Ride Height Adjuster

topolino said:

dznutz, sorry I think I was talking at cross purposes with you. Without the benefit of a bike to check, I assumed the tie rod was adjstable, as per all previous Ducatis. I see from the manual that it only has two positions. Either fully extended or fully retracted. I am well aware of how to adjust the pre-load on the bike. I only asked the question as I was contemplating installing a Bursi Evolution tie-rod, as this allows for finer adjustment, whether you are in flat or progressive settings. It seems the stock tie rod, is somewhat cruder. Thanks for your input. Note to self: must read owners manual!

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You may want to evaluate the SATO Racing ride height adjuster (you can see this on my bike in my photo gallery). Other than knocking 20mm off the bike height it is much more precision adjustable than the stock part.

EDIT : The SATO racing ride height adjuster is designed to work ONLY with the FLAT rather than PROGRESSIVE suspension setting.

Thanks CaliDuc. Reason I'm going for the Bursi Evolution option is that unlike most other products on the market, it has one central adjustment nut. You only need to slacken off the two pinch bolts either side and take the weight off the rear suspension to adjust it. As you turn the central nut, it either draws in or spaces out the link rod ends (which are obviously threaded LH & RH) thus changing the length. Here's a link to it.:

http://www.bursievolution.com/ducat...-regolabile-per-ducati-899-1199-panigale.html

Adjustment is 115-125 mm, so +/-5 mm. Stock setting is 120 mm, as I recently found out.

dznutz said:

Do you have your Panigale owners manual? There you will find the component that you pictured and its purpose. It is not infinitely adjustable... it has 2 set points. Its changes the rear suspension from progressive to flat operation, that is all.

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Hey guys, any reason why I couldn't I just cut another groove for the pinch bolt in middle or anywhere in between the two existing "set points" and land up with a lower seat high when set on P ?

Duc One said:

Any reason why I couldn't I just cut another groove for the pinch bolt in middle or anywhere in between the two existing "set points" and land up with a lower seat high went set on P ?

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Wouldn't work. The two grooves in the shaft are associated with using the two different holes in the link plate in order to facilitate a progressive or flat rising rate. Using only one hole in the link plate, it only takes 1mm of shock length change to make a 2mm ride height change, and 1mm at the rod would have an even greater effect. So if you cut a groove far enough apart to be separate from the existing one, the minimum ride height change would be well over a centimeter; way too gross an adjustment, not to mention weakening a part you really don't want to weaken.

No need for it anyway; the bike's designed and built to make ride height changes using the shock length adjustment. It's a five minute job as it is.

Steve B said:

Wouldn't work. The two grooves in the shaft are associated with using the two different holes in the link plate in order to facilitate a progressive or flat rising rate. Using only one hole in the link plate, it only takes 1mm of shock length change to make a 2mm ride height change, and 1mm at the rod would have an even greater effect. So if you cut a groove far enough apart to be separate from the existing one, the minimum ride height change would be well over a centimeter; way too gross an adjustment, not to mention weakening a part you really don't want to weaken.

No need for it anyway; the bike's designed and built to make ride height changes using the shock length adjustment. It's a five minute job as it is.

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Thanks for the reply, didn't think a new groove would have to be so close to the existing one.

Looking to possibly lower seat hight an inch, is it possible to get that out of the shock length adjuster ?

Duc One said:

Thanks for the reply, didn't think a new groove would have to be so close to the existing one.

Looking to possibly lower seat hight an inch, is it possible to get that out of the shock length adjuster ?

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NP. Probably not possible to drop an inch using just the shock length; maybe 1-1.5cm or thereabouts? The Sato link rod mentioned in the thread, in concert with shock length adjustment would do it. Do note that if you are trying to drop overall ride height, you can only drop the front about 1cm before you start running into clearance problems, so if you drop the rear a lot more than the front you're going to change the front end geometry significantly. Might not be a big thing depending on your usage, but do be aware.

