Elka suspension - how much better is the new riding experience?

[Dmartin]

I am thinking of buying and installing the Stage 2 Elka front suspension for my 2018 RT Limited. anyone have those installed and if so, how much better is the new riding experience?

Thanks,
Daniel " Batman" Martin

[Dennis in Lodi]

I am thinking of buying and installing the Stage 2 Elka front suspension for my 2018 RT Limited. anyone have those installed and if so, how much better is the new riding experience?

Thanks,
Daniel " Batman" Martin

My friend with an RT hopped on my F3L with my expensive Full Elka Suspension. Keep in mind I ordered mine to be extra plush, not sport performance minded. He didn't know about my Elkas before riding. First thing he said is how STIFF it felt going over things. I have to admit I really like his stock 2020 RT suspension. Yes my Elka hold firmer in HARD corners and rebounded like magic in REALLY rough situations, but for the most part his RT rode better and softer on 95% of real road situations. I do firmly believe that
2up my REAR Elka outperforms the stock shock. The rear Elka never seems to bottom out. In fact neither do my front Elk where his stock could bottom out in BIG hit situations.
Sorry if this goes against the grain but this was a blind test for my friend and I preferred the stock front shock over my front Elka. Even my passenger who knew nothing about the shocks commented on plushness. Hard pill to swallow for me because of the costs.
Dennis

[RayBJ]

I have a 2020 RT and ride 1-up. I'm a spirited rider and push the envelope of stupidity. I upgraded the sway bar after 1st ride of 200 miles. The sway bar helped a lot in hard cornering (less roll) and straight-line wandering. At 2000 miles I did the Elka stage 2 front shocks. Now the RT is much more controllable on rough pavement and in the high speed curves. Like almost all bikes, the OEM suspensions almost always need upgrading if you are a spirited rider.

[P.W.]

I know your asking about Elka, but you might want to look at M2 shocks also......love mine!
Just food for thought.

Take care,
John

[askitee]

I fitted Wilbers shocks all round.

The change is worth every penny of the $3500 I paid to get them.

Off the top of my head:

• Better handling in all conditions.
• Better handling in corners that made my '17 TRL nervous and uncertain - eg rough surfaces, off camber..
• I no longer see the need for a sway bar, the shocks are better in my case.
• Better ride comfort.
• Provide ssome "anti-dive" under heavy breaking.
• Adjustablility allows me to customize the ride to the mood (touring comfort vs having a fang on my favourite road).
• No more bottoming out two up.
• No need to set rear suspension to MAX to cope with heavier loads.
• IWe can cover more miles in a day when touring due to the added comfort (important as I get older) and for the chief cook. She has noticed this herself.
• Better wet weather behavior.

I recently had the chance to test ride the 2020 RTL, the shocks felt "agricultural" in comparison after being on mine.

Down side if you are like me:

1. I find I ride a bit faster with the better handling - Nanny hates me for it. Example 75km/hr corner at 120km/hr is not hard at all)
2. Ditto for above when chief cook is in the pillion and hammering my rib cage to slow down a bit
3. Regular contemplation of changing settings to improve the ride/handling when I'd probably best to just wait for the next stretch of road to come along

[larryd]

I have a 2014 RTS and ride mostly 2 up...I ride lots of twisties...I have Elka's front shocks since new...They have leaked oil and been rebuilt twice...I have Baja Ron's adjustable shock spring kit on my stock front shocks...I install these when my Elka's are being repaired...AND in my opinion my stock front shocks with Ron's kit work every bit as good as my Elka's...Save yourself some big $$$ and try Ron's set up...I also have his sway bar since new...larryd

https://www.ebay.com/itm/BajaRons-Sh...-/383435306016

[Snoking1127]

I have a 2014 RTS and ride mostly 2 up...I ride lots of twisties...I have Elka's front shocks since new...They have leaked oil and been rebuilt twice...I have Baja Ron's adjustable shock spring kit on my stock front shocks...I install these when my Elka's are being repaired...AND in my opinion my stock front shocks with Ron's kit work every bit as good as my Elka's...Save yourself some big $$$ and try Ron's set up...I also have his sway bar since new...larryd

This is how I compressed my springs to install the BajaRon adjusters.

[BajaRon]

I have a 2014 RTS and ride mostly 2 up...I ride lots of twisties...I have Elka's front shocks since new...They have leaked oil and been rebuilt twice...I have Baja Ron's adjustable shock spring kit on my stock front shocks...I install these when my Elka's are being repaired...AND in my opinion my stock front shocks with Ron's kit work every bit as good as my Elka's...Save yourself some big $$$ and try Ron's set up...I also have his sway bar since new...larryd

https://www.ebay.com/itm/BajaRons-Sh...-/383435306016

I am very glad you like the shock adjusters and always grateful for the kudos. I usually do not post in these discussions because I think it tacky to promote myself on someone else's thread, especially when it's about another product. I don't mean to highjack the discussion. However, at the risk of being tacky, I'm posting now because of the eBay link (which is fine). But to let everyone know that whenever you want to get something from me, you will save money by contacting me directly. I charge more for everything on eBay to cover the eBay fees. Plus, eBay will charge you sales tax, which I will not do if you live outside of the state of Tennessee. Same stuff, lower price. That's all this is.

Have an AWESOME riding season everyone! After all that we've been through, I think we deserve it! I call it therapy!

[RICZ]

Ron, your comments are always appreciated. You are a wealth of suspension information. Don't stop.

[Dmartin]

Ron how do I contact you so I can purchase the shock adjuster kit including the spring compressor?

Tks

[Peter Aawen]

Ron how do I contact you so I can purchase the shock adjuster kit including the spring compressor?

Tks

Juuust in the hope of letting you cantact him sooner, you should click on the BajaRon Logo found on this Forum's Home page in order to open up his SpyderLovers Sponsor thread, where you will find all his contact details, including a link to his facebook page - altho from this & his previous posts, either calling him direct or sending him an email will be a more reliable & potentially quicker way of contacting him vs using PM's/social media/faceache etc...

Here's the pertinent bit from that page:

Contact and Purchase Information ~
The best way to Ask Questions or Purchase is to contact me by email at fyredad@hotmail.com
You can also call me at Cell Phone: 423-552-3720
And you can always PM me here at Spyderlovers.com, though email or a phone call will usually get you a faster response.

Over to you!