??? Aftermarket shock for 4th gen

Hi I'm looking for an aftermarket shock for a 4th gen.(1994) Welcome any suggestions, but would like model # for shock. IE Ohlins ??? #. @ present I have a sacked out 954 shock on it , and have a 929 shock that I could send to jaime, but wondering what other potions are out there.

Ohlins made them for a while for the 4th gen, but they haveretired the model and not sold those for many years already. I think the only manufacturer tha might still make high quality shocks for the 4th gen is Penske, unless they decided to alos stop supporting the 4th gen recently. The rest of the shock companies out there just don't see it worth their while anymore to manufacture and sell a shock for a bike that is almost 20 years old. Problem with the 4th gen too is that it uses a shock that is longer than most, so it's not like you can also just use another shock meant for another bike without modifications to it or the bike's frame. Check out Penske......and cross your fingers...

Beck

95 VFR

I think I called Penske last year and they still have them. Used aftermarket still pop up now and then; keep em peeled.

Gonna have Jamie do a 929 shock for me when I have the pesos.

Then there is Wilbers.

Douglasthecook bought one a few years ago, so did I.

We both received a unit that was incorrectly built/setup. They were not cheap by any means.

Things may/should have improved in the quality control dept.......

Dutchy

Then there is Wilbers.

Douglasthecook bought one a few years ago, so did I.

We both received a unit that was incorrectly built/setup. They were not cheap by any means.

Things may/should have improved in the quality control dept.......

Hmmm.. I thought I checked into trying to get into that Wilbers group buy here a few years ago, and I thought they did not make it for the 4th gen so I did not join in on the group buy....but I guess they chaned their mind on it then...

You say that they sent you one that was incorrectly made? Could it be that they just sent you a 5th gen version and hoped that it would fit?? what did it take to correct the problem?

Beck

95 VFR

Hagon is a British manufacturer that makes shocks for the 4th gen. One of their world dealers located in Nova Scotia, Canada, quoted me $450 for one delivered to my door in Ontario. Dave Quinn motorcycles is the U.S. supplier (www.davequinnmotorcycles.com.

They have limited adjustment, but a two year warranty.

HyperPro, Nitron, Hagon, all make new shocks for your bike.

See here:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sacat=0&_nkw=vfr750%20shock&_sop=3

They had all the correct data from me (weight etc) but they set/made it much too hard. the fix was (the shock was already mounted) to take out a flat screwdriver and loosen the top ring a bit.

I think Doug had to send his one back and Wilbers told him that there was indeed a member of staff making a mess of things....

So, yes I like my shock (hated the oem in comparison) but it was not "cheap".

If you want a brand new and low cost aftermarket schock look at Hagon and YSS. Wilbers, Hyperpro and Technoflex have multiple options including models with adjustble compression damping & remote reservoir. I am not sure if WP still sell shocks for the 3rd and 4th gen VFR. Most single bodied low cost shocks are emulsion shocks. Nitron offers a single bodied shock that has a piston that seperates the gas from the oil, that's a big plus.

Dutchy

Then there is Wilbers.

Douglasthecook bought one a few years ago, so did I.

We both received a unit that was incorrectly built/setup. They were not cheap by any means.

Things may/should have improved in the quality control dept.......

Yep, $900 for a full zoot triple adjustable Wilburs and when I went to respring it for my sons weight after I purchased another 5th gen with a Ohlins on it, Traxxion Dynamics put it on their magic machine and said the internal valving wasn't suitable for even his 140 weight much less the spring Wilburs installed for me at 220.

This on the heels of a couple of track days where the suspension guru couldn't get the rear to do what he wanted during set up....not sure about Wilburs. I was going to sell the shock but did't want another VFR owner to get screwed like I did. It has been sitting in the bottom drawer of my toolbox for two years and has less than 18k miles on it.

Couldn't traxxion revalve the Wilber's shock??? Seems pretty simple no?

I decided to mod my Wilbers shock for a "stouter" ride.......

[image: 9db37ea7.jpg]

:tongue:

Does it make the ride smoother? :biggrin: .

Can't you rotate the clamps so the slots of the screws are on the niside facing down? That way it will look a bit cleaner.

Veefer800Canuck

Couldn't traxxion revalve the Wilber's shock??? Seems pretty simple no?

I guess I could have but I was so bummed out that we just left and I am putting a Penske on my 99 and my son is buying the Ohlins from me for his 01....

Well, For the time being ,I replaced the 954 shock that I had on it w/ a 929 shock and I increased the spacer from 35mm-38mm. I Had it on max preload, but was to stiff, so I pulled it off and switched preload to 4 knotchs down (1 above mid pos.) Well it was to soft , so pulled it out again and switched to 2nd knotch down from max. I also changed wheel bearings (frt) fork seal and fork oil. Hopefully this make a more complaciant ride (was awfully harsh w / 1 line showing on front and max on 954 shock) Don't have the spare money to spend on penske or ohlins (hell the shocks cost almost as much as a 94 is worth)

Just send it to Jamie and have him revalve and respring it. I think he can also do a custom linkage for the correct height...in the long run it will be cheaper IMO. Even if you find a decent deal on a used aftermarket brand you'll still probably need to get it rebuilt/resprung and it will cost just as much anyway. My 2 cents...

Not happy with my 929 ohlins shock and spacer option. The rear end does not give good feedback or ride. just ok..