Steve B said:

NP. Probably not possible to drop an inch using just the shock length; maybe 1-1.5cm or thereabouts? The Sato link rod mentioned in the thread, in concert with shock length adjustment would do it. Do note that if you are trying to drop overall ride height, you can only drop the front about 1cm before you start running into clearance problems, so if you drop the rear a lot more than the front you're going to change the front end geometry significantly. Might not be a big thing depending on your usage, but do be aware.

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Really appriciate the info Steve, thank you.

1-1.5cm I think would be sufficient.

Lowering the front end, meaning raising the fork tubes above the top bridge by the same amount you lowed the rear, to regain original steering response, correct ?

Bursi Evolution claim that 10mm is more than enough adjustment for a road based Panigale. Being +/- 5mm (115-125mm), stock being 120mm. They have tested their ride height adjuster extensively and also offer different adjustment ranges depending on the set-up required and track, rider requirements. Bursi is a very knowledgeable guy. Check out the pictures of his one off machined suspension linkages and ride height adjuster, plus swing arm supports and his experience on suspension geometry. I don't think he would endorse a ride height adjuster rod for a road bike, for those that wanted one, otherwise.

More info here:

Jerrys worlds: Bursi Panigale development

Duc One said:

Really appriciate the info Steve, thank you.

1-1.5cm I think would be sufficient.

Lowering the front end, meaning raising the fork tubes above the top bridge by the same amount you lowed the rear, to regain original steering response, correct ?

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Correct on the front end; just to keep the rake/trail from getting too high. I would agree with Topolino that +/- 5mm on a link rod is plenty of adjustment for normal use in terms of adjusting front/rear ride heights for general handling. When you said you wanted to drop an inch, I figured you were looking for shorter reach to ground at stops, etc. It's a given if you really drop a bike a lot for that purpose you're going to compromise the handling to a degree, but depending on where and how the bike is used, that may not be a big issue. And in any case, it can be minimized by doing both ends the same.

Steve B said:

Correct on the front end; just to keep the rake/trail from getting too high. I would agree with Topolino that +/- 5mm on a link rod is plenty of adjustment for normal use in terms of adjusting front/rear ride heights for general handling. When you said you wanted to drop an inch, I figured you were looking for shorter reach to ground at stops, etc. It's a given if you really drop a bike a lot for that purpose you're going to compromise the handling to a degree, but depending on where and how the bike is used, that may not be a big issue. And in any case, it can be minimized by doing both ends the same.

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Thanks Steve.

Steve B said:

NP. Probably not possible to drop an inch using just the shock length; maybe 1-1.5cm or thereabouts? The Sato link rod mentioned in the thread, in concert with shock length adjustment would do it. Do note that if you are trying to drop overall ride height, you can only drop the front about 1cm before you start running into clearance problems, so if you drop the rear a lot more than the front you're going to change the front end geometry significantly. Might not be a big thing depending on your usage, but do be aware.

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When I first got my bike in May 2012 I dropped the rear end about 20mm by adjusting the shock length. Left the front fork alone. Went for a ride and found such a difference that I raised it again by 10mm. I really noised the slower steering. I then took the rubber bungs out of the seat and got a lower seat height that way.

topolino said:

You sure you are not referring to the preload adjuster on the shock? I thought the ride height adjuster was just a central nut you undid then turned in or out the two tie rod ends to the length required. See picture below.

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Sorry, Im not reffering to the preload adjuster...Im reffering to the ride hieght adjuster which has a blue and silver locknut...thats what you adjust...

Not the Preload as you will just make your rear shock stiffer...

mig1199 said:

Sorry, Im not reffering to the preload adjuster...Im reffering to the ride hieght adjuster which has a blue and silver locknut...thats what you adjust...

Not the Preload as you will just make your rear shock stiffer...

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OK glad we have cleared that up. FYI I wasn't referring to shock length adjustment, as I am sure you have now gathered.

