Hello I have done some searching around and am trying to find some more impressions of the Hyperpro springs for my F800GS. I am 185lbs and ride with a 100lb passenger 50% of the time. When I'm not riding with a passenger I tend to ride somewhat aggressive. I can bottom out the stock springs no problem! I want something that doesn't bottom out so easily, can carry the weight of my passenger and gear better, and doesn't have the crazy stock brake dive!! I don't want to give up too much of that plush* ride the stock suspension gives me if possible. I do not wish to lower the bike any either. Hyperpro doesn't offer different spring rates to choose from, I understand how a progressive spring works but this still seems odd.
I have run the Hyperpros, then the Bitubos and finally the Ohlins. The last 2 are straight wound springs. The Hyperpros is much better than stock BUT They are variable rate that covers a wide range of rider weight. What I found was that bike weight alone used up most of the softer coils. At 185 you will not have much impact on coil compression because you are riding in the heavier portion. I had to shortened the spacer about 9/16" to get proper rider sag. I weighed about 195 at the time. The result is you will not use up most of your suspension travel unless you plan catching some air. The Bitubo is a .60kg/mm spring. Pretty good for my new weight at 175 at doing big bumps. What I did not like about it was it picked up a lot smaller bumps and fed them back to me. Probably a little bit heavy for me, but I don't carry passengers. Currently have the Ohlins at .55kg/mm. I like them because they do mellow the small stuff. I haven't bottomed them yet, but I have just been riding fire roads. I zip tie the forks to see what they are doing. I have 2" of unused travel to do so far. I think Ohlins may have other weights. If they do, they will cheaper than the Bitubo's. What's the point of having a lot of suspension if you don't get to use it all once in a while. At your weight, I would choose one of the latter two. Keep in most of the passenger weight will be in the rear. The Hyperpro rear spring worked pretty good for me. I don't think it is variable nor is it that much heavier than stock. But at least you can dial in Preload on the rear. I can do it on front also. I used Bitubo fork caps, they are adjustable for preload and the only modification needed is run a tap through the threads to change the from fine to course. A handy thing to have for fine tuning. It came with the Bitubo insert (piece of crap) but I would check to see if they can be purchased individually. You don't mention what year bike. The 2013 and later use 43mm forks, the earlier ones are 45mm. I would still feel the same. Beware Race tech's calculator. I relied on it for a rear spring for KLX 650 and they way wrong. On some of the other models I looked up, they seem to recommend inappropriate weights, leaving me with the impression that was the only size that fit and were available. The last time I checked, they just said not available.
Thanks! Very helpful, there doesn't seem to be many reviews on the Hyperpro that aren't from 2009 or older. I am leaning more toward the Hyperpro right now due to price ($340 shipped) It doesn't have to be the best suspension out there but if I can get something that doesn't dive so bad or bottom out while retaining a smooth ride I will be thrilled. My bike is a 2010 BTW
The forks are the same through 2012. I think the shocks are the same for all years unless they have ESC.
helps at first but wont last, dive is a cancer that can't be healt by morphin. Helps to keep the syndrom down and ease the pain but won't fix it. especially when you beaf up the rear you'll notice it even more. Make sure to get some heavy oil in the forks that will delay and help it more
:huh Are you saying the springs break in and soften over time or that you just get used to them and start to notice the brake dive? Do you have the hyperpro kit? A little bit of dive doesn't bother me, but when I come off my WR250 I feel like the suspension on the BMW is garbage. I planned to use the fork oil included in the kit.
The oil in these kits only control rebound. There is little to no oil compression. The only control is some spring poppet valves. You are relying almost entirely on the spring to provide adequate compression and the rate of it. The heavier the spring the less dive you will experience. All springs sag over time. Most manufacture manuals will post a spring length upon which they should be replaced. Lack of compression is very easy to prove. When you take the fork off and pull the spring, cycle it. No resistance to compression but there is some to rebound. That is what the oil viscosity does. A heavier spring requires more rebound. They will recommend a different air gap from BMW. That softens the ride a bit and provides some compression value at the end of stroke.
No, actually it was a little taller and I lengthened my sidestand an inch to account for it. At 195 I got 27% rider sag on the rear with no preload. Shorter spring or not, I shortened the spacer an additional 9/16" to get 30% sag in the forks and the bike accounted for most of it. Too heavy a spring for my weight IMO. I thought they were pretty decent when I had them, for a year or better, but I wasn't using all the travel. That said, the rear was decent. Recently I exchanged for a Yacugar emulsion shock to lower the bike. I should have just shortened the spring a tad. They are about the same, even though the new shock is sprung for my weight.
have the forks. At first brilliant, then over time it degrades. put in heavier oil after 15k kms, the dive really annoyed me. Was better. Now waiting for the shipping of my cartridge kit.
Question re: oil weight... I'm 175lbs, have some .55 Olin springs on the way... itsatdm, did you mess around with different weights of oil? I was thinking of just plunking in the 7.5 weight - I ride some off-road and am looking to recreate the planted feel that my dads 640 adventure had and reduce the brake dive. I have already changed the stock rear shock to Olins as well. Thoughts? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
