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TiN Coated Forks - Advantages?

9K views 24 replies 15 participants last post by  Bella749 
#1 ·
Other than having less friction from the TiN coating on the tubes of the forks, are there any other advantages that TiN coated forks have over non-TiN coated forks?
 
#2 ·
1. they look cool
2. They come with slightly lighter springs

I don't think that the valving is any different.
 
#3 ·
The TIN coating is designed to prevent stiction. Most forks have 8 - 10mm of stiction, but the TIN coated forks can knock that down to 2 - 5mm. This factor usually only comes up on race bikes where small deviations can make slight differences in handling of a vehicle.

Also, TIN is a super smooth coating, so it also helps with seal life if kept clean.

Otherwise, there is no difference between forks. Any fork can have different valving or spring rate, the Ducati TIN coated forks usually are NEWER, so that will usually make them slightly better.



 
#4 ·
Otherwise, there is no difference between forks. Any fork can have different valving or spring rate, the Ducati TIN coated forks usually are NEWER, so that will usually make them slightly better.
That's pretty much what I was expecting to hear and find it interesting to see the used TiN forks going for as much as twice what regular used forks are going for. On Labor Day I had my '02 748 glance off of a guardrail and need to replace the forks because of a small ding on the left fork tube. If it wasn't for the ding, the front end is perfect. I didn't even scratch the bar ends, some how.
 
#6 ·
You can buy just the tubes and fit them to your forks,
Do you have a source for the tubes? Can the tube be removed from the casting for the axle and calipers on these?

Ducati only sells the tube with the cast axle block attatched and with the various seals and bushings, at $593.97! (349.1.110.1D). A new complete left fork is $1499.
 
#7 ·
Thanks to Ducati.ms, these are the 996 tin coat forks and 65mm calipers I put on my 916. Doug Polen once said the tin coat makes a difference. Someone like me couldn't tell, but the whole package diffinitely improved my front end feel and as someone said, they look cool. You would be shocked to learn what I paid for them. I was in the right place at the right time.
 

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#9 ·
these are the 996 tin coat forks and 65mm calipers I put on my 916.
They look pretty good on the 916, especially with those rotors.

I'm just trying to determine how much I want to spend on some replacement forks and figure out how desperate I am to get the bike back on the road. If I find a really good deal on some TiN forks, I may bite the bullet. I just don't want to sink a bunch of money into a bike that isn't worth a whole lot.
 
#8 ·
Seems strange there are no other advantages and I have them on a st4s. Not quite a race bike
 
#11 ·
I'm not saying there's no advantage to TiN coating, because there is a reduction in stiction. But, you have to consider cost vs. gains. The standard-issue 65mm caliper forks (916-999) are a dime a dozen on eBay. Buy the cheapest straight/serviceable set you can find and send them off to a suspension shop to be rebuilt/sprung/valved to suit your weight/riding style. That is money well-spent rather than nice shiny gold coloring.

FWIW, the stock, non-TiN, forks on my 749 only had about 2mm of stiction.
 
#13 ·
I borrowed a friend's set of TiN-coated forks one time so I could ride my 748 while my own forks were being reworked. Same springs, same valving done by the same shop, same settings. I couldn't tell the difference at an aggressive canyon-carving pace. There may be a mathematical advantage, perhaps a real one for a pro racer, but otherwise I think it's bling.
 
#18 ·
If you talk to any knowledgeable suspension tuner, you will find out that the Ti coating that is used on the Ohlins Road & Track forks (which are made in Japan) is mostly a fad thing. The real deal Ohlins Superbike forks have the tubes polished to a much higher quality (smoother micro-polishing) finish before the TiNitride coating is applied.
Once this coating is applied, it it so hard, that it cannot be polished to smoother finish.

So while the streetbikes with Ohlins gold forks may have slightly less stiction than regular chrome plate forks, they will never come close to Ohlins Superbike forks in action, and cannot be polished to this level.

Chrome forks on the other hand can be polished to a very high standard, much better than stock.

It's mostly a vanity thing, Do you want cool gold forks on your bike made in Japan for Ohlins by another company, or the real deal Ohlins Superbike fork made in Sweden that really work. Why do you think real Ohlins Superbike forks cost so much?

You are much better off having a standard set of forks reworked/revalved and properly sprung for your weight that to waste money on the gold coated R&T Ohlins forks
 
#19 · (Edited)
What are you getting on about? There is a measurable difference in stiction between regular forks and titanium nitride forks. I can literally go down in to my own garage and observe the phenomenon directly, it's not some marketing hoo-doo. I myself have measured 10 whole millimeters of stiction on regular forks, and both my ducs with a TiN coating measure around 2mm. And who cares if regular forks can be polished, they can be TiN coated too if you have the money, that's not the point.

It's not a vanity thing, it's an empirically observable fact. And FYI ohlins isn't the only suspension company to use a fancy "gold" plating.

ps, do you really care where your components are made? Japan, Sweden, whatever. Who cares, we live in a global economy, countries of origin don't matter as much as quality standards anymore.
 
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