourers expensive but good setup going by the reviews Brad the wizard does an install video on youtube worth a look, I had racetech fronts and hagon rear on my fat bob handled pretty good also progressive front with hagon rear on my wideglide was good but now have got 2019 streetglide and have been looking into suspension upgrade and i have been looking at the Wilburs setup

  • Baloffski
    Baloffski
    2 years ago
    mykol did look at Wilburs , they too are an excellent product by all accounts that I've read over the years, but they are not that common an item, I wasn't sure who could service/repair them . So rear is JRI and proof will be in the pudding next week. After reading detailed instructions on adjustment for the JRI I think I'm going to have some fun playing with the multitude of adjustments. 
    Front forks, was looking at Race Tech, which I did want to install myself as well...Ha. after reading comprehensive installation data, I'll say 'you gotta be kidding'. That is best left to suspension gurus.
    So may look at cartridge type inserts, which I know nothing about, but the front end is in need of a twinkle thats for sure, so will see what's available for rider installation, where I don't need to go back to nigt school to install. thanks for help.
  • mickle
    mickle
    2 years ago
    Quoting Baloffski on 08 Jan 2022 11:27 AM

    mykol did look at Wilburs , they too are an excellent product by all accounts that I've read over the years, but they are not that common an item, I wasn't sure who could service/repair them . So rear is JRI and proof will be in the pudding next week. After reading detailed instructions on adjustment for the JRI I think I'm going to have some fun playing with the multitude of adjustments. 

    Front forks, was looking at Race Tech, which I did want to install myself as well...Ha. after reading comprehensive installation data, I'll say 'you gotta be kidding'. That is best left to suspension gurus.
    So may look at cartridge type inserts, which I know nothing about, but the front end is in need of a twinkle thats for sure, so will see what's available for rider installation, where I don't need to go back to nigt school to install. thanks for help.

    Probably a bit too late for you now Mick but I went Legends all around on my Tourer and they are a great performing shock both front and rear.
  • Baloffski
    Baloffski
    2 years ago
    Hey mickle,
    thanks mate, did indeed score some new JRI, which are light years ahead of oem, but still looking for the sweet spot after two thousand kms. with mrs B on back and solo. hmm... will keep trying, it's in there somewhere.That was for rear, with a squillion adjustments available, but I only want one of them to work with me!
    Front of course, coming, with I'd say, legends, cartridges. Thanks for the imput M. cheers B.
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