"different combinations of damping" - did you explicitly try and crank the rebound as high as it would go? I have the Ohlins semi-auto, but your screen settings should be the same. In the screen settings if I change the rebound (or compression) up past 0, it stays at that value, rather than varying to conditions (semi-auto). You might try increasing it as high as it goes (I think 32?), if your rear shock is still bouncy like the video, your shock needs a rebuild/replacement. Cranking the rebound all the way up should make it return super slowly.

I should also mention, preload will have no effect on the symptoms you're describing, so ignore that for now.

 

I went to the garage to compare with my 1200S and quickly remembered my rear shock is stuck in Customs vicinity London

Rear Shock Nightmare | Page 3 | Ducati.ms - The Ultimate Ducati Forum

 

Miles?
Leaks?
sounds like you have lost damping

 

No leaks.
Low mileage... only 70K miles but only 6K on the odometer - started from zero all over again

 

Has it ever been serviced? It's a 10 year old oil/gas shock. They do need to be rebuilt from time to time.

 

Preload is not your problem. You should go into the DDS settings for rear and change it to the hardest setting they have. But yea, I agree with others. I think that thing might need servicing.

 

Agreed that more than likely needs a rebuilt as it feels I am riding on the spring only with no damping. I will need to find someone that can service skyhook Sachs shocks or go for a 2nd hand one but a quick search on ebay showed only one but plenty for the Enduro p/n 36521463A - mine is p/n 36521112A.

So just for peace of mind can any of you with a skyhook suspension confirm whether yours behave like mine or not.

@tngarren - I hope you get yours sorted out asap. Very useful information on your thread and possibly I will try T-Tech as well (only 100 miles away from me) but just need that final confirmation before I take things apart.

 

As you mention, I found it odd how many Enduro p/n 36521463A used shocks are available. I could find none for my '17 1200S. The was a manufacturer recall on the Enduro shock. Makes me wonder if the old ones are being offered for sale.

Even though T-Tech has not received my shock yet, Luke has been incredibly responsive. The service is available through eBay.

 

suspension should be serviced after about 20,000 miles on conventional systems as the oil will be broken down and when it is broken down you get cavitation which can cause damage to the shims. I do not know whats inside a skyhook as I have not had one apart, I would suggest finding a shop that rebuilds them often to get a good recommendation of the average oil lifespan and if riding to destruction is doing harm to anything else.

I would guess when you get freshened suspension again you will realize you just spent the last few years riding a 1960's vespa with motor.

 

@Jdan - That's how I remember mine used to be - thanks for the confirmation.
Best I have it rebuilt -

 

...now I have a new problem.
Decided to remove the shock and sent it to T-Tech Suspension for a rebuilt. Got everything out apart from the lower bolt (on swingarm ). The bloody bolt wont budge!!! . Used a breaker bar and an impact driver but still wont budge.. 🤬.

 

Heat and pblaster etc helps it's really hard to get any in there thanks to the location of it.

I've heard this is a common issue across Ducati's, and it's a terrible design as there's no good way to get a purchase on it if it strips. Hopefully this one isn't made of cheese, like many of the fasteners Ducati uses. One guy ended up cutting the bolt with an air saw blade between the shock and swingarm; but I think he was discarding the swingarm anyway (non-serviceable bearings) so didn't really care about it.

 

Good luck to you. I was sweating bullets until mine broke free. Beautiful, wonderful machines until you take them apart. Makes working an H-D like playing with Legos. No, I am not trying to start a manufacturer debate.

 

Success!!
I used my heat gun around the bolt head area. I used a metal plate as a heat shield around the cable and cover the cable with a wet cloth.
I kept the heat on for over 15 minutes, stopped and sprayed some penetrating oil on the bolt head and then more heat for a lot of time.

Used a breaker bar. I heard a cracking noise, felt something moving then cracking noises - I was not sure whether the bolt snapped or hex bit broke or something else. Persevered as I had nothing to lose and after a few more cracking noises the bloody thing came out.
Bolt looks good!
All out now but the cables routing is a pain. Love this bike but working on it needs the patience of saint.

Shock posted to T-Tech Suspension and hope to have it back by end of next week. Luke is very helpful and I am confident he knows his stuff.

Will update as soon as I get it, fit and test.

 

As promised a quick update.

Shock received very quickly - actually was repaired during the weekend (received by T-Tech on Friday and back to me on Tuesday) - excellent service and great communication by Luke, T-Tech.

The shock, although no external leaks, it was well damaged inside. The following were put right:-

• Internal damage to the piston, base valve, pitted shaft and lower bearing corroded
• New aluminium piston ( upgrade with stabilising ring )..
• Shaft rod hard chrome plating.
• Gas cap with nitrogen port.
• Bearing.

Shock put back on bike making sure things don't seize up again -🤞

Set shock to default values and rode a couple of hundred miles during the weekend for a good test. It feels like a brand new shock.

The final repair cost was a lot higher than T-Tech's standard rebuilt cost but considering the price for a new one and parts used on mine it was reasonable.

Do I recommend T-Tech? Yes I do!

 

Mine was good at 45000 miles but I suspect within the next year or so I'll be doing a rebuild too (in the 70,000 mile range)... so very useful thread!

 

I'm in the same boat with my Ohlins. almost 45k miles, definitely never been apart before but works as expected. Should probably do seals/fluids before hard parts start to fail.

 

As a data point, I got to compare a shock with 18k miles vs. a new one - and the damping was markedly better on the new one. The old hadn't yet outright failed, but it was very harsh over bumps and not able to handle additional luggage on the rear. That tells me the original shock should be rebuilt every 20k or so. Racetech can do that (and add a stiffer spring if you need that).

 

The Skyhook shocks?