Rear shock

EricV

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avc8130 said:
Your math is a bit of an exaggeration...

Forks: ~$625
Shock: ~$900
Seat: ~$400

Total: ~$1925

ac
That does depend on how he goes about it, and who's products he chooses. You're not getting a Russell Day Long for $400, for example. And if he pays a shop to do the changes, well, you know how that can go. 8)
 

avc8130

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EricV said:
That does depend on how he goes about it, and who's products he chooses. You're not getting a Russell Day Long for $400, for example. And if he pays a shop to do the changes, well, you know how that can go. 8)
Fine...let me work it with his math...

Forks: ~$650
Shock: ~$900
Total: $1550

That leaves $950 to get the seat "done".

I'm pretty sure it can be done for much less than that.

ac
 

EricV

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avc8130 said:
Fine...let me work it with his math...
That leaves $950 to get the seat "done".

I'm pretty sure it can be done for much less than that.
And pay for labor. That's what I meant about depending on how he goes about it. Hard to believe, but not everyone works on their bikes like we do AC. Some folks actually pay shops to do everything.

It can always be done for less. Just depends on what they want and how they want to get it done.
 

avc8130

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EricV said:
And pay for labor. That's what I meant about depending on how he goes about it. Hard to believe, but not everyone works on their bikes like we do AC. Some folks actually pay shops to do everything.

It can always be done for less. Just depends on what they want and how they want to get it done.
True.
Rear shock swap is ~1 hour labor: $75?
Forks are ~2 hours labor to remove/reinstall: $150?

So another $225.

Both of these tasks are pretty easy...especially with the centerstand.

ac
 

EricV

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Ok, let me try again. ^-^

What costs you $1550 to do, may actually cost him $2500 to do.

He could do it for your cost if he used the same vendors you do, etc.

But some shops charge over $100/Hr in labor. Some vendors charge more for the same products too. His choices may be different from yours.

So yes, it can be done for less than the price he posted. But it may not be what he wants to do. What he wants to do may cost that price, for him.

I know you're trying to say you can have what you want for less, but it's not always an apples to apples comparison.
::003::
 

avc8130

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EricV said:
Ok, let me try again. ^-^

What costs you $1550 to do, may actually cost him $2500 to do.

He could do it for your cost if he used the same vendors you do, etc.

But some shops charge over $100/Hr in labor. Some vendors charge more for the same products too. His choices may be different from yours.

So yes, it can be done for less than the price he posted. But it may not be what he wants to do. What he wants to do may cost that price, for him.

I know you're trying to say you can have what you want for less, but it's not always an apples to apples comparison.
::003::
If you are hungry and can only afford an orange...do you starve to death?

ac
 

Karson

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If I was only keeping the bike for 2-3 years, then I'd probably make the OEM suspension suffice. Knowing what I know now, that'd be unfortunate though. There really isn't any road surface I can't dial the suspension to...now it's point the front tire and ::26::

Beyond 2-3 years of ownership, I'd view suspension as a necessity.
 

thfraser

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I guess I need to start saving some funds or do the work myself!

Almost 24k on the stock suspension....
 

Karson

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The rear you can certainly DIY. Both ohlins and penske shops will make you send your tubes in.

No biggie, just have UPS package them and they have no questions asked insurance if something gets beat up. Runs ~$75 to ship - that's with 2G's worth of insurance and their packing 1 way, if I recall.

Take the time to clean and repack your upper/lower steering head bearings while you're waiting for the forks to come back ::008::
 

EricV

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avc8130 said:
If you are hungry and can only afford an orange...do you starve to death?

ac
No, I'd wait until I got home and eat something else. Want does not always equal Need.

What you're forgetting is the OP doesn't Want to spend big dollars. No matter how much folks post that it's a good idea to do so.

