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Elka FYI on springs
- Thread starter Lamonster
- Start date
IWN2RYD
New member
I read a comment in this thread on pre-load and ride height. So here is a a $.01 of my $.02 on that...
I have run Elka's for many years now. Frankly they are one of the most knowledgeable and "Client" friendly shock companies I ever worked with. Keeping in mind most of my experience was with them on our ATV's and off-road Bikes.
These ATV's and Bikes ranged from sand only, or off-road (Dirt rocks etc) only to Flat Track (All types of roads including asphalt). Not to mention serious jumping. Most of the time we could jump the bikes beyond the bike's abilities. So we are pretty good at it.
And shocks are the most important element on the bike with power hot on it's tail.
Anyway.. What does this have to do with pre-load... Well Pre-load needs an engineer to explain it accurately (I am not) but I will give you an idea of it...
Elka designs their shocks to be one of the fastest responding shocks on the market. Getting a dual stage shock (Rebound) is IMHO the only true type of shock to have. This means the shock is not only taking the brunt of the bump, it is also now helping control the bike on the rebound portion of the stroke.
This is critical. Without this we get a bumpier ride, not to mention a lot of "Wallowing" in the turns.
Why would I mention this in explaining a bit on pre-load? Easy...The shocks are the moving component, the springs are the supporting mechanical portion. The springs kind of take up the slack, and keep things in what I call a safe zone...
This safe zone is... Say a shock has a total of 10" in travel (For easy understanding sake, say 5" up and 5" down) the springs job is to make sure the bike never reaches 5.1" causing a bottoming out effect creating a potential "Disturbance" in the vehicle during normal operating conditions.
So this safe zone under normal operating conditions would be 4.85" and 4.85" respectively. Under extreme conditions we still bottom out.
This is why the pre-load is so important. If we get to soft of a pre-load we bottom out more often. If we get to heavy of a pre-load than we have a bouncy ride.
Keep in mind one very critical item. Anti-Sway bars are just that. While the shock/spring combo has a similar job (To a point) their job is more about the ride quality that the rider is looking for. The Anti-Sway bar is the one keeping the bike on a "Plain" (Trying to keep the center of gravity in a "Zone") allowing the shock/spring combo to do thier part of the job.
So yes... Pre-load can raise the front of your bike depending on the amount of "Pre" we go. The idea of this though is quite simple... Once you load up your bike and sit on it, it should go back to the "Original engineered" position set by the Bike Manufacturer (Or close to it).
Now a properly "Pre-loaded" set of springs combined with properly "Valved" shocks can in many cases eliminate the need to change the Anti-Sway bar. In fact many times the factory shock/spring combos rely more on an Anti-Sway bar than most would think. By going to an after market shock/spring combo many folks now experience a far superior ride because they are actually "Tuned" for your needs and likes.
For example.. This is why quite a few members here (Including myself) have cranked our pre-loads up on our RT's.. Trying to help the ride quality. Not to mention the Anti-Sway bar for many is to weak for windy road environments (Like mine) amplifying this need to adjust.
So here is what I learned over the years on how to know what to get for a pre-load set of shocks/springs for our RS/RT's.......
Why? Because I like to be safe and have more than less, not to mention the wife being on the bike (Although most of her weight would be in consideration of the rear shock) and in our neck of the woods it does rain a lot, so the "Water" would add to the weight of everything.
Good Lord I hope this makes since and helps someone. nojoke Remember... I am just a person that has tried many of their shocks. I am in no way an expert. We all find ways to make our "Shopping" needs easier and this was mine in regards to shocks/springs :2thumbs:
I have run Elka's for many years now. Frankly they are one of the most knowledgeable and "Client" friendly shock companies I ever worked with. Keeping in mind most of my experience was with them on our ATV's and off-road Bikes.
These ATV's and Bikes ranged from sand only, or off-road (Dirt rocks etc) only to Flat Track (All types of roads including asphalt). Not to mention serious jumping. Most of the time we could jump the bikes beyond the bike's abilities. So we are pretty good at it.
And shocks are the most important element on the bike with power hot on it's tail.
Anyway.. What does this have to do with pre-load... Well Pre-load needs an engineer to explain it accurately (I am not) but I will give you an idea of it...
Elka designs their shocks to be one of the fastest responding shocks on the market. Getting a dual stage shock (Rebound) is IMHO the only true type of shock to have. This means the shock is not only taking the brunt of the bump, it is also now helping control the bike on the rebound portion of the stroke.
This is critical. Without this we get a bumpier ride, not to mention a lot of "Wallowing" in the turns.
Why would I mention this in explaining a bit on pre-load? Easy...The shocks are the moving component, the springs are the supporting mechanical portion. The springs kind of take up the slack, and keep things in what I call a safe zone...
This safe zone is... Say a shock has a total of 10" in travel (For easy understanding sake, say 5" up and 5" down) the springs job is to make sure the bike never reaches 5.1" causing a bottoming out effect creating a potential "Disturbance" in the vehicle during normal operating conditions.
So this safe zone under normal operating conditions would be 4.85" and 4.85" respectively. Under extreme conditions we still bottom out.
This is why the pre-load is so important. If we get to soft of a pre-load we bottom out more often. If we get to heavy of a pre-load than we have a bouncy ride.
Keep in mind one very critical item. Anti-Sway bars are just that. While the shock/spring combo has a similar job (To a point) their job is more about the ride quality that the rider is looking for. The Anti-Sway bar is the one keeping the bike on a "Plain" (Trying to keep the center of gravity in a "Zone") allowing the shock/spring combo to do thier part of the job.
