HaulinAshe
Well-known member
For those who participated in the recent Ohlins/Cogent Suspension Group Buy...
I'm starting this thread to provide some basic information along with my personal recommendations on settings.
1. REBOUND - Some of you received Ohlins shocks with spring rates influenced by my personal knowledge of your size/weight/riding style/special preferences. Especially for those folks (and you know who you are), I recommend closing the Rebound damping by two(2) clicks, to 14-clicks. Ohlins ships the shock with their stock settings of 16-clicks Rebound.
2. COMPRESSION - Ohlins ships the shock set to twelve(12) clicks compression. I recommend leaving it there for average conditions. Whether you have the YA-707 with remote preload adjuster, or the YA-036 without remote preload, IMO the Ohlins compression clicker is one of their best features. It's extremely effective with a wide range. You can easily run compression from 9-16 clicks with a pure, linear change experienced. Below 9-clicks compression, the adjuster begins to effect both high-speed and low-speed compression significantly. Above 16-clicks, the adjuster remains predominantly effective for low-speed compression, but the adjustments become more exponential.
My personal recommendation is to stay within a 9-16 click range, with 12-clicks(default) as your average setup if you ride solo with mostly empty side bags. As you increase load you can close compression down toward nine(9). If you remove the side bags or do some serious long-distance time, opening toward 16-clicks will noticeably soften the ride.
3. PRELOAD - Not to be confused with Remote Preload, Ohlins ships the shock with 14mm preload on the installed spring. This will likely give you a slightly higher seat than the stock setup. As long as you aren't uncomfortably tippy-toe, give it a try. I would not tamper with the default 14mm preload without giving Rick/Cogent a call and having discussion with them first. You will notice the FJR turns much quicker with the slightly increased seat height/rear sag. IMO you'll love the change.
4. REMOTE PRELOAD (YA-707 only) - The typical payload variations of the FJR present a big challenge for even the best of suspension setups. We commonly ask the suspension to go from solo with no bags, to 2-up with three bags fully-loaded. We're talking a weight/payload change that often approaches 300 lbs.!!!
Here's a little performance riding tip for you... Try keeping your side bags mounted at all times. Then tweak your solo setups to include the side bags. That helps significantly reduce effects of payload variation(s).
What you are aiming for is good solo performance with the remote preload all the way out (CCW), and good fully-loaded performance with the remote preload at, or near fully clockwise. There are exceptions of course, like long periods of slab time when even 2-up, you want to reduce the preload (CCW) for a more plush ride. It's similar to flipping the OEM shock lever to SOFT.
Hope this helps someone. As always, Rick/Cogent/Ohlins are there to support their products too. They just don't get to ride as many FJR miles and varying conditions as I do.
I'm starting this thread to provide some basic information along with my personal recommendations on settings.
1. REBOUND - Some of you received Ohlins shocks with spring rates influenced by my personal knowledge of your size/weight/riding style/special preferences. Especially for those folks (and you know who you are), I recommend closing the Rebound damping by two(2) clicks, to 14-clicks. Ohlins ships the shock with their stock settings of 16-clicks Rebound.
2. COMPRESSION - Ohlins ships the shock set to twelve(12) clicks compression. I recommend leaving it there for average conditions. Whether you have the YA-707 with remote preload adjuster, or the YA-036 without remote preload, IMO the Ohlins compression clicker is one of their best features. It's extremely effective with a wide range. You can easily run compression from 9-16 clicks with a pure, linear change experienced. Below 9-clicks compression, the adjuster begins to effect both high-speed and low-speed compression significantly. Above 16-clicks, the adjuster remains predominantly effective for low-speed compression, but the adjustments become more exponential.
My personal recommendation is to stay within a 9-16 click range, with 12-clicks(default) as your average setup if you ride solo with mostly empty side bags. As you increase load you can close compression down toward nine(9). If you remove the side bags or do some serious long-distance time, opening toward 16-clicks will noticeably soften the ride.
3. PRELOAD - Not to be confused with Remote Preload, Ohlins ships the shock with 14mm preload on the installed spring. This will likely give you a slightly higher seat than the stock setup. As long as you aren't uncomfortably tippy-toe, give it a try. I would not tamper with the default 14mm preload without giving Rick/Cogent a call and having discussion with them first. You will notice the FJR turns much quicker with the slightly increased seat height/rear sag. IMO you'll love the change.
4. REMOTE PRELOAD (YA-707 only) - The typical payload variations of the FJR present a big challenge for even the best of suspension setups. We commonly ask the suspension to go from solo with no bags, to 2-up with three bags fully-loaded. We're talking a weight/payload change that often approaches 300 lbs.!!!
Here's a little performance riding tip for you... Try keeping your side bags mounted at all times. Then tweak your solo setups to include the side bags. That helps significantly reduce effects of payload variation(s).
What you are aiming for is good solo performance with the remote preload all the way out (CCW), and good fully-loaded performance with the remote preload at, or near fully clockwise. There are exceptions of course, like long periods of slab time when even 2-up, you want to reduce the preload (CCW) for a more plush ride. It's similar to flipping the OEM shock lever to SOFT.
Hope this helps someone. As always, Rick/Cogent/Ohlins are there to support their products too. They just don't get to ride as many FJR miles and varying conditions as I do.
