SV650.org - SV650 & Gladius 650 Forum - View Single Post - Ohlins or which other shock? please help.

embee · 23-09-10, 10:21 AM

You've got some worthy advice from the suspension gurus there.

I'm not in that bracket, but I'd strongly recommend chosing your oil carefully, it's not "all the same". It's the cheapest component so a little care in choosing it returns huge bang-for-buck.

Have a look here and look through the (white) table halfway down which lists commercially available oils and some of the properties.
The oil you choose will depend on your set-up, type of damping, your weight etc, but what you do want is one with a high viscosity index (VI), basically saying the viscosity doesn't change much with temperature, then your damping will be more consistent during varied use.

I've only tried a few oils but having used Silkolene PRO RSF I would be pretty reluctant to use anything else now. For me the consistency is very noticeable, other oils have felt hard when the bike was cold but improved as everything warmed up. I use a lower nominal grade than you might expect (7.5W instead of 10W) but a look at the table shows the PRO RSF 7.5W viscosity is equivalent to most other makes of 10W. Your choice will depend on what you prefer and what works for you.

23-09-10, 10:21 AM	#7
embee Member Mega Poster Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Warwickshire Posts: 2,804	Re: ohlins or what? plz help You've got some worthy advice from the suspension gurus there. I'm not in that bracket, but I'd strongly recommend chosing your oil carefully, it's not "all the same". It's the cheapest component so a little care in choosing it returns huge bang-for-buck. Have a look here and look through the (white) table halfway down which lists commercially available oils and some of the properties. The oil you choose will depend on your set-up, type of damping, your weight etc, but what you do want is one with a high viscosity index (VI), basically saying the viscosity doesn't change much with temperature, then your damping will be more consistent during varied use. I've only tried a few oils but having used Silkolene PRO RSF I would be pretty reluctant to use anything else now. For me the consistency is very noticeable, other oils have felt hard when the bike was cold but improved as everything warmed up. I use a lower nominal grade than you might expect (7.5W instead of 10W) but a look at the table shows the PRO RSF 7.5W viscosity is equivalent to most other makes of 10W. Your choice will depend on what you prefer and what works for you. __________________ "Artificial Intelligence is no match for natural stupidity"