Have had better grip and control with an EMC replacement unit. Quite cheap as well at 300 notes!

Have not re sprung or valved my current ohlins unit to match the vfr specs, but guess that might cost the same as buying a new EMC shock!...

Will reworking my 929 ohlins shock really work or even be worth it?

V4 Rosso

Does it make the ride smoother? :biggrin: .

Can't you rotate the clamps so the slots of the screws are on the niside facing down? That way it will look a bit cleaner.

Make it look cleaner??!,.....then it won't match up with the looks of Dutchy's "special" racing muffler he puts on the bike when he goes to the track...show him Dutchy!....

Beck

95 VFR

trjerm

Well, For the time being ,I replaced the 954 shock that I had on it w/ a 929 shock and I increased the spacer from 35mm-38mm. I Had it on max preload, but was to stiff, so I pulled it off and switched preload to 4 knotchs down (1 above mid pos.) Well it was to soft , so pulled it out again and switched to 2nd knotch down from max. I also changed wheel bearings (frt) fork seal and fork oil. Hopefully this make a more complaciant ride (was awfully harsh w / 1 line showing on front and max on 954 shock) Don't have the spare money to spend on penske or ohlins (hell the shocks cost almost as much as a 94 is worth)

Are you like 100lbs or something? Not trying to offend, I just don't understand how a stock 954 shock on a VFR could be described as too stiff, even with DOUBLE the amount of max preload. Their springs are softer than the stocker, and it[stock unit] wasn't stiff enough for my 150lb riding buddy, let alone me.. I ended up going with a 954 shock, and ordered a custom spring and adapter from Daugherty Motorsports.

I think you may be experiencing the harshness of the shock and attributing it to the spring? May need to play with compression and rebound some.. From what Jamie told me, these shocks are over damped anyway, so you may wanna soften things up and set up a proper sag, instead of just taking blind stabs at preload.

I have a recently-rebuilt Penske 2-way rear shock that was on my '94 VFR before it got smashed up in January. It's a great setup for the road, but I've never tried it on the track. If you'd like to try it out I'd be happy to sell the thing, as it's not doing me any good (my folks bought me a car, sick of hearing about motorcycle accidents). Let me know.

Dave Zablotny

If the original poster doesn't take it, I might. What weight rider is it sprung for?

Thanks!

Sold the shock. Hope it works out for tjerm!

How does one go about raising the rear on a 3rd gen? We are looking at inexpensive suspension solutions while my son gets some miles on his 91.

Right now the rear (even with the preload cranked up firm) is lower than the front and we can't drop the tubes much more on the bike.

By flipping the excenter or mounting a longer shock. I am not awre of a tail riser being available as there is for the 4th gen.

Can you mount a much longer shock without fouling the linkage? On the 5th gen we tried to extend the shock mount by about 20mm and the linkage was binding.

Which part on the 3rd gen do you flip?

The flip is explained in this topic. The flip raises the rear >1"

I can't remember if the linkage ratio is closer to 1/3 or 1/20 but adding 20mm to the shock is a lot. E.g. a WP shock for the 3rd gen can only be lengtened by 5m and from what I hear of 4th gen owners they also use max 5mm shims to raise the rear a few cm.

Thanks Rosso!

We all have at least a 34" inseam and would prefer to keep the centerstands on the 5th gen so raising the rear 4-6mm hardly helps on those two bikes.

The 3rd gen is too low in the rear with the sacked out shock. I will read that linked thread and see where to go next.

If you know the total shock travel, and the rear wheel travel, divide the latter by the former, and you will have your linkage ratio.

Then, you can multiply the shim thickness by the ratio to find out how much lift you will get from a certain thickness of shim.

I figured out for my 800 once, and it was pretty close to 3:1 IIRC.

CornerCarver

We all have at least a 34" inseam and would prefer to keep the centerstands on the 5th gen so raising the rear 4-6mm hardly helps on those two bikes.

My inseam is 35" but I don't quite understand what that has to do with increasing the rear ride height. I can imagine lowereing the bike when the rider is very short. When the 4th gen owners add a 5mm spacer the rear raises by a couple of cm, as I mentioned I am not sure about the exact linkage ratio but after a quick search I found one that reported 3-4cm using a 5mm shim. The same applies to the 3rd gen only here you can not use shims.

Btw, Thurn's website mentions that the cushion rod I mentioned in a previous post is for the >93 and I read that as being 94 and later but I guess they mean =<93 as the 94 uses a dogbone so it must be for the 3rd gen. The shorter cushion rod increases the rear by 3cm

http://www.thurn-mot...rwerk-rc36.html

Since the linkage needs to become shorter to increase the ride height, couldn't one just do some math and then drill a new pair of holes in the 3rd gen linkage? The new holes would be closer to the tube, and I'm guessing there might be some grinding involved for clearance of the shifted material?

[image: 99-UH0036.JPG]

SEBSPEED

Since the linkage needs to become shorter to increase the ride height, couldn't one just do some math and then drill a new pair of holes in the 3rd gen linkage? The new holes would be closer to the tube, and I'm guessing there might be some grinding involved for clearance of the shifted material?

[image: 99-UH0036.JPG]

The holes might be too close together, and weaken the linkage?

Spacing the holes far enough apart for safety might result in too great of a ride height change???

Purely speculation on my part.....