Ohlins for the K1200S/R
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309 Posts
we have already installed a set on a customer's k1200r. what would you like to know?
regards,
ken zeller
regards,
ken zeller
Here is my experience.
What I gained: The front end now feels completely free of stiction and resistance. This was not a big concern prior but now the bars turn left/right more freely. It is very fluid and smooth with no damper.
No more wander/wobble/weave. The front would hunt back and forth at slow/moderate speed. Again, not a big concern but noticeable. We have all read about this complaint in tests and some have a problem with it (me) while others don't seem to notice.
Steering dampers are needed in extreme-use high speed racing conditions. Nobody that rides a K12S on the road has a use for it. A stiff damper set for racing conditions would negatively impact handling on the street. I took the damper off and the slow/moderate speed problem vanished and the high speed stability remained.
As far as road conditions, I have ridden all types of roads in my area with the damper on(about 3k miles) and about 1k with the damper removed. My speed ranges from stop and go to about 140. Last weekend I was riding with a buddy on an 03 ZX7r and we were riding agressively. My friend was backing off on his Kawasaki for whatever reason and I still felt in complete control on the BMW. What I'm saying is the steering damper or lack of it was not destroying my confidence in this bikes handling. I would say the opposite is true. Without the damper, I can feel the front end better and have MORE confidence. Remember, the damper is there to restrict movement in the steering. I still think the bike doesn't need it by design. The KS is not a quick steering sport bike and the damper was put on to give a measure of reduced performance at high speed as a compromise. In other words, the legal team won out over the engineers.
I tell you honestly that I have seen no difference in high speed stability. There seems to be a fear that without the damper, the bike will shake its' head and rip the bars out of the riders hands. There has never been even a hint of anything like that. With the steering geometry and wheelbase of the bike, I have never even worried about it.
Mal, did you manage to get those passenger pegs off? Post up a piccy of your bike when you can.
What I gained: The front end now feels completely free of stiction and resistance. This was not a big concern prior but now the bars turn left/right more freely. It is very fluid and smooth with no damper.
No more wander/wobble/weave. The front would hunt back and forth at slow/moderate speed. Again, not a big concern but noticeable. We have all read about this complaint in tests and some have a problem with it (me) while others don't seem to notice.
Steering dampers are needed in extreme-use high speed racing conditions. Nobody that rides a K12S on the road has a use for it. A stiff damper set for racing conditions would negatively impact handling on the street. I took the damper off and the slow/moderate speed problem vanished and the high speed stability remained.
As far as road conditions, I have ridden all types of roads in my area with the damper on(about 3k miles) and about 1k with the damper removed. My speed ranges from stop and go to about 140. Last weekend I was riding with a buddy on an 03 ZX7r and we were riding agressively. My friend was backing off on his Kawasaki for whatever reason and I still felt in complete control on the BMW. What I'm saying is the steering damper or lack of it was not destroying my confidence in this bikes handling. I would say the opposite is true. Without the damper, I can feel the front end better and have MORE confidence. Remember, the damper is there to restrict movement in the steering. I still think the bike doesn't need it by design. The KS is not a quick steering sport bike and the damper was put on to give a measure of reduced performance at high speed as a compromise. In other words, the legal team won out over the engineers.
I tell you honestly that I have seen no difference in high speed stability. There seems to be a fear that without the damper, the bike will shake its' head and rip the bars out of the riders hands. There has never been even a hint of anything like that. With the steering geometry and wheelbase of the bike, I have never even worried about it.
Mal, did you manage to get those passenger pegs off? Post up a piccy of your bike when you can.
Joined
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93 Posts
Nothing in the U.S. will summarily invalidate the warranty. But if you do something and the thing that breaks or malfunctions is related to what you did, then BMWNA may deny reimbursement to the dealer and thus to you.
For instance if you replace the bulbs with non-BMW approved bulbs and the electrical system shorts out, then you may have a problem. If you replace the bulbs and your wheel just falls off, then the two are obviously not related and warranty would still apply.
Although many have removed the damper with no problems, I would weigh your mission and riding style first before emulating. I leave mine on for instance because the local twisty hilly roads that I ride, and the way that I ride them (with heavy hands on the steering), I've had my front end get wiggly before even with the steering damper on.
Steering dampers come in handy in two different scenarios that I know of for sure.