In regards to adjusting the shock length to change the ride height, there is a small groove on the adjusting-eyelet end of the shock (the blue nut end). I am guessing this is a warning groove so that we do not expose too much threaded area and thereby lack "purchase" into the shock - if the eyelet separated from the shock very bad things would happen!! Is the design that the groove is to not be visible past the blue lock nut? Our wonderful owner's manual just says to have your Ducati dealer make this adjustment - well I had my dealer re-valve my shock to the latest Ohlins specs and it was at least 5mm past the blue lock nut!! So much for having my dealer deal with this "critical safety issue"!! I have also read on this forum that for the track, the preferred shock length is 306mm - this is well below the maximum length allowed, and would result in the rear of the bike being pretty darn low (and therefore increase the fork rake significantly - for stability at high speeds?). Is this correct, or was the figure incorrectly stated? Personally, I like the bike quicker steering and have chosen to raise the rear end up to the maximum and drop the front end 4mm (4mm more exposed fork tube above the triple clamp). Comments?

You're correct Jim, the groove should not be visible past the end of the blue locknut after it's tightened. I've ran it out to the end where the groove is right at the end of the locknut and it's fine, but don't go any farther. The numbers I got from Ohlins that came from the World Superstock teams was 306mm eye-to-eye length on the shock, linkage in Flat position, and 540mm swingarm length as a baseline.

Thanks jarelj for the confirmation on the shock length adjustment. In regards to the 306mm shock length, possibly due to the very high speeds involved in racing, setting the rear lower - and thereby giving the forks more rake (and trail?), adds stability. In the process of re-valving my shock and forks, per the latest changes recommended by the Ohlins factory engineers, the compression damping was decreased significantly (high-speed on the shock has been decreased from 2600Nm, down to approx. 1400 Nm), and I am running a 7.5 spring on the shock (versus the OEM 9.0). I weigh 190 pounds w/o gear. The bike is finally settling down and is far better than before. Mid-corner bumps don't throw it so badly offline as before. My tech who works closely and frequently with Ohlins (he manages one of the AMA Triumph teams running the 675s) relayed that the Ohlins tech stated that the insanely high compression damping, somewhat too high rebound damping, and very stiff springing was not the way Ohlins designed the shocks and forks for the bike, but that Ohlins was over-ruled by Ducati in an attempt to avoid liability brought on by heavier riders and passengers (they expect two-up riding will occur) bottoming out the suspension thereby causing a potential crash. This was also the reason for the parabolic curve on the Progressive pivot of the shock link. Like I stated previously, the results to date have been fantastic, and a bike I had serious concerns as to whether I would ever get it to handle as nicely through bumps as my 1198SP (which had its suspension heavily modified by Dan Kyle) has now got me thinking that it can be made extremely competent as well. Thanks to Ohlins and to my tech Robert Ward.

Hi Jim, can u give more details about ur fork n shock revalve from ur ohlins tec?
I weight 125lb without gear, I had tried front 8.0n rear 7.0springs on my Panigale S.
This is my street riding set up.
Then I shipped my bike off to the nearest track since Jan this year for 6 months track fun.
I then settle on front n rear springs both at 8.0.
This is my current track set up, I am still trying out different springs , both front n rear.
Now I have 10, 9.0 n 8.0 front springs n 9.0, 8.0 n 7.0 springs to try out.
I buy springs in such light spring rates is because I am feather light n the stock springs had throw me off my seats so often even on road riding on my Panigale .........
So having more details of ur revalve will help me out a lot .
Thx.

Simonwg905, I think you are on the right path in regards to the springs. I have found it far preferable to stock. Since you weigh MUCH less than me, you may need to go even softer. The new re-valving shims were installed by my Ducati service tech Robert Wade, who recently moved to Wilson's Motorcycles in Fresno, Ca. (559) 237-0215. He has the ability to do it for you, but I see you are in Hk (is this Hong Kong?). I would suggest contacting him (check first thing to make sure he isn't too busy to talk) and maybe he can give you the part numbers, or the Ohlins representative to talk to. I am sure he would be willing to do the work, but the shipping costs may be prohibitive for you. Be sure to tell him your weight as that is critically important. Good luck.

Thx for the heads up !

mig1199 said:

Sorry, Im not reffering to the preload adjuster...Im reffering to the ride hieght adjuster which has a blue and silver locknut...thats what you adjust...

Not the Preload as you will just make your rear shock stiffer...

Click to expand...

So if I unlock the blue nut anti-clockwise towards the front of the bike
and move the silver nut in the same direction, this will lower the bike?