About 60k miles ago, I installed 13" Works Steel Tracker shocks which were far superior to the stock shorty air shocks. In June, I ordered my #2 Ohlins, 13.25" with 3.7" travel from Howard at Motorcycle Metal. I thought the Works were pretty good. No comparison to the Ohlins. My wife, with her bad back completely endorses this purchase. Sharp edged bumps, they're not sharp anymore. Until you experience something better, how do you know? My bike has a little better than 85k on it now. I ride enough to appreciate the drastic improvement. Your back and butt will thank you. If it's a bar hopper with low mileage, never mind.

 

I too drank the cool-aid and can say I went back to the oem's that came on my RK and they ride twice as good the as aftermarket shocks I bought.

 

Me likely my Ohlins 2-2a's for over 20k happy miles!

I got tired my stockers losing air. Now my pump only comes out for my friends motorcycle when they need air.





YB

 

Did you ever have your Works rebuilt? At 60k miles they should have been rebuilt two times. Also, Steel Trackers now come with an adjustable preload to setup proper sag. They did not always come that way. For $90 Works will rebuild both shocks. If you and the misses gained a few lbs in the past 60k miles, Works could of also changed out springs. Anyway, if you never had the Works rebuilt and/or your weight changed, your comparison may be skewed a bit.

 

My thoughts exactly.

 

We're not talking about air bags are we?

Buddy of mine was playing with his new
rear air bags/bag (?) with killer reviews.

 

I feel for the OP. I "only" weigh 175 lbs and it didn't matter how much air I had when I was solo. Now.... When riding 2up? The bike rode fantastic. I too had to replace the shocks. I went with the hand adjustable premium and noticed a huge difference. The rear end doesn't wander when cornering and even if I hit that huge pot hole, I now only worry about bending the rim, not flying 6 inches off the seat.

 

The fact is, as well as the Works performed from the onset, having the springs and valving both matched with your weight and riding style, ending up with a custom result, there was no comparison to an off the shelf purchase. At the time I ordered the Works, there were 2 spring options, normal and heavy. Weighing 250, I ordered the heavy. The compliance and performance were never as good as these Ohlins. The Works lacked the ability to fine tune the dampening like the Ohlins. I've had the benefit of trying both. The slight improvement in travel may also provide some benefit.

 

We're not talking about ordinary aftermarket here. Try custom-built Ohlins and you'll be on Cloud 9!

 

Definitely do the fronts. The overall effect is quite dramatic in terms of handling and comfort.