| Author | Message | ||
     Garrett2 |
so i know that buell put showa suspension on the tube frames, but what about XBs? who makes the XB suspension parts? | ||
| Buelltroll |
Showa | ||
| Garrett2 |
i know that showa is a good product and many pro teams use their product (moto gp and such), but why isnt it as popular as, say, ohlins? | ||
| Buelltroll |
Not as good. | ||
| Doncasto |
Showa has been "in bed" with Harley Davidson since the mid-1990's. In 1999 there was a recall of Buell's WP shocks . . .the one's with the exposed white spring . . .and they were replaced with Showa shocks like those on the 1999 year models. Most will agree that these shocks were cheap, under-functional and failure prone crap. After an abysmal "patch" . . .know as the SRP . . .HD finally was able to bring themselves around to purchasing a higher quality shock for the tube frames in 2000-2001. These "K1400" shocks were a better fit to the Buell usage profile and were less prone to failure. Many of us that went through this still twitch when the word Showa is mentioned. Later on it was possible to have some of the Showa shocks rebuilt/upgraded . . . but I am not sure they were ever able to be modified to perform as well as some of the after market products . . .Penske being the one that comes to mind. The Showa/HD collaboration could have improved to where they actually offer a competitive product in the XBs . . .but my warped tube frame experience makes me think that you can still do better with after market. YMMV, always consider the source | ||
| Garrett2 |
why is showa not as good? i mean, if its not as good then why arent all moto gp teams running ohlins? has anyone had issues with the xb suspension parts? | ||
| Diablobrian |
The XB forks are actually very good. You may need to have them re-sprung for your weight and have them re-valved for your intended usage to get the most out of them, but that's not uncommon on any component that tries to cover too broad of a rang of weights and styles. The showa rear shock is let down more by it's lack of adjustability, and the aforementioned trying to be all things to all people. The lack of high and low speed damping, rebound, and ride height adjustment can all be traced to the need to meet a price point. You will see a bunch of the aftermarket Penske, Ohlins, elka, etc. shocks at the race track because of this. That is not to say that you can't race on the stock parts, or that on street duty the showa parts will let you down. The opposite is the case. Most people will never reach the limits of what the stock suspension is capable of. On the street ohlins suspension is primarily just used to impress the bench racers, like chrome in the Harley circles. |