@thfraser - Not a bad idea in both cases, or just ride the bike until something breaks or you really feel like you are ready to spend the money. 64k on the stock suspension, (other than a re-spring of the shock). I guess it's sort of like buying a new hi-def TV. Your old TV still works, and boy that hi-def is pretty darn cool, but the old TV still shows you the same stuff, just not in quite as great of detail. You decide.
 

avc8130

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EricV said:
No, I'd wait until I got home and eat something else. Want does not always equal Need.

What you're forgetting is the OP doesn't Want to spend big dollars. No matter how much folks post that it's a good idea to do so.
Ok: so to answer the OP. No. You can't just spend a few hundred. Until you allot ~$1200+ your ride quality is as good as it ever will be.

For your weight and riding description the stock spring rate isn't TOO Far off. I'd put a 750 on an aftermarket shock for you. Stock is 700. It is the DAMPING that you are looking for with "ride quality" so I don't think re-springing the stock shock would benefit you much.

The front is a different animal. For ~$150 you can make a large difference by swapping out springs and fresh oil. The stock fork springs are dual rate. At 220 the initial rate is getting wasted on preload to set proper sag and the secondary rate is too stiff for you.

ac
 

snakebitten

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kenbike said:
Has anyone had the stock rear shock upgraded and are you happy with the results.? Just do not want to put more than a few hundred into improving the ride quality so a replacement after market is to much cash.
So I decided to go back and see what was actually the OP's question. :)


Yes, LOTS of us have upgraded.
And I'm willing to say that ALL of those that have are happy with the results, it appears. EVEN the ones that didn't spend much $.

Keep in mind, there are yet still, many more that are happy that haven't spent a dime!
 

kenbike

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Just to refine my estimate I called Racetech and this their quote
Forks $650
New shock $1100
Shipping $100
upgraded seat top end $600
so my estimate was off this totals $2450 vs $2500
I will do all of the work myself.
Upgrading suspension is very costly, the bike new is $12,500 and upgrade it can range $1200 to $1800. I agree it sure does make the bike better but I will just ride it stock until the shock dies.
 

Dallara

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kenbike said:
Just to refine my estimate I called Racetech and this their quote
Forks $650
New shock $1100
Shipping $100
upgraded seat top end $600
so my estimate was off this totals $2450 vs $2500
I will do all of the work myself.
Upgrading suspension is very costly, the bike new is $12,500 and upgrade it can range $1200 to $1800. I agree it sure does make the bike better but I will just ride it stock until the shock dies.


Just for the record... RaceTech shocks tend to be some of the priciest around, often even costing more than Ohlins. I didn't pay anywhere near that for my custom-built Penske from Stoltec (over 20% less just over a year ago), nor quite than much for the fork work (about 4% less). That's about $1,500... Add the shipping of around $200 round-trip for the forks and for the shock to me and it's a bit less than $1,700.

As for seats... Well, I've bought two high-dollar aftermarket seats used right off this board - one a re-make by a name-brand seat re-builder and the other a Sargent V2 - and both were a whole, whole lot *LESS* than $600 ($250 for one, or over 58% less, and $210 for the Sargent, or 65% less). I like to try different ones, and as it turns out the $250 one has worked perfectly for me (the Sargent didn't)... So what do we have here... $1700 + $250 = $1,950.

Yep, $1,950 bucks is a lot of coin, but it's a whole lot less than $2,450 (more than 20%). Best of all I did it over a long-time ownership experience. I knew the stock suspension was getting tired, tired, *TIRED* at 21,000 miles, which was when I had the forks done and ordered up the new rear shock. At that point it definitely needed help, and the improvement in handling, ride compliance, comfort, ride quality, etc. was not only noticeable, but *DRAMATIC*. The upgraded suspension performance, quality, and comfort was light-years better than the stock components. More than owrth the money, and made an already nice motorcycle superlative.

Same with the seat... It immediately added hundreds of miles a day to the comfort level of the bike (as did the suspension), so suddenly I was able to cover a lot more miles much more enjoyably. I've literally paid no more than mere pennies per mile for that seat, and since it added miles-per-day to my riding total I've probably gotten to see things I might have missed had I not had it.

