Fork emulators?

[davebullet]

If it was, Dr Taylor would've known that, as he sells it under the Ohlins brand, for around $51/litre.

Mr. Riccor (or whatever his name is) on svrider.com says just to buy any 5w fork oil... his own oil is not required. He says that to overseas customers to minimise freight costs and says he doesn't make much on the oil anyway.

He didn't sound like he was pushing his product and spoke favourably of the RT emulators as well. He seems decent enough.

[Pussy]

Don't fall in to that trap, Dave.
The flow rates of "5 weight" oil differs HEAPS over different brands.
Centistoke rating is the leveller

[sil3nt]

I thought that was the SV suspension..? You telling me that I've been rooked? Damn!

I should let you ride the GPX. The front end is so bad im surprised they were allowed to sell it My tyres don't help either.

If i have an entire forum of GPX owners telling me its an awesome mod and Slyer telling me the same i think its worthwile

Whether i can afford the mod is another question

[Robert Taylor]

The only answer they seem to have is low viscosity oil (5w) - make it flow through the smaller holes quicker. I'm sure this would cause problems in other aspects. Is there such as term as "over rebounding " etc... Sorry I am a suspension newbie.

At higher velocities through relatively large orifices the viscosity of the oil has rather less effect, viscosity is much more important when oil is made to pass through small and restrictive orifices.

Do you have a link to these guys? I pride myself on being totally averse to BS. If indeed there is merit in their product I will tell you so. But at the moment its a case of ''caveat emptor''.

[Robert Taylor]

The only answer they seem to have is low viscosity oil (5w) - make it flow through the smaller holes quicker. I'm sure this would cause problems in other aspects. Is there such as term as "over rebounding " etc... Sorry I am a suspension newbie.

Over rebounding is one of the single biggest causes of 'unexplained'' crashes.

[Robert Taylor]

Mr. Riccor (or whatever his name is) on svrider.com says just to buy any 5w fork oil... his own oil is not required. He says that to overseas customers to minimise freight costs and says he doesn't make much on the oil anyway.

He didn't sound like he was pushing his product and spoke favourably of the RT emulators as well. He seems decent enough.

Not all ''5 weight'' oils are the same and if that is Mr Ricors total understanding of suspension oil Id be starting to get VERY concerned. Plus be wary of American hype...how many people have been conned with the latest and greatest exercise machines over the years.......?
5 weight etc is an SAE ( motor oil ) rating and frankly is very misleading. For example 5 weight Silkolene has the same flow rate through a fixed size orifice at the same temperature as 10 weight Maxima. Centistroke rating at 40 degrees C is the only true flow rate indicator, the very first prerequisite for at least matching of suspension fluids. Sadly most suppliers of suspension oil do not include that on the bottle label and jolly well should.....

[Robert Taylor]

I should let you ride the GPX. The front end is so bad im surprised they were allowed to sell it My tyres don't help either.

If i have an entire forum of GPX owners telling me its an awesome mod and Slyer telling me the same i think its worthwile

Whether i can afford the mod is another question

Ditto for GN250, SV650 and all low cost commuter and trail bikes etc

[Pussy]

Centistroke.

It's "centistoke"!

You're welcome!

[Robert Taylor]

It's "centistoke"!

You're welcome!

Toss you for it!!!!

[cs363]

Over rebounding is one of the single biggest causes of 'unexplained'' crashes.

And now explained. So much for the mysteries of motorcycling. Party pooper!

jolly well should.....

That's enough of that, suspension is a serious business - or so you would have us believe.

Toss you for it!!!!

I always wondered why Pussy spends so much time in your workshop, all this time I thought he'd become addicted to your crap coffee and right wing propaganda.
Just shows, you learn something every day....

[davebullet]

Robert / pussy,

Thanks for the information. I design loudspeakers as a hobby, and it amazes me how many newbies think they can just buy some drivers (speaker cones), chuck them in a box with an off the shelf passive crossover and think they are going to get something nice sounding.

So I put myself in the same boat when it comes to suspension.

Robert,

Here is the Ricor site link to the SV650 specific product page. There are some FAQ pages on the left hand menubar where Ricor provides their approach / beliefs:
http://store.ricorshocks.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=32

Here is the ricor vendor sub-forum on svrider:
http://forum.svrider.com/forumdisplay.php?f=67

Here is a specific post on the rebound and damping properties:
http://forum.svrider.com/showthread.php?t=100825

(PS: I find it funny how people use "dampening" and not damping. Do you really want wet shocks or shocks that correctly respond to surface variability )

[gatch]

Partly that is how I make a living....

Fair enough. Not trying to pinch your secrets, just curious..

[Yankee Doodle Dandy]

Not all ''5 weight'' oils are the same and if that is Mr Ricors total understanding of suspension oil Id be starting to get VERY concerned. Plus be wary of American hype...how many people have been conned with the latest and greatest exercise machines over the years.......?
5 weight etc is an SAE ( motor oil ) rating and frankly is very misleading. For example 5 weight Silkolene has the same flow rate through a fixed size orifice at the same temperature as 10 weight Maxima. Centistroke rating at 40 degrees C is the only true flow rate indicator, the very first prerequisite for at least matching of suspension fluids. Sadly most suppliers of suspension oil do not include that on the bottle label and jolly well should.....

Here is a chart with some of the popular brands comparing their oil rating in CsT @ 40 degrees.

[vifferman]

Here is a chart with some of the popular brands comparing their oil rating in CsT @ 40 degrees.

It's got LOTS of oils on it, but it's not very comprehensive, is it, huh?!?
There's no BabyLesbianAfghaniFurSealPenguinWhale oil, is there?
WTF?!?

[davebullet]

Thanks for the chart.

The AMSOil recommended with the Intiminators looks like the "Shock Therapy Light"
http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/stl.aspx

Which has a Centistoke rating of 15.7 (as per the chart). The above page lists all the other technical factors.

I'm probably going to get a pair, since I now know what oil to source. At USD$200 it isn't cheap, but I'm willing to throw that sort of money at it to see if it makes any difference. The bike isn't worth it to me to throw $1000+ worth of suspension work at it... but time will tell.

I'll report back in due course with (of course) a subjective comparison. I will be quite critical. I'm secretly skeptical as all of the reviews I've read are glowing. However, some people who have had RaceTech GV emulators also fitted say they are comparable. Of course this is comparing apples with oranges when you are talking about different roads (USA vs. NZ) and probably race vs. road usage, unknown spring rates, unknown rider weight, unknown other mods etc.. etc...

A friend who fitted them to his KLR650 is quite happy with what they've done to improve the ride.