Hello,

Starting to plan what I'm going to do with my suspension over the winter. I bought a new Road Glide ST, and already it handles much better than my 2011 Street Glide. I'm sure part of that is the 13" rear shock vs the 12" in the Street Glide, and part of it is the 21k on the Street Glide means that there probably would be some benefit to rebuilding the front and rear.

Regardless, it is still stock suspension, and I'm planning to upgrade it over the winter. So, I think I have three options, correct me if I'm missing a fourth.

Option 1- Cartridges in the front, replace the shocks in the rear, keep the ride height the same as it is now. I've ordered a Kraus Wolf 1 kit for my bars, and no matter what I go with for front cartridges I'd want to have something with external adjustments on the top of the tree. I'd be leaning toward 30mm Ohlins because I understand them to be the best, but 22mm Ohlins and 25mm GP's are still in the running. I'm most interested in Ohlins remote reservoir rears, though SE Ohlins are still in the running.

Option 2- Same as option 1, but with longer fork tubes up front and Kraus 1" extensions out back. I'd be doing this for the additional ground clearance and lean angle. I'm 6'2" and am not worried about balancing the bike, so I'm not sure what the negatives are on this option aside from the additional cost of the new fork tubes, the 1" extensions, and a jiffy stand solution.

Option 3- Same as option 2, but with an Ohlins inverted front end, +2", also going with the 1" extension Ohlins rear. This option is the most expensive by far, and I'm not convinced that a 850 pound touring rig really benefits from this as much as a Supersport bike does. But it does look awesome!

Realistically, I'm leaning toward option 2. I'm no suspension expert, but I'm pretty sure that all that is involved in going +2"/+1" is the longer tubes up front ($500-$700 ish) and the extensions in the rear ($95.) This combined with cartridges, springs and oil would bring the total parts price to roughly $1600-$2600 for the front end and $1600 for the back end, plus the labor involved in installation. I may add in the Kraus Wolf One Billet Bagger Clamp to finish it off. It would still be far less money than a $7100 inverted front end, though I do admit that the "Gucci factor" of the Ohlins inverted front makes it an option still in the running. I just have a hard time getting past a front fork costing as much as a decent used sport bike.

Of those here who run aftermarket suspension, which did you go with and why?

Appreciate the input!

 

I have Ohlins 13" in the rear. Made a world of difference. I have not changed the front but will be going with the Ohlins drop in cartridges. For now I rebuilt and added 15w oil up from the stock oil, (huge improvement). I don't race and have no need for the inverted front. If you're looking at Kraus already, you might consider the bracing trees. The T bars come with the upper brace, but you can add the lower brace as well and really get the front stiff. With cartridges and the brace, you'll have about all you need, assuming you'll be going T bars also. I have tried that first hand and if I had a RG, this is what I'd spend my money on.

As far as why I went with Ohlins, that's easy. They are awesome shock and are serviceable for the future. I can rebuild when needed and have had awesome customer support when I have called them directly.

 

Yeah, the option I'm most likely to do would be Ohlins HD-44's in the rear with the Kraus 1" extensions, and Ohlins Nix 22's or Big Bear 30mm Ohlins with the 2" extended tubes and the Kraus bottom tree. It seems to be the most sensible option.

 

Don't even know why you posted asking lol. Kidding aside, you have a solid plan and I think you'll be impressed with the outcome. I haven't decided to not go that route myself. I find my front end is getting a little loose at 90 in the long sweepers. I'll be pulling the front end apart this weekend and double checking my bearings too, just to be sure.

 

All depends on what you want to spend, but as far as front setups go, the difference in cartridges and a full inverted front end (for the huge price difference) will never be felt or outridden unless youre a professional motoGP racer. Unless you want the extra bling factor, no NEED to go inverted.

Hell, 99% of riders will not outride a $300 traxxion, pro action, or racetech front end setup. I've had my bike on a race track and the racetech springs and valves didnt have me wishing for more.

So that stuff all comes down to budget. As far as height, if youre that tall I'd go +2 and 14" rears if you're doing the suspension anyway. The extra ground clearance is nice. As long as you keep it balanced (dont go +2 with stock rears) you won't be hurting the handling. If anything, you want the front a little lower than the rear but you can always slide the tubes up a bit to test that.

 

If you plan on riding the snot out of it race it etc then by all means go inverted.
If you want a nice cushy ride a nice cartridge system with upgraded rear 13” shocks will do. I went all out on one of my bikes about 4 yrs ago
with Krause inverted front end, Rear Ohlins 357 13” shocks.
Aluminum swing Arm radial brakes and rotors and so on.
I messed with and changed front springs twice, Had the rear shocks revalved
Never could get the bike to ride to my liking.
I Suppose I expected more and never really rode the bike to its full potential.
Its better meant for aggressive riding and that’s just not my style at my age anymore.
I honestly can say my 06 ultra with the stock frontend
And a set of RWD 13” shocks on back rides better than
my 06 Streetglide with all the bells and whistles.
If I had it all to do over again I would of left it alone and saved my $
Im not sure if it would have made a difference on a newer bike or not
I doubt it.

 

Eh, moreso just posting in case a pile of people showed up to say "no way, the inverted front is a complete gamechanger!" So far, it's been the opposite, which is what I expected. Probably a pretty mild difference over a comparable cartridge, and more for the bling factor than anything. Don't get me wrong, I want to build this to be able to ride as aggressive as possible, but it is still an 850 bagger.

 

This is my friend on his CVO. I took this photo a couple weeks back. He's on the performance bagger race team. He'll tell you the inverted front end isn't worth it. He has everything I suggested and you've already figured you'd need.

 

Right on, just the information I wanted to hear! I can afford the inverted front, but money adds up fast and I'd hate to look back and think about how much I wasted if I spent $8k on a front fork.

 

I spent my "lunch break" on the phone with Kooper at Kraus. I explained my issue and he ended up suggesting the Ohlins FKS 228 kit with springs to pair nice with the rear shocks I already have. I thought I'd come back and update you, since I'm working on this 90mph sweeper oscillation I have. Ultimately said I'd be hard pressed to complain about anything once I install that. Full dampening and rebound adjustment. Might be the ticket for you as well.
https://krausmotorco.com/ohlins-fks-...cartridge-kit/