Elka vs. Ohlins vs. Custom Axis

[FlushClinker]

Hey, i was wondering if anyone has any feeback for which shocks would be good for my 250R. I have a lonestar racing swingarm in the rear (stock length for an 88') and Laegers A-arms up front (also stock width and length for an 88'). I Basically ride mostly on trails/woods and occasionally a track. My price range is also from $1000-1500. Any suggestions are appriciated.

[400exrider707]

Either Elka or Axis you cant go wrong. The Ohlins aren't quite as popular, and I really haven't seen any with mutlitple springs (i.e. triple rates/quad rates) but not a bad shock either. Whatever you can afford

[FlushClinker]

werd thanks man...

[mountaineer]

Elka or axis for sure. You could go with elka recreational series shock and upgrade later if necessary.

[fasterz]

ridden all the ones you listed and im gonna have to say axis, just ride alot smoother and i can ride alot faster

[FlushClinker]

eh well im selling my 250EX just for new shocks anyway, there so much ****ing money, thats why i had to settle for used stock ones, ran outta money when i finished building my R :p

[cdalejef]

Originally posted by fasterz
ridden all the ones you listed and im gonna have to say axis, just ride alot smoother and i can ride alot faster And they where all setup for you on the same bike?

[honda250xrider]

i've ridden on Elka and axis shocks, I seem to find axis more of a smooth ride ,my elkas seem to be more stiff. If i would do it over again i would never of gotten rid of my axis shocks. and these shocks were build excatly for my weight a-arms and type of ridding.

[cdalejef]

Odd, my Elkas work better than the Axis I had.

[TBD]

Bottom line is that all three of these shocks are good quality shocks. They all use good materials. They all have a good hydraulic flow design. The only thing left is there set up program and it appears that all three of these have different threorys on valving and springs. A good shock tuner should be able to take each one of these shocks and set them up to where they work the same. I've ridden Elka's that didn't work well and I've ridden Elka's that do work well. The same with Axis and Ohlins. As long as you give them the correct rider info and as long as there set up program is good then each one of these shocks will work very well. I for one think that Ohlins and Elka has a little work to do on there set up program.

[blue416ex]

i have a question on this im deciding between axis fronts or elka fronts equivalent shocks but neither make valving soft enough for me im a 120 lb mx rider on +1's but i can't find anyone who makes valving soft enough or do i need to get the valving for a 150lb me rider on +1's (this is for a 400ex) ?? and i was lookin at elkas triple rate, compression adjustable, pigy backs do they perform better than the remote rezzy shocks i like the look of piggy backs is there a downfall to piggy backs since they are out in the open and not tucked out of harms way like a remote rezzy would be i need some help on this :confused:

[cdalejef]

Originally posted by blue416ex
i have a question on this im deciding between axis fronts or elka fronts equivalent shocks but neither make valving soft enough for me im a 120 lb mx rider on +1's but i can't find anyone who makes valving soft enough or do i need to get the valving for a 150lb me rider on +1's (this is for a 400ex) ?? and i was lookin at elkas triple rate, compression adjustable, pigy backs do they perform better than the remote rezzy shocks i like the look of piggy backs is there a downfall to piggy backs since they are out in the open and not tucked out of harms way like a remote rezzy would be i need some help on this :confused: Sure they do! I had Elka's built for Traci Cecco a couple years ago and she weighs 95 lbs. She said they worked great.

[TBD]

Jeff is right. They should be able to valve a shock for just about any wieght. As far as resi's go, I would go with the Piggybacks. My reason is that piggybacks will give you better cooling then a remote. The amount of oil that transfers with a remote resi is not always enough to have the oil circulate from the resi to the shock. So even if you grab the resi and it's cool to the touch doesn't mean that the oil in the shock body is the same. With a piggyback you not only get more oil circulation but you also get heat transfer from the main body to the resi body because it is connected.

[Silverfox@C&DRacing]

They should all be able to set them for your weight Elka did a good job when I got mine set up for 115lbs I also had them set some up for a banshee rider that was 90 lbs.. As long as your honest with your weight and rider ability and set up you should have any complaints :D

[cdalejef]

Originally posted by TBD
Jeff is right. They should be able to valve a shock for just about any wieght. As far as resi's go, I would go with the Piggybacks. My reason is that piggybacks will give you better cooling then a remote. The amount of oil that transfers with a remote resi is not always enough to have the oil circulate from the resi to the shock. So even if you grab the resi and it's cool to the touch doesn't mean that the oil in the shock body is the same. With a piggyback you not only get more oil circulation but you also get heat transfer from the main body to the resi body because it is connected. Exactly, plus with the piggy there is no chance of a stick breaking a hose off which I've seen happen on several occations but I've never seen a piggy break off.

