Shocks - which would you choose?

[Mustang]

Assuming these are all price-neutral, what are your thoughts on the relative merits of these three shocks?

Penske 8983 - double, remote reservoir, plus top out spring.
Ohlins S46PRCL - double, remote reservoir, already includes top out spring
Elka 3way Elite - triple, piggyback, unsure on top out spring

I still don't know enough about suspension (nor, honestly, do I have the time to do extensive comparison research myself right now) to make a well-informed decision on this...but I've narrowed it down a shock purchase to these three. Used SV shocks seem to have been in very short supply this winter, so I just need to bite the bullet on a new one.

If you've already replied on the other board, no need to provide your thoughts again

[TheIglu]

Penske has the most support locally.

Most guys are running them. Personally, I like them a good deal.

[Degsy]

Wirelessly posted

Penske

[Kitt]

Whatever you can have local support for. I never had an issue having support for Ohlins, however things have changed slightly since then and I'm not sure where local suspension guru's stand on product support at the moment. Buying the hardware through local guys will go a long way with support too.

[Woodcraft]

Penske - made close by (PA), good support, easy to work on, easy to set up.

[Mustang]

OK, for those saying Penske... top out spring necessary or no?

[butcher bergs]

Bill,
I am not answering your question, only providing a post based on personal experience.

I do not have a top out spring on my twin-clicker and have not had an issue with shock performance or behaviour of my machine during hard braking. I had wheel hop once during my NV year but that was due to nothing more than an ill-placed rear brake input. I cannot suggest either way as to whether or not it's "necessary" for you but I can say that I have not had any issues at my pace.

[Mustang]

Thanks for the thoughts Bergsy; that confirms what Zoran mentioned to me, but I take whatever anyone selling a product says about it w/a grain of salt.
Hey stop by the RSP garage some weekend, or lmk where you're pitted - it's been a long time, would be good to catch up.

[butcher bergs]

Hey stop by the RSP garage some weekend...

Will do.

[Garandman]

I have the Penske 8983 on my SV and an Elka 3-way on my DL650. I like them both. The ELKA cost more but has a remote adjuster: not sure what apples-to-apples prices are.

[nhbubba]

Penske isn't an option for the DL, is it? If it was an option, would you have gone Penske there too?

[Garandman]

Penske isn't an option for the DL, is it? If it was an option, would you have gone Penske there too?

There are a small number with them, but they seem to have bought one without the hydraulic preload adjuster. That's not something most V-Strom riders would want to give up because of the huge variations in load weight.

That is also irrelevant for the OP, since a sport bike doesn't have to deal with that problem. I've seen V-Stroms with ELKA, HyperPro, Ohlens, and Wilburs but none with Penske, while for track day bikes Penske is the dial tone.

Pete Kates at GMD Computrack installed the Penske on the SV650. He also rebuilt the ELKA at trackside after we discovered the Nitrogen charge had leaked out (two years and 15,000 miles - not surprising). So my approach now is to call Pete and tell him what I am bringing him.....

[CBR929RE]

I don't have much in the way of advice but I've always loved the 2 Ohlins I've had. no problem getting them serviced either. I did buy them used (or with the bike). If price was a factor I'd probably go with Penske cause I've never heard a bad thing about them.

and did anyone else notice the price on the Elka on the STG site? retail is $10 lower than their price and they claim that's a $10 savings someone's internet guy screwed up.

[Paul_E_D]

Penske have always been more plush than Ohlins in my experience, and just easy to get dialed in.

[Mustang]

Going with Penske... Thanks for your thoughts all!