1) Very high speeds and the bike gets a bit unstable (not an issue in my opinion with the S)
2) Having the front wheel come off the ground in a crested turn. Upon landing the front wheel, if it's not on the same longitudinal axis as the rear wheel, it may try and wiggle. Whether or not it does is determined by many factors, including how much pressure you have on your bars. I lack finesse and have the front wheel off the ground frequently, thus I've opted for the security of the damper (whether warranted or not, I like having that security).
Just making a different perspective known. I'm sure others have removed theirs to accomodate what their particular mission is and riding style is with no probelms. Nothing wrong with that, but given the right conditions (perhaps a condition that we would never experience in normal riding) any motorcycle can end up with a tank slapper.
For instance if you replace the bulbs with non-BMW approved bulbs and the electrical system shorts out, then you may have a problem. If you replace the bulbs and your wheel just falls off, then the two are obviously not related and warranty would still apply.
Although many have removed the damper with no problems, I would weigh your mission and riding style first before emulating. I leave mine on for instance because the local twisty hilly roads that I ride, and the way that I ride them (with heavy hands on the steering), I've had my front end get wiggly before even with the steering damper on.
Steering dampers come in handy in two different scenarios that I know of for sure.
1) Very high speeds and the bike gets a bit unstable (not an issue in my opinion with the S)
2) Having the front wheel come off the ground in a crested turn. Upon landing the front wheel, if it's not on the same longitudinal axis as the rear wheel, it may try and wiggle. Whether or not it does is determined by many factors, including how much pressure you have on your bars. I lack finesse and have the front wheel off the ground frequently, thus I've opted for the security of the damper (whether warranted or not, I like having that security).
Just making a different perspective known. I'm sure others have removed theirs to accomodate what their particular mission is and riding style is with no probelms. Nothing wrong with that, but given the right conditions (perhaps a condition that we would never experience in normal riding) any motorcycle can end up with a tank slapper.
I'd like the get the stock steering dampener replaced with an adjustable variant. I remember seeing one on the Ohlins site but it's not there now. Would anyone happen to have more information on the Ohlins dampener for the K12R? (part no. etc.). Thanks.evoluzione said:
3) Exiting bumpy corners under heavy acceleration. I can still get the bars to wag a bit, with the damper. I can only imagine without it.Catatafish said:
But I will say, in that same corner, my 'busa would shake heavily, and become far more unstable from the rear suspension, and my Guzzi, well, it leaves a lot to be desired in this circumstance, and full throttle on that is no comparision to half-throttle on the K-S.
The rear suspension on these bikes is incredibly impressive over bumpy surfaces, in my opinion.
Leave that damper on, or even look to replace it with something better (but I am not complaining about the stock pices, think that it is quite decent).
ken
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511 Posts
Hm, not really. The damper was put on after the press introduction at the Nurburgring, while the bike was under a massive pre-production factory recall for camshaft replacement. Looks like most of the journalists invited found the front end too twitchy on the 'ring (very few bikes aren't...xlr8r said:
) and that convinced Mama BMW to put a damper to cool down headshakes.That said, I don't think that fast lapping the Ring is the typical K1200 user's first priority (Shut up, TheJoker...
), so I guess removing it is safe enough.Just my .02, obviously.
CYA, Ed
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2 Posts
Ohlins Suspention and Damper for K1200s
I searched and searched......, I called and called.... and to no avail, Ohlins and their dealers told me there are no setups available for the K1200s. So......, I continued my search... and came across a HyperPro reactive Damper. I spoke with the Rep., and they talked it up real good. I decided to give it a try. The install was painless. As far as its performance..... EXELENT in the Apex at high speeds. With proper lean, no breaking or adjustment in bar or position needed. Just laid on the throttle and kept it going all the way through,without a glitch. As for the flat straight away, I noticed no difference from the OEM damper at high speed of 100 + mph. As for Ohlins Suspension system..., I did that as well. I didn't notice much of any difference in the ride. I don't know.., Maybe I have to adjust my sag...
I searched and searched......, I called and called.... and to no avail, Ohlins and their dealers told me there are no setups available for the K1200s. So......, I continued my search... and came across a HyperPro reactive Damper. I spoke with the Rep., and they talked it up real good. I decided to give it a try. The install was painless. As far as its performance..... EXELENT in the Apex at high speeds. With proper lean, no breaking or adjustment in bar or position needed. Just laid on the throttle and kept it going all the way through,without a glitch. As for the flat straight away, I noticed no difference from the OEM damper at high speed of 100 + mph. As for Ohlins Suspension system..., I did that as well. I didn't notice much of any difference in the ride. I don't know.., Maybe I have to adjust my sag...
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