yz 200 guy

Member
Aug 28, 2000
62
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Looking to get a new 2002 Gas Gas, and they come with the option of Ohlins forks for an extra $700. Are they worth it? I have found nothing on how well they perform, how hard they are to work on, or how easy it was to get parts, etc.
I was reading the thread on the KTM/WP quality control issues, is this isolated to KTM's or could the WP's on the Gas Gas's also suffer from this? My buddy's 2000 KTM suffered leaking fork seals without a lot of hours, are the Ohlins better in terms of seal life?

yz 200 guy
 

Mark Hammond

Member
Apr 6, 2000
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Ohlins forks

These forks are good quality and should not have any unusal problems concerning seals, however you will not be able to service and do seal changes yourself unless you have the special tools to do the job (and you will need them) so unless you have a local Ohlins dealer near to you it willbe a pain to get the overhauled. The spare parts are also quite expensive but in my opion the forks work great.

Mark
 

yz 200 guy

Member
Aug 28, 2000
62
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I would need special tools to work on WP's, as the ones I have were built to do KYB's. Fortunately, my neighbor and riding buddy is a tool and die maker and has made some really nice suspension tools.

For 700 bucks more, the Ohlins should offer advantages in performance right out of the box. If they need a revalve, then I might as well stick to the WP's.

Perhaps Jeremy can enlighten me? What do you think of the design and construction of the Ohlins forks? I assume parts, shims, seals, springs are available through MX Tech. I need to check with GGNA to see what springs come in the forks for the XC's and if the sliders are titanium nitrite coated. I don't think they are, but that would be a big reason for the extra money.
 

TR

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Mar 17, 2000
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I discussed with the local suspension tuner recently. In his view, ohlins spend more time setting up the forks. When all is said and done and both forks are valved suitabily, there is nothing really in it. The standard ohlins are 46mm and the WP 43. A pro might notice the difference. I run ohlins on my XR and service intervals are stated to be 10 hours.
 

marcusgunby

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jan 9, 2000
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I would never reccomend whole fork replacement as it isnt worth the money.The key to good performance on the WPs is the midvalve.No modern forks are good on seal life as they are made for minimal stiction.
 

yz 200 guy

Member
Aug 28, 2000
62
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Such an International response to my post, cool.

Marcus, you mean that the key to good performance from the WP's are due to the midvalve or that you must revalve WP's midvalve before you get good performance? I was just comparing seal life on WP's on the KTMs to the KYB's on our Kawasaki's and Yamahas, it seems shorter than the Japanese equipment (this is just my experience).

I'll check with GG to see what spec the Ohlins come with. I am skeptical that you get units with the Titanium Nitride coating and external preload adjusters, but am willing to be pleasantly surprised.

TR, can you describe what the Ohlins forks feel like? Sounds like you have had them revalved. If so, what needed correcting.

Bottom line, I want to race my new GG next year, not revalve suspension right out of the box and replace seals 2 times during the season. I also want a plush ride that doesn't ride too low in the travel or deflect off of roots and logs while cornering.

Thanks for all your responses so far.

yz 200 guy
 

marcusgunby

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jan 9, 2000
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I heard the 02 KTM WP has more midvalve lift than the 01 which in this case translates to a better plusher fork.Some riders really like the 02 fork but others arnt too impressed-if this is the case the midvalve will need modifying.The WP fork has a midvalve shim stack thats uses 24mm shims where as a KYB uses 25 or 27mm depending on the model.So a 24mm shim of the same thickness will be stiffer than a 25 which will be stiffer than a 27mm.Basically what im saying is the Wp fork has a stiff midvalve.
 

TR

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Mar 17, 2000
179
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yz 200 guy,

The ohlins forks were the model for ’99 CR250. The standard springs were kept, but the forks were revalved for my XR. Surprisingly the geometry was identical, rake height and offset. I used applied lower clamps, tag upper and had them anodised the same matt grey.

My initial impressions were shock. I rode the XR around my back yard and thought they are too soft. The first third of the stroke is very smooth. When the XR was taken to the local motorcross track I was very cautious. The ride was quite neutral and after a few laps I really forgot about the forks and just concentrated on my riding. I came up short of one of doubles and was amazed at how well the forks worked. Again very smooth and they did not bottom out. I have yet to bottom out the forks, but do so regularly on my ’00 YZ125. I had a little bit of oil removed to soften the last one third of the stroke. I rarely adjust the forks. The same settting are used for motorcross as for trail bike riding. With the original forks, I was always adjusting the compression damping to suit the terrain. I use to ride with a friend who had 96 model Husky 400 with Mazzochi forks. These forks, when they still had oil in them, were excellent. I preferred the XR over the Husky and decided to get new forks rather than buy a Husky.
I also had my YZ125 forks revalved. In spite of what the US magazines claimed, the standard forks were harsh in the mid stroke.

Regards
TR
 
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Jeremy Wilkey

Owner, MX-Tech
Jan 28, 2000
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YZ Guy..
The ohlins fork stinks when you consider how much money you spend for a set of 93 KYB forks. (about where Ohlins is internally)

The only advatnage to a Ohlins is the triple bushing. This is mimimal, all things considered. The valve design and set-up is lame and crude.. I think the pistons are even bead blasted to remove manufacturing imperfections.

The WP 's are not very good on the bike but for a small amount (in relationship to replacement) you can make them work twice as good as the Ohlins.

Marcus,

The WP's have one of the softest midvalves curently on any bike.. Thats the problem with them.. They use too much base-valve. Also they have the smallest active swept volume for any 28mm cartridge because of the 14mm rod..

I know this was a harsh one but, I know diferently.. I've spent the last year fucosing on making the WP's work, and now I beilve they may be the best fork espically now that in 2002 we have a triple bushing design to work with on the SXS..


Regards,
Jer
 

marcusgunby

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jan 9, 2000
6,450
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I had a feeling the midvalve thing was going to get me into trouble -i should have spent more time thinking about the stacks total strength not concentrating on the shims diameter.:confused: at least i was right about the midvalve bieng the culprit:debil:
So to sum up the WPs have a stiff base valve thats made worse because of the 14mm rod displacing more fliud through it.
It has a soft midvalve because of the valving thats made worse because the cartridge is 28mm like others but the rod in it is 14mm so the swept volume(the volume the midvalve sweeps through)is less.This fork then effectivly isnt too far removed from a 94 KX 125 KYB ie the midvalve allows too much flow which you end up trying to control using the base valve, so low speed comp and high speed comp suffer as the base valve cannot do both well on its own.I hope im closer to the mark on this one

So the SXS 02 stuff has triple bushing-got that one out of you:) any other tit bits in the dark recesses of your twisted mind;)
 
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yz 200 guy

Member
Aug 28, 2000
62
0
Thanks Jeremy, I'll save my money and get the more popular WP's. The money I save, I'll spend on having you revalve them if I need to.

You sent me the parts to do my '99 KX250 and although they seemed a little stiff, they weren't harsh and the bike handles and corners well. In fact, I finished no worse than 3rd in all of my HS races this year. I lost a little weight which might make the setup seem stiffer, but they are magic out messing around on my MX track.

yz 200 guy
 
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