Member Contributer Marsman99 Posted November 25, 2014 Member Contributer Share Posted November 25, 2014 I just had Jamie rebuild my 1200 forks and stock shock. Put them on the bike and immediately set off on a 2300 mile road trip. The improvement was so significant I noticed it in the first mile. The pogoing is gone. The forks are actually plush over small bumps and firm when loaded, when you need it. The shock is now functional and well matched to the front end. The rebound adjuster actually does something now. For the price you can't do better. I can't recommend this modification enough if you want a noticeable improvement, and don't want to spend more than $1K. I consider my suspension "fixed" now...still contemplating rear ride height change though. For those considering your own work keep in mind the valving is the key. DMr (Jamie) has a suspension Dyno and has spent time sorting the correct valving for a given range of spring rates. Based on your weight and ride style, DMr selects the correct spring and valve stack. On the stock shock, his modifications allow the rebound adjustment some dynamic range, whereas the stock adjustment has none - it transforms the shock to something functional. Not Ohlins, but plenty good for my situation. For roughly $675 you get new springs, new valving, and fresh oil in both the forks and shock. Seals are extra, bushings too if needed - mine did not. Shipping is extra. Shipping is the only complaint I have. I shipped the forks/shock wrapped in foam, bubble wrap and heavy paper, all in an oversized box (15x15x48). FedEx ground cost me $115 Cali to Ft. Wayne, IN with $3K insured value. Jamie talked me into FedEx return ship using his standard (6x6x32) box for a mere $30. I cheaped out and it almost cost me badly. He packed both forks, shock and stock parts into this box. It arrived ripped with the two fork fender mount posts sticking through the box sides. They were dinged and scuffed. Luckily that was the only damage and the fender covers the minor marks. Spend the money on decent return packaging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer luvtoleanit Posted November 25, 2014 Member Contributer Share Posted November 25, 2014 Mars, for $675, for both ends of the bike, that cannot be beat. I like to use a rifle case for forks. VFR12 needs the suspension work you did, ECU flash, cat removal, and a tune. compared to other bikes on the market that is comparable to work needed arriving from the OEM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Marsman99 Posted November 26, 2014 Member Contributer Share Posted November 26, 2014 Mars, for $675, for both ends of the bike, that cannot be beat. I like to use a rifle case for forks. VFR12 needs the suspension work you did, ECU flash, cat removal, and a tune. compared to other bikes on the market that is comparable to work needed arriving from the OEM. Couldn't agree more. I don't think you could do it yourself any cheaper if a kit was available. Really happy with the work Jamie did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted March 3, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 3, 2015 Just to throw this out there as another option since I don't think it was mentioned. As I am exploring suspension choices I found that Ohlins also makes a "piston kit" to replace the stock compression and rebound valves. The kit is about $250 which is decent but, it appears for the VFR1200 to be a universal style kit so it isn't tuned to your weight or riding style the way say the race-tech kits are (though I don't think they make one for the VFR1200). Of course the ohlins comes pre-assembled and are cheaper. So, would this universal style kit be better than OEM? One would think so but its untested for this bike. The primary object seems to be a need for decreased compression dampning on the OEM set up. I was told you can modify them by removing shims but its going to be a situation where you need to ride the bike and see how it feels and if you want to change something take it all apart. Other than the traxxion cartridge kit this seems to be the only DIY method. I am guess if you need new fork springs the ohlins set up would be similar to the cost of what Jamie does it for but you'd save on shipping and more importantly for many of us, bike down time. His results seem established where as I can't find any info on anyone doing this ohlins vavle/piston kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer luvtoleanit Posted March 4, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 4, 2015 For what Jamie charges, I'd call his prices a steal. You are getting an expert suspension technician to perform the work on your bike. The time saved on labor alone would merit the shipping costs. I went over the Ohlins choice on the forks but at the end of the day it was far easier to just let Jamie handle it. time is money after all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted March 18, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 18, 2015 After Jamie told me that my forks would probably sit in his shop for 3 weeks until he could get to him I decided to buy some AK20's from Traxxion. Going a month without my motorcycle just wasn't going to happen. Commuting on my WR250R is not horrible but since most of my commute is highway its a big step down from my VFR. With shipping Jamie would have been about $500, the