990 SD - SDR Suspension Modifications

I know this has been discussed at length in various threads on this forum, and a lot of money and sweat, but as with most discussions, discussions tend to spin off in different tangents I though it would be interesting, and very helpful to me, if we could pull together a complete list of all the different mods you lovely people have done to tune your suspension. Whether it's simply smart set up, re-valving, upgrading WP parts or going whole hog and replacing with a different manufacturer such as Wilbers, Maxton, Ohlins, etc.

I'm fairly fed up trying to sort the suspension on my 2008 SDR and am considering drastic action but want to make sure I've covered every angle before taking the plunge. I've been talking with Richard at Maxton and Powercell regarding an Ohlins set up. Spirited road riding through the twisted around Bear Mountain NY and the occasional track attack is my playground.

I spoke with the Penske reps last year at the NYC show and if I had the spare cash that is where I would spend it. I had one of their shocks on my Gixxer - bought used for someone else's specifications - and it was far better than custom made Wilber's or ohlins units I've had before (not on the same bike mind)

They are personable and close by in the Philadelphia region give them a shout

My 05 has had the forks and shock rebuilt and revalved by MCT in Stowmarket UK (WP /Ohlins specialists) specifically for fast road use, the forks are running the stock 05 springs, the shock is from an SDR with a 180 spring, the SDR shock needed the rebound damping range reduced as originally there was to much damping even on minimum,
I run more sag with my set up 37mm front, 40mm rear, Pirelli Rosso Corsa tyres, Dymag carbon wheels, SDR fork yokes top and bottom with forks flush, I run the rear wheel past the centre of the adjustment range for stability with either 17/39 or 17/40 gearing, I weigh around 200lbs,
I am quite satisfied with the bike as it is now for the kind of roads I enjoy riding, if pushed to hard the only issue is rear grip which is predictable and i think more to do with the bikes weight distribution rather than something that can be improved much further by suspension adjustment

Like TLS_Russ, I went to my local suspension guru, in this case Reactive Suspension, no need for new this or that, he reworked the front and rear, only major part change was a softer rear spring, everything else reworked. I am delighted with the result.

Beyond a reputable suspension house for re-springing + re-valving ... (best value IMO)

If I lived close to Reading, PA, I'd be pretty damn tempted to get the bike up there and write the fine folks at Penske a big fat check with the sole instruction of "do what it takes to make it right". Who knows - maybe someone already did that ... That isn't on this site.

There's Elka shocks - has anyone given that a go? Not terribly expensive ... Compared to Penske or Ohlins, a bargain. On other makes, club level guys are winning on their shocks.

You want closed cartridge fork internals? There's both Traxxion Dynamics' and RaceTech's products. The arrangement (like Ohlins) is likely to Rebound in one fork and Compression in the other ... Traxxion might be able to talk Penske into building an SD shock for you - not cheap - but for a lot less than $2500 ... (or whatever someone was offering for a custom Ohlins). Traxxion will not do WP suspension modifications, but they are willing to install their cartridges in your SD tubes.

On my '07 SD I have fitted an SDR rear shock with an orange 180 spring and for my weight it's set at almost minimum pre-load. It was bought from an ex battle racer who had the internals revalved but not sure to what spec. The front forks have been swapped for SRD nitride coated black forks and I have the SDR black triple clamps also. Like TLS-Russ the forks are set flush with the top clamp. Both front and rear set up by HM Racing a few years ago and it suits tracks more than UK roads really, it's a bit harsh on bumpy roads. The original white 170 rear shock is also set up by HM but it needs to be almost on full preload to get correct sag but it's better and more forgiving for roads really.

I'm thinking that this year I will get someone like MCT to have a look at everything and spend a bit of cash uprating the internals if recommended. I think that for someone like me I get used to just riding about on whatever suspension I have and I don't fiddle much. But I'd like to see if doing some mods would radically transform the bike - I'd be disappointed it it didn't!

The important thing to remember is that these bikes are not designed to win races they are simply a "fun" road bike, the basic design has limitations which will always be there... you can only reasonably improve the bike so far and then enjoy it for what it is

sdr forks have too much oil in them and not enough rebound, shock has too much rebound once these 3 things are fixed the bike will feel much better, although along with the nicholls top clamp mine improved on most corners except fast sweepers, it never felt right on them no matter what I done, in the end I lost it on one,

Living in the boondocks as I do, it is pretty much deal with what it is...which honestly is better than I could ever use at this point in my life. Best so far is just fresh oil in the forks with a click here and there and reduce the rear preload as much as possible...can still see a rebound issue with rear by looking at tyre wear, but it isn't that bad and can be lived with as a trade off for relative comfort and function.

Traxxion Dynamics did the suspenison on a GoldWing for me...the Penske rear shock was terrific, but was only $600 w/spring, the front AK-20 system made a heck of a difference...then the fork brace, adjustable caps and the billet triple tree w/tapered bearings. Pushing $4K.

I'm gonna just put on new sprockets/chain and wait for Spring...

Talked to Penske last year at the LBMC and they said they do a shock for the 990 SD. It was $1295.

Was told it's the triple clicker.

Didn't get any additional info (other than a phone number and brochure) as I wasn't going to drop $1295 on a bike I was planning on selling in about a year.

If you contact them I'm sure they can sort you out whatever your needs.

The local suspension guy (Konflict Motorsports) tells me that the SD and the Super Enduro share the same shock. Not sure if that is correct though.