What one does to their motorcycle is certainly completely at the discretion and desire of the owner, but for me two of the best things I've ever done to my Super Tenere were the upgraded suspension and aftermarket seat. Both have added miles to my riding, and many more smiles to those miles.

To me, that's what makes 'em a bargain... YMMV.

Dallara


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wfopete

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Fortunately with all these upgraded Tenere' shock deals going on, there should be plenty of good used ones for sale when yours goes bad.

Just slap on the new/used shock followed quickly by a 4 sale sign.


Commute to live, live to commute!


/
 

EricV

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@Dallara - You may know, which of the high mile riders has done suspension upgrades? There are only a handful of us over 50k so far.
 

Dallara

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EricV said:
@Dallara - You may know, which of the high mile riders has done suspension upgrades? There are only a handful of us over 50k so far.

I, myself, have only 33,000 miles on my Super Tenere. Did 21,000 in the first year of ownership, but only 12,000 this year... Much as I hate to say it, *life* has gotten in the way of a bunch of riding this past year, and looks like it's gonna' zap a bunch of it the next couple of months, too, damn it!!! ::025::

As for those with over 50-K in mileage on their S-10's I'm afraid I have no idea how many of those have suspension upgrades. I can only think of four or five here on the board that have over 50,000 miles, period, and I'll bet you can name those.

All I know is that my stock suspension was performing far, far worse than I even realized until I upgraded it to the Penske/Stoltec components. It's my guess the degradation was so incremental over those 21,000 miles that I had not noticed it as much as I should have. IMHO I think that may be the case with many S-10 riders out there who have more than 15,000 to 20,000 miles on their bikes.

Of course, I could be wrong... ;)

Maybe we should simply ask for a show of hands, Eric. ::003::


Dallara




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Firefight911

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Thanks to a nearly 3 year old running around, a huge goal of running 1500 miles this year, and my ultimate demise through over training for said goal and subsequent foot surgery I only have around 26,000 miles

BUT, fully changed F&R suspension. My 2 cents - why anyone would not put an updated suspension that is tailored to them on their bike is beyond me. There sinply is no better investment to the enjoyment, safety, and improvement to the overall experience of motorcycling out there.

Flame suit on - BRING IT!

I'll be doing a full tear down and rebuild between 30,000 and 35,000 miles. I'll go through all the shims, seals, etc. at that time. The rear Ohlins is about perfect but the front still needs some work. Going to start the process of setting up my parameters of improvement and talking with James at Super Plush regarding any fluid, fluid height, springs, and valving changes we might like to make. My skill set has improved to a point where I am starting to push my previous set up a bit so I'm going to discuss it and make any changes needed at that time.
 

Dallara

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Firefight911 said:
Thanks to a nearly 3 year old running around, a huge goal of running 1500 miles this year, and my ultimate demise through over training for said goal and subsequent foot surgery I only have around 26,000 miles

BUT, fully changed F&R suspension. My 2 cents - why anyone would not put an updated suspension that is tailored to them on their bike is beyond me. There sinply is no better investment to the enjoyment, safety, and improvement to the overall experience of motorcycling out there.

Flame suit on - BRING IT!

I'll be doing a full tear down and rebuild between 30,000 and 35,000 miles. I'll go through all the shims, seals, etc. at that time. The rear Ohlins is about perfect but the front still needs some work. Going to start the process of setting up my parameters of improvement and talking with James at Super Plush regarding any fluid, fluid height, springs, and valving changes we might like to make. My skill set has improved to a point where I am starting to push my previous set up a bit so I'm going to discuss it and make any changes needed at that time.

OMG, Phil!!!

You've gone and done it now!!! Mentioned "updated suspension" and "safety" in the same paragraph!!! ???

Something tells me you might be in for all sorts of flames stating that upgraded suspension cannot possibly enhance anyone's safety while riding a motorcycle!!! :))

Mind you, I agree with you wholeheartedly and absolutely. But I know someone around here who doesn't... ;)

Dallara



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