cartridge kit from Traxxion was $1k. I could have bought a shock at the same time had I been able to send the forks to Jamie so now I'll have to wait another month before buying the shock, either Ohlins or Nitron. Regardless, looking forward to the first step in a smoother, more controlled ride. I appreciate the fact Jamie was up front with me and didn't BS me just to get me to send my forks in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rider14 Posted March 18, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 18, 2015 Did he mention if/when he expected to be able to turn them around a little quicker? I assume Spring time is busy, but when we get into the summer do things lighten up for him? Maybe I should ask him...or maybe I'll do the reflash first, suspension later... OR maybe I'll tweak the settings even further and maybe will be happy with the stock suspenders... right now, they aren't quite right when the going gets rough at speed/lean... - Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted March 18, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 18, 2015 He just said its not this busy all year round so I'd assume the fall is a better time to send him stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volfy Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Front forks are the next on my agenda for the Veefer too. It's about time to change the fork oil, so if I have to pull the forks out, might as well go the whole hog. My "off season" is typically from end of July to Sept, so I'll check with Jamie then. My guess is Summer is prime riding season for everybody else, so probably the least busy time for suspension shops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weven Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 These where the most cost effective I could find for us here in Australia. About $1200.00 delivered in 5 days. I can not believe the difference, our country roads are real bad. (Where broke too) Really pleased, quality looks real good. http://www.fgspecialparts.it/en/product.asp?maker=FG&model=HONDA+VFR+1200+F&year=2010 I went with the cheaper rear due to the fact it is easy to get too the spring to adjust it, and to be honest how often do U have to adjust the spring pre load?? Front [FGKFVFR1200M] Rear [H0M062FQEECO] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weven Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Update for those interested. Now have about 300Ks on the new setup. My weight 92 kilos, the front Springs I believe are 1.1nm (the invoice is in Italian). The spring adjusters are right out which was at 28mm sag brand new. 300 K’s later the sag is about 38, so have not had to use any preload at all, so they appear to have set up the spring right for my weight from factory. Honestly his has changed this bike so much, I have backed the spring off a little on the rear, and sitting on 18 clicks out on rebound form full hard (has 35) Best $1200.00 I have spent on a bike so far. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cutback Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 ^^^^ message sent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted March 30, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 30, 2015 Would someone with stock front suspension mind posting the measurement they get when measuring from the bottom of the dust seal to the bottom of the fork tube (right side) with their motorcycle on the side stand? Basically exposed fork tube length. Maybe also note approxiamtely how much fuel you have in your tank and what your front preload is set to. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaq123 Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Would someone with stock front suspension mind posting the measurement they get when measuring from the bottom of the dust seal to the bottom of the fork tube (right side) with their motorcycle on the side stand? Basically exposed fork tube length. Maybe also note approxiamtely how much fuel you have in your tank and what your front preload is set to. Thanks don't have numbers you are asking but just want to comment... Side stand measurement will not be accurate and the same from bike to bike. If you are looking for a reference, bike needs to be upright. Also rear ride height ( shock preload) and rear spring rate will change front numbers from bike to bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaq123 Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 I've read through this thread and so far only concerns about stock forks I see were: 1. Too firm 2. Too soft 3. Lack of comp. setting First 2 are pretty self explanatory if you can't get your sag in the correct range. But I would like to hear what is the actual issue(s) (with the way it rides not the hardware) you are experiencing and looking to fix. Take comp for example. Bike is riding wide, Front and bouncing on bumps, front end is chattering when entering turns. All these will be signs of too much comp excepts the last one which can be also a result of incorrect oil height. PS. Also as a general rule: comp adj. needs to be more open when going with stiffer springs, unlike rebound. Opposite for softer ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lshark Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 my forks bottomed out with the stock springs... the 11 N/mm Ohlins springs and fresh fork oil