[honda250xrider]

I do like both brands but i just feel like the axis were a better shock for me. But if you are into customer service i would go with Elka i had a few problems with my shocks early on and they took care of it and paid for the shipping back to them and reworked my shocks and then sent them back out within a week and a half which is what i would consider great customer service.

[Silverfox@C&DRacing]

Originally posted by honda250xrider
I do like both brands but i just feel like the axis were a better shock for me. But if you are into customer service i would go with Elka i had a few problems with my shocks early on and they took care of it and paid for the shipping back to them and reworked my shocks and then sent them back out within a week and a half which is what i would consider great customer service.

I agree Elka have awesome customer service..

[blue416ex]

ok im now decided on piggy back rezzy and comp[ adjustable but is the rebound really worth the extra 500 os whatever it costs i think that the compression and the preload would be enough but correct me if i am wrong on this and do MX shocks differ much from a XC shock cuz ill be riding both MX and XC this summer but the XC is more like desert i need help on some of this im not sure if i should go with a XC shock or an MX shock because i will be riding both about 2 -3 days a week al this gets me extremely confused and does AXIS make a piggyback ?

[cdalejef]

The rebound is around $200 option. Its worth it if you are a serious racer and like to adjust your shock for different track conditions. Its not need for most people on the front. However, on the rear I wouldn't have one without rebound (Elka doesn't even offer a rear without rebound), it is very important to be able to adjust how that rear shock handles different conditions IMHO.
Axis does not offer piggybacks.
If you do MX and XC I would ask for a GNCC setup which is a cross between the two. XC and GNCC are totally different setups than desert.

[FlushClinker]

thanks for all the info guys

[blue416ex]

thanks a TON jeff you basically told me exactly what i need to order :D :D i appreciate the help ill probably be calling quadshop to see how much they go for there i hear you guys have good deals so maybe . . . . anyways thanks again for the much needed help:D

[cdalejef]

Anytime :)

[nacs400ex]

In my past experiences I have never seen anyone have problems with remote resivoirs, other than having a fun time attaching and de-attaching them during assembly and disassembly.

I have owned both setups and the performance difference between the two is unnoticable.

The disadvantage to piggybacks, and I have seen it many times. Is that they are out in the open for rocks and debris to hit them. I have seen the compression knocked off before in a race, and the racer was out for the day because the shock leaked.

NEVER have I seen a remote resoivor ripped off, they have the protection of your bumper, and the mounting onto the frame is a lot more solid then the top of the shock.

If you want to talk technical, the remote resevoirs would hold a lot more oil aswell, because of the lines. Therefore more cooling than piggybacks. A piggyback will NOT get more airflow then a remote. ( as long as the remote resevoir is mounted properly)

I like Honda's idea in trying to tuck the piggyback behind the shock, IMO thats the best way to go.

[cdalejef]

You should see the collection of broken hoses I had a few months ago from the last 4 years of shock repairing, they have come from all brands. I've seen 1 knob get knocked off, it didn't leak fluid or gas but I have never seen the piggy body damaged....ever. Elka's sock dyno showed a very slight cooling advantage to the piggybacks due to the heat sink effect.

[FlushClinker]

Has anyone ridden a quad with those Fox Airshocks yet?

just wondering...

[blue416ex]

no but they look sick and Jeff i have a question i can get a set of the recreational series cheap right now should i get them and add rezzys later ? if so what does the rezzy conversion usually run through you or C&D:confused:

[cdalejef]

Are the shocks new or used?

[blue416ex]

they are used shocks i want them to be compression adjustables too is it possible?

[cdalejef]

Yes, you can get the comp adjust with your rezzy conversion. It depends on how much your giving for them at to wether or not it will be worth it to have them setup for you and converted VS a new pair that is built for you.

[blue416ex]

i should be getting them for 250 shipped to my door if it works out right i thought that was an amazing deal

[cdalejef]

Thats not bad, depending on what needs changed you will probally have about 3/4 of what a new pair would cost invested in them by the time its all said and done.

The disadvantage to piggybacks, and I have seen it many times. Is that they are out in the open for rocks and debris to hit them. I have seen the compression knocked off before in a race, and the racer was out for the day because the shock leaked.

You can turn the piggybacks around so they face in as opposed to out to offer alot more protection, i think i saw that traci cecco did that on her yfz, pics were posted on here a wile back, thread was called got new alba graphics installed or something liek that

here it is

[400exredrider]

thats pretty interesting,,, maybe ill try that

[nacs400ex]

Seems like a good idea, however does that work on all bikes... I have only seen it done on the YFZ's.