Ok so I had an exciting weekend, fitting a new Ohlins rear shock and Sonic springs. I was very lucky to find on the Super Tenere forum that a guy had crashed his bike and was parting it out – including a 200-mile-old Ohlins rear shock. Part was dispatched and arrived in San Diego on Friday. Then my forum-friend Carl and I spent most of the day Saturday installing everything. Carl was brilliant, as was his wife Virginia, who ran the turkey sandwich side of the operation.
I’m not fond of the setup on the gas canister – the hose is supposed to go under the passenger peg bracket, but with the Jesse rack also mounted to that bracket I can’t get the angle right. I think I have to modify the bracket that holds the canister… another time…
One disappointment was that I now have too much sag on the rear. Not that surprising given the load I have on and that the shock wasn’t set up for me. I spoke to the Ohlins guy that did the initial setup, he had all the specs. It already has a heavier spring than standard (130 vs 150 nm) so should be ok with just some more preload wound on. Unfortunately this means the shock has to come out again, and some special tools required to do the adjustment.
I found a guy in Tucson to adjust the shock (Carlos at http://serranomotorsports.com/), so heading there now. If I make good time I may be able to get it done today.