made a vast improvement....i have the ohlins rear shock and plan on sending the forks to Jamie someday....Don Guhl is getting my next $375...then Jamie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted March 31, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted March 31, 2015 Would someone with stock front suspension mind posting the measurement they get when measuring from the bottom of the dust seal to the bottom of the fork tube (right side) with their motorcycle on the side stand? Basically exposed fork tube length. Maybe also note approxiamtely how much fuel you have in your tank and what your front preload is set to. Thanks don't have numbers you are asking but just want to comment... Side stand measurement will not be accurate and the same from bike to bike. If you are looking for a reference, bike needs to be upright. Also rear ride height ( shock preload) and rear spring rate will change front numbers from bike to bike. I recognize the possible variables, this info would still be useful to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer swimmer Posted June 10, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2015 I bought the traxxion dynamics cartridge kit about 2 months ago and the ohlins shock about 5 weeks ago. The ride and handling is massively improved as one would expect. Beside the improvements in handling, the bike feels a lot more planted at highway speeds. The bike just feels very composed now. It also really helps smooth out the ride two-up but a lot. It actually feels smoother two-up than it does when its just me riding. I would say the shock lives up to my expectation but I am not thrilled with the cartridge kit. The ride still seems a a little on the harsh side. I think I may need to go to softer springs. They gave me 1.1kg springs. I am 155lbs without gear, I'd be curious to hear what others have used for replacement springs weights vs. their weight. It also seemed like when installing the compression side something was amiss when installing the fork cap. It seemed to put tension onto the piston rod which, in my mind would cause increase dampning regardless of the where the adjuster was set. Wondering if anyone ran into the same issue. Even with the fork issues the motorcycle is much improved. I plan on keeping this motorcycle for a long time so I figured why not invest the money early on in my ownership and enjoy the benefits now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZAWA Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 I would check front fork sag that would tell you if the springs are right for you. I have 1.1 and weigh 200 with gear, and have no trouble getting correct sag numbers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer luvtoleanit Posted June 10, 2015 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2015 I bought the traxxion dynamics cartridge kit about 2 months ago and the ohlins shock about 5 weeks ago. The ride and handling is massively improved as one would expect. Beside the improvements in handling, the bike feels a lot more planted at highway speeds. The bike just feels very composed now. It also really helps smooth out the ride two-up but a lot. It actually feels smoother two-up than it does when its just me riding. I would say the shock lives up to my expectation but I am not thrilled with the cartridge kit. The ride still seems a a little on the harsh side. I think I may need to go to softer springs. They gave me 1.1kg springs. I am 155lbs without gear, I'd be curious to hear what others have used for replacement springs weights vs. their weight. It also seemed like when installing the compression side something was amiss when installing the fork cap. It seemed to put tension onto the piston rod which, in my mind would cause increase dampning regardless of the where the adjuster was set. Wondering if anyone ran into the same issue. Even with the fork issues the motorcycle is much improved. I plan on keeping this motorcycle for a long time so I figured why not invest the money early on in my ownership and enjoy the benefits now. My Jamie forks with Ohlins rear, it is absolutely insane the stability at high speed. I mean I agree with everything you said, handling VASTLY improved, front end is rock solid, planted, confidence inspiring. The rear is planted and hooks up extremely well out of corners. But the high speed stability is absolutely insane. I've been in my sweepers at triple digits, or triple digits in high wind and the bike is rock solid. I would love to ride my bike in Germany on the Autobahn. I'm riding at a buck twenty and the bike is like "big deal, you're a pussy." Definitely a hyperbike now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspanglish Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Can anyone give me the OEM spring rates for the fork springs and the shock spring?? Also, what diameter are the front forks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspanglish Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Anyone? Bueller? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lshark Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 43mm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f3racer Posted June 15, 2015 Author Share Posted June 15, 2015 Oem spring rate is .85 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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