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My wife has a bad back so I will make whatever sacrifices it takes to give her a smooth ride and keep her riding with me. If I get a firmer ride when Solo so be it. But from what I understand adjusting them is pretty easy to do on the fly. My wife has started her own CPA firm and is doing well enough that the solution for us might be a second bike rigged for 2-Up. :-) Ohiln matches the springs to your spec's but if you lose or gain a bunch of weight you can get them reworked. I watched a Youtube video by BBC Performance for a Touring Bagger Makeover on 2016 Harley Davidson Road Glide. They re did the Triple Tree to reduce the angle of the Fork Tube to the Forks. Because of the inadequacy of the suspension, Harley raked the Fork Tube to increased stability at speed. The Sacrifice was serious instability at parking lot speed. But because of the crap suspension, the Harley still wobbles when being pushed through high speed sweeper curves... The guys at BBC Performance put Ohlin #6 Shocks on the back and changed the front suspension. They made a new Triple Tree to change the angle of the Neck Tube in relation to the forks from a 7 inch trail to a 4.5 inch trail which made the bike stable to 150 MPH. Most Sport touring bikes run in the 4 to 5 inch trail range. Trail is the inches between the angle of the neck tube and the angle of the forks on an imaginary line at ground level. Again the reason for the increased rake was to compensate for Cheap Suspension. The Cheap Suspension causes the high speed sweeper curve wobble. The Harley solution of increased rake is adequate for the average rider who will never push a bike 20 or 30 mph above the posted speed through a turn, but thrill seeking adrenaline junkies like myself will experience the High Speed Sweeper Curve Wobble on the stock suspension. It's a bit unnerving when the bike starts bucking through a turn.
I installed the rear ohlins last weekend, totally changed the ride for me. The service manual says for my weight I should be a zero on stock shocks and it was a crappy ride so for me the shocks really worked. Only bad part about the upgrade is now I need to get the front matched up. It felt mushy before but now it feels much harsher compared to the rear. I plan on swapping fluids to a lighter weight before spending the money for the cartridge kits.
Ohlins has them setup for solo, and adding in 1 turn of preload for every 5lbs, they include a tool to adjust the preload but you will need to pop off the bags in order to access the sag setting. I haven't tried it with tourpak or 2 up yet but the rear end glides over manhole lids, cracks in the road without me feeling anything. I also dont remember feeling the front end grabbing the cracks in the road like the SGs do but I need to get some miles on the bike before I can really comment on how they work at higher speeds. We have a lot of good riding around northern NM and roads near my house can be taken at 80mph in the turns but I had some issues doing that at 55mph before I swapped shocks.
I installed the rear ohlins last weekend, now I need to get the front matched up. It felt mushy before but now it feels much harsher compared to the rear.
When I installed the rear Ohlins, a buddy asked how they felt?
I replied they felt like the front end is going to cost me some money...
I have since swapped the front end to Legend Axeo and very happy with the set-up.
Ohlins from Howard's Motorcycle Metal install and ride
I installed Howard's #2-4's on my '14 SG on July 15. These are his 13" one's. I'm 6'1" so I wanted the height. First, I agree with the OP here regarding the directions. Howard is a brilliant engineer and writes and speaks as such. But, I do find him supportive and helpful.
The shocks are awesome to date. I've had stock air shocks, Progressive 400 series on a '99 RK and now these Ohlins which are so much better than any shock I've ever own.
The ride is more car-like in that the shocks follow the bumps in the road instead of reacting to them if that makes any sense. I would brace my back before hitting road irregularities with the air shocks, now no fears with the Ohlins. I'm still adjusting the pre-loads and logging how the bike rides with each setting for solo riding and with my wife on back. Best of all, my wife noticed the difference and is grateful for the change.
Not all upgrades we make on our bikes are worth it. My Wild One 12.5" apes and these Ohlins 13" (HD 022 or Howard's #2,4) are two of them. Well worth the investment. And, they will only get better. Thanks, Howard and Ohlins for a great product.
Lastly, as one poster mentioned somewhere regarding Ohlins from Howard, I'd pay an extra $10 for a video install from Howard on installing his shocks. He knows more about shocks than any of us could truly understand and watching him do his thing would be great as few of us will ever be able to get all the way to Florida where he is located!
I installed the rear ohlins last weekend, totally changed the ride for me. The service manual says for my weight I should be a zero on stock shocks and it was a crappy ride so for me the shocks really worked. Only bad part about the upgrade is now I need to get the front matched up. It felt mushy before but now it feels much harsher compared to the rear. I plan on swapping fluids to a lighter weight before spending the money for the cartridge kits.
Ohlins has them setup for solo, and adding in 1 turn of preload for every 5lbs, they include a tool to adjust the preload but you will need to pop off the bags in order to access the sag setting. I haven't tried it with tourpak or 2 up yet but the rear end glides over manhole lids, cracks in the road without me feeling anything. I also dont remember feeling the front end grabbing the cracks in the road like the SGs do but I need to get some miles on the bike before I can really comment on how they work at higher speeds. We have a lot of good riding around northern NM and roads near my house can be taken at 80mph in the turns but I had some issues doing that at 55mph before I swapped shocks.
Cheap Suspension causes the high speed sweeper curve wobble. The Harley solution of increased rake is adequate for the average rider who will never push a bike 20 or 30 mph above the posted speed through a turn, but thrill seeking adrenaline junkies like myself will experience the High Speed Sweeper Curve Wobble on the stock suspension. It's a bit unnerving when the bike starts bucking through a turn.
Agreed it needs some TLC,, mine rides like its on a rail
Tim, I did the best I could. With all of the other problems this snag hit us:
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The tracking number has been sent to your e-Mai (& in the actual body of the e-Mails, 2 X different e-Mail providers) I use to make sure you get it [howard@motorcyclemetal.com & also hotbikehgm@yahoo.com]. l provided, along with the e-mail: your paid receipt/invoice w/tracking #, UPS's own e-Mail notification system, and also include four (4) different installation instructions, (two [2] are dedicated in both written and detailed pictorial mounting of the reservoirs, for the 3 different type mounting differentiated by years of bikes. I do not wish to post your tracking # here for obvious reasons. I am easily available to call anytime within reason.
Last edited by FastHarley; Aug 15, 2016 at 10:21 AM.
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Ohlins from Howard's Motorcycle Metal install and ride