So yes... Pre-load can raise the front of your bike depending on the amount of "Pre" we go. The idea of this though is quite simple... Once you load up your bike and sit on it, it should go back to the "Original engineered" position set by the Bike Manufacturer (Or close to it).
Now a properly "Pre-loaded" set of springs combined with properly "Valved" shocks can in many cases eliminate the need to change the Anti-Sway bar. In fact many times the factory shock/spring combos rely more on an Anti-Sway bar than most would think. By going to an after market shock/spring combo many folks now experience a far superior ride because they are actually "Tuned" for your needs and likes.
For example.. This is why quite a few members here (Including myself) have cranked our pre-loads up on our RT's.. Trying to help the ride quality. Not to mention the Anti-Sway bar for many is to weak for windy road environments (Like mine) amplifying this need to adjust.
So here is what I learned over the years on how to know what to get for a pre-load set of shocks/springs for our RS/RT's.......
- Dual (Rebound)(Sometimes depending on application this includes an external reservoir)
- For excessive heat conditions/environment, the option of an external reservoir
- Weighing the front of the bike in the loaded condition it will be in 80%+ of the time, knowing my "Geared up" weight and dividing by three. So ... In my case.. the front of the bike weighs 600lbs. I weigh 250lbs with all my gear on, wallet, cell, Pistol etc.. This totals 850lbs. Divided by three = 283lbs. (This is not how I do it for light vehicles, I then go by my weight plus 25-50lbs for the pre-load #)
Why? Because I like to be safe and have more than less, not to mention the wife being on the bike (Although most of her weight would be in consideration of the rear shock) and in our neck of the woods it does rain a lot, so the "Water" would add to the weight of everything.
Good Lord I hope this makes since and helps someone. nojoke Remember... I am just a person that has tried many of their shocks. I am in no way an expert. We all find ways to make our "Shopping" needs easier and this was mine in regards to shocks/springs :2thumbs:
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Test My Elkas
I have spent the day 2 up riding with my Elkas (300 lb springs). The RT runs much better then before. I do also have the Evolution SwayBar. I find the my speed is up going through curves and the bike seems to have controlable lean, well less lean so to speak. Can't have no lean. I did adjust the rebound 3 clicks off max and the Reservoir adjuster to 8 clicks off hard setting. I have since dialed the reservoir back to about half way to soak up the bumps better but I must say that the bike felt pretty good, not a buckboard ride, firm yes but steady. Even straight line stability is improved and it was a bit windy. I did have 22 psi in my front tires so if it were to act up it would have happened but no way, it ran straight as an arrow. It wont be as good as my GS was but now feels better for my riding habits. My springs were compressed to 9 inches unladen and put my front end up a full 1 inch but it never affected the handling or the ride. I did get my wife to measure how low it went when I sat on it and it lowered about 3/4 inch. Not sure how much with OEM shocks set to max.
I have spent the day 2 up riding with my Elkas (300 lb springs). The RT runs much better then before. I do also have the Evolution SwayBar. I find the my speed is up going through curves and the bike seems to have controlable lean, well less lean so to speak. Can't have no lean. I did adjust the rebound 3 clicks off max and the Reservoir adjuster to 8 clicks off hard setting. I have since dialed the reservoir back to about half way to soak up the bumps better but I must say that the bike felt pretty good, not a buckboard ride, firm yes but steady. Even straight line stability is improved and it was a bit windy. I did have 22 psi in my front tires so if it were to act up it would have happened but no way, it ran straight as an arrow. It wont be as good as my GS was but now feels better for my riding habits. My springs were compressed to 9 inches unladen and put my front end up a full 1 inch but it never affected the handling or the ride. I did get my wife to measure how low it went when I sat on it and it lowered about 3/4 inch. Not sure how much with OEM shocks set to max.
clueless
New member
did it affect the aiming of your headlights? now that the front is up 1". or did the rear auto adjust to level it out?
Never thought of the Headlights. Thanks for giving my that thought, I'll check it out first chance.
clueless
New member
Tonga UPDATE??? did it affect your lights alignment?
thinking in a few months will be upgrade (ie buy) the newer 2011 RT shocks or upgrade to Elkas.
I think it will be cheaper to go 2011 RTs but still be a huge improvement to go Elkas
3Ryder
New member
Elka Rear Shock
Matt,
Will the Elka shock be integrated into the air suspension or will it be an alternative to or bypass certain air suspension elements?
Also, after reviewing the shop manual, I still have no idea the extent to which body panels need to be removed to accommodate the removal of the stock shock and replacement with Elka. Please don't tell me the rear cargo module has to come off (did that once and it wasn't a small task). Any suggestions?
Well I installed the 300# springs and set the preload to 9 inches per Lamont's suggestion. It's another quantum improvement in RT handling. Everything I have done has helped to some degree and my RT is handling and steering better than ever.
Elka stage 1 shocks in front with 300# springs.
22 PSI in the front tires.
rebound damping set to max.
Evoluzione sway bar.
Still to come: Elka rear shock, latest word is I will see this end of next week.
Mat Matt
Matt,
Will the Elka shock be integrated into the air suspension or will it be an alternative to or bypass certain air suspension elements?
Also, after reviewing the shop manual, I still have no idea the extent to which body panels need to be removed to accommodate the removal of the stock shock and replacement with Elka. Please don't tell me the rear cargo module has to come off (did that once and it wasn't a small task). Any suggestions?
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