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'95 R100R Ohlins problem

ricard

New member
My '95 R100R has an Ohlins shock installed by the previous owner. There is a serial number on the spring that reads 1096-24/80 487, and a number on the plate at the bottom of the spring that reads 629-01. I recently had the shock recharged and the bushings replaced. I have the pre-load set to maximum. The problem is the plate at the bottom of the spring hits the paralever. I'm not sure if it's under compression or extension. I'm not talking about "catching air" or major "whoop-de-doos". Just normal spirited riding. I cannot feel when it hits and the bike rides great, but the clamp holding the boot in place and some of the aluminum is being damaged. Any ideas or suggestions as to whether or not this is fixable. Many thanks.
r100r-ohlins-2.jpg

r100r-ohlins-4.jpg
 
The plate hits the paralever?...sure seems like the spring sticks out further? Can the spring be rotated such that the gap in the spring or a different curved part of the spring is nearest the paralever? I wonder if it would be possible to exercise the shock manually so that you can really visualize what might be happing.
 
I have the same shock on my '91 GS and do not have this issue. Looks like the static position of the swing arm is too high... Thinking the sag setting is not right or someone tried to lower the bike through a shorter spring and preload adjustment as it does not look you have much adjustment left to increase the lift on the shock adjustment.
 
I'm going to guess it hits under compression.

The numbers on the spring indicate its rate and free length. The number on the collar is a part number.

Gotta ask:
- Do you know if this was happening before?
- Is it the same shock? Even at full compression it shouldn't touch anything.
- Is it the same spring which was on before? Its been known to happen that, during the rebuild process, one spring gets mixed up with others.
- If yes, are you sure its at max preload? From the picture it looks like there's only about 3/4" preload in there. Ohlins typically have a lot of thread with which to play.
- Do you have the stock shock with which to compare this one?
- Has the bike somehow been lowered? Different torque arm?
 
Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. Rotating the spring does not make a difference. The remote hydraulic pre-load is set to maximum, I have not adjusted the mechanical pre-load. Can I increase the shock length with the mechanical pre-load? I think that the shock has been hitting the paralever since I bought the bike, although it took some time for me to notice any damage to the paralever. I hadn't considered that the spring may be short. I am currently looking for someone who can decifer the serial number to determine if it is the appropriate spring. My guess now is that I may be able to solve the problem by increasing the length of the shock. I am always impressed with the quick responses from you all.
 
Have you thought about calling Ohlins? In my experience, an engineer has gotten on the phone with me to discuss the application and provided relevant solutions.
These shocks take up quite a bit more room than their stock counterparts.

Have you considered that perhaps you have the incorrect part for your bike?
 
why do you have it set for max preload on the remote adjuster? you should only be doing that if you are carrying max load (2up, all the gear for touring)- which implies that you either have an incorrect spring for your weight, the basic maechanical preload is incorrectly set, or possibly the shock is not the right one for the bike.
ascertain from Ohlins that the spring is matched to you, and shock is matched to bike, then proceed from there, including the ALL important setting of correct sag.
 
I called Ohlins USA, left a message with an engineer to call me back regarding the spring and whether or not it's correct. I agree that's the best place to start. The remote pre-load was set at maximum only to determine if it would fix the problem of the shock hitting the paralever, it didn't. Mechanical preload has not been adjusted. If the spring is too short that may be the issue, on the other hand, it also may be why I've had no driveshaft issues in 90k miles. ;)
 
Step 1 SET SAG!!! Set the loaded sag properly then make sure you have some static sag (just the bike weight compresses the shock slightly)

If you can set the sag properly, the spring length makes NO difference. It is the spring rate that determines travel, not the length. (note length and coil thickness do effect spring rate) but SAG measurements will determine that.


You mentioned bushings were replaced, were you talking about the eyelet bushings at the mounting points?? If they were bad, it could definitely cause the clearances to change.

Most shocks I have seen have a "bump stop" on the shaft, which is a cone shaped cushion that stops the shock from slamming hard parts over a large bump, it limits the travel too, and I cant see one in your pictures, if it is missing it could cause the shock to over compress, if it were designed to have one.

It is obvious the damage is occurring as the rear suspension is compressed and the angles intersect. If all the other stuff is correct, the only other solution is to see if ohlins made different spring seats, that would move the spring seat further up the shaft. I have no clue if this is something they make, but with the multitude of applications I would think it is reasonable that different ones exist.
 
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My opinion is that something is seriously wrong. That shock should not bang on the swingarm with any setting from full hard to full soft at any point in its range from fully compressed to fully extended. That kind of impact load puts a hammering shear force on the lower shock mount stud, which could if extreme break the stud.

From looking at the picture it appears that the impact happens when the shock is fully compressed. It looks like the shock is too short for the geometry of the Paralever setup. Does the bike per chance have a shortened lower control arm? If the control arm is shorter than OEM it will roll the entire final drive counterclockwise viewed from the right side as in the photo. If so, that places the shock mount lower relative to the back of the swingarm.
 
Something is not right, I think it's the spring (although the paralever link is a good possibility as well). If you can use this picture from my '90 R100GSPD as a guide you will notice that the spring has more turns (it seems to me that the spring continues up under the side cover) and I think that the coils are thicker. Of course I don't know if the R100R used a lighter spring. This is the only picture I have and the bike is in storage so I can't get at it for any other pictures or to get spring numbers.
 

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Here is the same shock on my r100gs.

Off the centre stand, no load.


Does your shock have a bump stop? (the tapered rubber ring on the shaft inside the spring)

Paul's question is valid too. Spring length by itself, does not effect travel, a shorter spring with smaller diameter stock, can have the same spring rate as a longer spring with bigger stock.
 
The two pictures side by side. It's clear that the "problem" shock isn't as long and has fewer coils. The coil thickness appears to be nearly the same...the "problem" shock also has quite a bit of spacing between the coils.
 

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Look at the two pictures. On the second bike the angle of the two pivot points (shock stud and paralever pivot) is about a 45 degree angle from horizontal. On the original poster's bike the angle is closer to 35 degrees from horizontal. That screams that the paralever arm is too short.
 
The spring in the left picture has far fewer coils than the spring in the right picture. Even if the Paralever arm is too short, I suspect that the the spring and perhaps the shock body itself are not correct for this application, even if the ends do bolt up.
 
I took some measurements of the Ohlins on my R100GS. The spring is 83mm (which is pretty standard) with 8 coils, and the distance from the center of the mounting stud to the beginning of the spring retainer is 100mm. For reference, the Wilbers R100GS shock on my R100R is 110mm.

Interestingly enough, I have signs of light contact in the same place. And this is a shock which has been ridden very hard on rough terrain.

shock1.jpg

shock2.jpg
 
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Thank you all for the replies and useful info. Anton, the damage to my paralever looked similar to yours when I bought the bike, 6ok miles later it looks like my photos, the entire outer aluminum ridge has been gradually knocked off. I have been communicating with Ohlins USA. The shock Ser. Num BM3321 is correct for the R100R and the spring 1096-24 is perfect for someone of my weight (170 lbs). The length of this shock is not adjustable. After reviewing the photos the Ohlins tech thinks that the shock is hitting under extension, but has no solution to the problem as of yet. I'll keep you posted...
 
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