MORE Ohlins

Ever since I laid hands on my Ohlins FG352 forks, I started thinking about getting a suitable Ohlins shock to match. While a couple west coast distributors were clearing out brand new 04-05 ZX-10 shocks at great prices, I just couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger.

However, earlier this month a brand new 06-07 ZX-10 Ohlins TTX shock poped up on eBay! I stared at the ebay listing for a few days and told myself that:

1. It was priced right. The 06-07 ZX-10 TTX shock cost the same as the non-TTX shock from the 04-05 ZX-10.
2. It's length was similar to the stock ZX-7 unit which would maintain my bike's steering geometry
3. It's reservoir was angled like the stock ZX-7 shock which would maintain the 'stockish' look that I'm aiming for. Furthermore, the angled reservoir is extremely rare for an Ohlins shock with the proper length for the ZX-7.
4. It complements the forks. Both the forks and the shock are designed for the same bike which means they should work well together in form and function
5. it was a TTX. Not a huge deal for the riding I do, but it's bragging rights I guess. At the same time it IS a little embarrasing to own a high end shock and not utilize it's potential.... like dating a horny super model and having ED

After rationalizing it in my head, I emptied my wallet and a few anxious nail biting days later, my new Ohlins TTX shock arrived!!!!!!!

Of course being a shock not designed for a ZX-7, it will take some work to bolt this onto the bike. There are two problems to mounting a ZX-10 shock (Ohlins or otherwise) to a ZX-7.

1. The ZX-7 uses M12 bolts to mount it's shock while the ZX-10 uses M10 bolts
2. The lower clevis on the ZX-7 is 32mm wide while the lower clevis on the shock is 30mm wide

To address these issues, I enlisted the help of JohnnyP636 from gtamotorcycle.com. Johnny gave me the top shock mount from a ZX-6 which fits the ZX-7 frame mount and uses a M10 bolt to mount the shock like the ZX-10. To address the bottom mount, I reluclantly agreed to bore out the lower clevis to 12mm.

Top mount

Now that all the bolt holes were the same diameter, I just needed to make sure the lower clevis would fit over the ZX-7 shock linkage sleeve. Johnny helped me mill down one end of the ZX-7 sleeve which I then chucked in my lathe to finish.

Milling sleeve

Sleeve after milling

Facing sleeve

Sleeve after facing

Even though the sleeve is what the shock is ultimately bolts on to, I still had a problem with the oil seals on the ZX-7 shock linkage. They had flanges on them which made fitting the clevis very VERY tight which restricts shock movement.

To get around this issue, I sourced some oil seals that didn't have flanges and fit right inside the shock linkage's bore.

The old oil seals are on the top, the new oil seals are on the bottom

The new oil rings have a these little spring that applies pressure to maintain the inner diameter

Old oil seal in linkage

New oil seals in linkage ...

... with the sleeve installed ...

... with lower clevis installed

So with all that in place, the shock is pretty much ready to bolt on to the bike. Hopefully this weekend, I'll get around to doing just that. In the mean time, here is some filthy Ohlins smut.