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[SmokeyJoe]

So I am nearly finished with my installation of the Ohlin's front cartridges.  Only thing left now is the fender and wheel.  I will finish this evening after work, then the test ride!

[Jswerve]

I've never ridden a bike without stock forks. Let me know how you like them!

[FLHTCUSE7]

Good choice. That will be night and day compared to the stock sorry excuse for front suspension. I assume you switched the rear as well.

[SmokeyJoe]

Well I had the Progressive Monotubes in the front, I am not sure if it was due to a bad install, faulty product or just bad engineering but those things were horrible.  I do have the Arnott Aldan setup in the rear and may go a different direct sometime later this year.

[FLHTCUSE7]

I am happy with the Öhlins for the rear on my bike. If I keep it I will switch the forks as well.

The new forks are better than the old version but still lacks performance. Not that I expect my HD to handle real well but stock suspension is petiful.

[SmokeyJoe]

I hope to finish this evening once I get off work.  I rode a 2014 and I thought it rode really well comparatively. 
I will let you know how these fair once I get her on the road.

[SmokeyJoe]

They are truly awesome, I am really going to enjoy this bike.

I also tested my composite rotors.  Need more time with them and let them bed in some.

[Jswerve]

I hope to finish this evening once I get off work.  I rode a 2014 and I thought it rode really well comparatively. 
I will let you know how these fair once I get her on the road.

Joe I rode a 2014 SGS and the front forks were considerably better then my 12. Are the Ohlins about the same or better?

[SDCVO]

I am looking forward to hearing what you will say also. I have the Ohlins in the rear with the separate canisters (love them) and the HD premium cartridges in the front. I was planning on doing the Ohlins in the front next month and am hoping they will be worth the money over what I have. I would have definitely gone with them in the first place if they would have been available at the time. Howard at Motorcycle Metal (where I got my rears from) is selling the front Ohlins with his "magic touch" added to them that he claims will perform even better than the stock. He has always been very straight with me in the past so I was going that way unless you to others on this site tell me its not worth the money.

[SmokeyJoe]

So my stock bike rode fair and I could have lived with it, knowing what the Monotubes were going to do to the ride.  Like I have said before, I don't know if I got a defective set or a botched install ( I did not see anything while disassembly).  Decided I did not want to go back to the stock setup, just because I am an enthusiast when it comes to anything with a motor in it. 

So was it worth the money for a ride that is light years ahead of what I had - hell yes.

Does it compare to the 2014, not so clear to me yet.  The 2014 felt very soft  and smooth, I did not ride the bike hard so I have no judgement on there.  The Ohlin's feel very smooth but firm at the time.  It tracks 100% better than it did! it is smooth and compliant.  There were a some particular places I took the bike last night that use to give trauma to the suspension, with theOhlins these were a nonissue and some of them I went over 3-4 times because I could not believe they were not even noticeable.

[FlaHeatWave]

If the Ohlin's were available when it was time for me to upgrade, I would have probably went that route.

'Happy enough with the HD Premium ( '09 f&r) that I won't change anytime soon... 

[SmokeyJoe]

I think I would had too, sure would had been cheaper. 

[INDEPENDENT_1]

Thanks for posting the pics of the Ohlin cartridges. I've been waiting on some feedback on these for a long time. I run the AK-20's from Traxxion Dynamics on my 2012 RGC with the Bitubo rear shocks with canisters. The nice thing about the Ak-20 kit vs. the Ohlin cartridges you installed is that I can adjust the front suspension while running down the road for compression and rebound so it leaves little to no room to be disappointed in the ride whether carving up the roads riding 1 up or riding 2 up loaded down going cross county. The Bitubos with the canister (WMT model) is also adjustable for compression and rebound but obviously not on the fly. I'm curious to know if the extra money I the AK-20 kits cost justify the difference in cost of the Ohlins? I agree the front and rear shocks for that matter on these bikes are horrible. They were an antiquated design when Harley finally installed them I think in 1984. As for the Bitubos, I definitely prefer them over the Ohlins. The Ohlins on the rear are fantastic shocks but unless you're straight up racing, they're a little to firm for my taste when just touring or under what most might consider normal riding. The Bitubos are considerable less money also. I look forward to hearing more feedback on these and they should blow even the 14's away IMO. I've ridden several 14's now and they are better but your bike with the Ohlin cartridges should be miles ahead of a stock 14 suspension.

[North Star]

Last I heard with the Ohlins, you have to buy the larger 2014 tubes, so  total cost is like $3000, including Howards discount. Is this true?


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[SmokeyJoe]

That is one way to do it, then you will need trees as well.  I am using the stock fork tubes with the Ohlin's.