alannn

I think the best way to think of preload is it places the (loaded) bike on average at the center of the springs range of travel, so that the spring experiences minimal occurrences of full extension and full compression. Personally, I like having my shock spring rate where my normal load requires zero (or close to zero) preload, and I just dial in more preload for extra luggage and/or passenger. On the other hand, from experience, I have noticed fork springs are usually designed with a minimum preload built in, even with the preload adjuster set to minimum. Possibly due to the fact that forks don't use the rising rate frame geometry typically seen for rear shocks. During use, damping also affects spring travel. When a bump is encountered and the suspension starts moving (accelerating), damping is what diminishes the inertia of that motion, for after the bump impact is absorbed.

Wilbers web site spells it out clearly: 641-0519-00 for the KR, short frame. 641-0519-01 for the KT, long frame. That inspires more confidence than the listing in the Hyperpro catalog. Edit: Then for the hell of it, I check the OEM parts listing which shows GU02550201 for both the short frame and long frame models. So to answer my own question, it looks like all non Ohlins V11's have the same OEM shock, GU02550201. So now I suspect Wilbers took the initiative to specify a longer shock for all long frame models to match the Ohlins spec. I will try to contact Wilbers to verify my wild guess.

Looking at Hyperpro catalog, they show the same emulsion shock, type 460, model MG11-0AA, for many different V11 models, from 1998-2005. But for their type 461 ("hose reservoir"), model MG11-1AA, they show fitment for V11 SPORT, 1998 and up, only. https://hyperpro.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/HYPERPRO-Shockabsorbers.pdf Do short frame and long frame V11's require different rear shocks? In a nutshell, I want their type 461 on a 2002 Lemans. What additional hardware is needed to fit an external reservoir in the same location as the Ohlin equipped V11's beside the left porkchop? Final question, what is the extra shock length required for raising rear to match the Ohlin equipped bike spec?