Leftlaner

Hi guys,

I catched up with another XX pilot the other day, and we did some high speed cruising for a few miles before we stopped and introduced ourselves. Great guy, and he did some pretty serious leaning through some of those sweepers, I really had to concentrate to keep up with him..!

Anyway, we naturally talked a little bit about the 'bird and what a great bike it is for high speed touring etc etc. I told him that I could feel the front end swaying a bit through high speed corners, and asked him if he experienced the same on his XX. We both had full Givi luggage on, by the way. He said he got rid of that problem when he overhauled the rear shock and "tightened it up" a bit. He was pretty sure my problem was related to the rear shock as well.

I have hyperpro front springs, and an ohlins rear spring (at least that's what the previous owner told me). The shock itself is OEM though.

I weigh in at about 100kg fully geared up, and I guess that is slightly heavier than the average XX rider. So what do you think? Is it time for some rear shock adjustment, or even replacement? Or should I look at some other things first, such as fork oil or front springs..?

And if I need to "tighten up" the rear shock, how is this done? Isn't this pretty delicate stuff that you shouldn't mess around with unless you really know what you're doing? I'm pretty handy with the wrench in general, but I've never worked on shocks before.. Looking forward to your feedback!

__________________
To do is to be - Socrates
To be is to do - Jean-Paul Sartre
Do-be-do-be-do - Frank Sinatra

flblackbird

Check your tire pressure's before you go adjusting anything, you might just have been a little low in the front.

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Doc MCR NSB VP
02 Silver Bird

PoGo

Hey Leftlaner.

I know this was posted ages ago, but I wanted to know if you've sorted out the problem and what did you do?

I've got the same problem at the moment and want to sort that (and a couple of other issues) out before my planned trip in a month or two.

Leftlaner

New tyres + correct pressure (42 psi or 2.9 bar) helped a lot. I also changed the oil seals in the forks and replaced the fork oil with a "heavy grade" version that suits my weight better. Plus, after reading "Twist of the Wrist 1&2" I've tweaked my cornering technique --> huge improvements..! Good luck!

__________________
To do is to be - Socrates
To be is to do - Jean-Paul Sartre
Do-be-do-be-do - Frank Sinatra