EPM WILBERS SUSPENSION FOR H-D

Page 24 our town has to offer. Bringing people to our area is the most important thing. Given all of the recent local infighting in our town it also seems needed to try and spin something positive in the community. The positive feedback from the riders and from the town people was huge.

We have switched things up a bit for this year. The dates are Friday, Sept. 24 thru Sunday, Sept. 26, with Friday evening having registration and a motorcycle show with vendors and entertainment. Saturday’s ride will be

approx. 150 miles with lunch and scenic stops included and Sunday will have a 50-mile run, also with lunch included. These rides will provide you with a quality experience in the backwoods of Bradford and Tioga counties, starting and ending with the Armenia Mountains. Registration is open now online (tourarmeniapa.org) at $30 per day or $45 for both days. All fees will benefit local charities and a poker run will be offered by the Canton Fire Department as well. All makes are welcome, with emphasis on adventure bikes, as there will be off-road riding involved. We hope to see you in September – come for the ride, stay for the weekend.

This event is funded in part by the Bradford County Tourism Promotion Agency. ,

When presented an opportunity to learn more about a self-leveling suspension for Harley’s “FLH” Touring motorcycles, my reaction was one of mild skepticism. I am very familiar with the FLH series from Milwaukee’s Motor Company; I’ve owned three. Having ridden dozens of others, I knew the suspension can be the target of upgrades for many buyers. Stock suspension is tuned for comfort and offers limited travel and adjustability. Previous generations had air pressure preload adjustment for the rear shocks and newer models have a more conventional spring preload adjustment. Upgraded suspension components from the Motor company includes heavier weight fork oil, progressive wound springs and nitrogen charged rear shocks. When all is said and done, adding accessory components from the Motor Company or the aftermarket results in improved comfort, but adjustments need to be made when adding a passenger and luggage.

EPM WILBERS SuSPEnSIon WIth LDC AutoMAtIC SELf-LEvELIng SyStEM foR hARLEy-DAvIDSon fuLL DRESSERS

Most Harley touring riders may never adjust the settings or change suspension components. You won’t hear too many complaints from the Bar & Shield faithful. Owners just acknowledge and accept the ride as is. Others put hundreds of dollars in aftermarket components including air ride suspension. The results can be mixed, as the Harley Touring bikes tip the scales at 800 pounds or more with a rider, passenger, and luggage. Comfort and performance are subjective and left to the rider’s taste. Add to the mix, in the Northeast at least, the poorly maintained roads, potholes, uneven expansion joints and all manners of half-baked asphalt patches & fixes. My skepticism and preconceived notion of any aftermarket suspension was that performance upgrades would result in a nicer, perhaps firmer ride that may be marginally better than the aftermarket shocks I already had.

Enter the EPM Wilbers Suspension kit with LDC Self Leveling Capability. At the time I knew little of Wilbers other than they are a European company that specializes in BMW suspension. Recently they adapted their sport and adventure motorcycle technology to the cruiser and touring market. Klaus Huenecke, the owner of EPM, offered reassurance that my skepticism would be unfounded. Klaus has been importing WIlbers since 2001 in an effort to develop the American market. Having a great deal of confidence in his product, he now has over 15 years of experience and many satisfied customers.

The Wilbers LDC Automatic Self Leveling system consists of several key components. First are the progressive wound fork springs and Wilbers own fork fluid. Next are the dual shocks for the rear, one of which is the Ecoline standard spring damper, the other is the LDC Nivomat Shock. This is where the magic happens. The kit comes nicely packaged with the fork fluid presented in clear bottles resembling finely distilled spirts rather than fork oil. A spanner wrench is included in the kit for the initial preload adjustment.

The LDC Nivomat shock is a hydraulic leveling damper. Calling it a shock absorber seems downright insulting given the engineering involved. The LDC Nivomat contains two independent oil chambers, a large diameter piston rod, mechanical pump with a pressure valve and a short external spring. Inside, a distinction is made between inner and outer gas-assisted high-pressure chambers. When weighted, the piston rod automatically pumps oil from the low-pressure side into the high-pressure chamber. At the same time the piston rod is pushed out of the damper. This pumping process is completed simply by balancing or bouncing the bike. The LDC Nivomat allows the bike to settle to the correct ride height after traveling about 1000 ft. All of this happens internally within the damper- no wires, no external pumps, no reservoirs.

The second Ecoline shock absorber is equipped with a conventional coil spring and provides overall damping. Spring preload is adjusted with a conventional ring nut and included wrench. The Nivomat provides the level control and adjusts the spring rate and varies damping, depending on the load. This eliminates the need for manually adjusting preload when adding or reducing weight. The two shocks are physically different but when installed on Harley ‘Baggers’ they are hidden behind the saddlebags. The conventional shock is mounted on the right and the Nivomat on the left. Once installed, the sag is set for 1/3 of the travel for rider and gear on the Ecoline damper. This is the only adjustment required. When

Page 26 adding a passenger and/ or luggage, the pumping action caused simply by riding allows the LDC Nivomat internals to compensate for the added weight settling itself back to the original 1/3 sag setting. Sounds too easy.

I visited Klaus at his shop in Manalapan, NJ. His expert mechanic replaced the fork springs, topped off the fork oil and installed the new rear dampers in about 2 hours. The work was done efficiently and with great care. While the bike was being worked on, Klaus was kind enough to show me his personal stable of interesting motorcycles. After the installation and a few measurements, the sag was set, and I was ready to ride.

Rambling up from central NJ to the Skylands region, I immediately noticed an improvement in ride quality. In fact, the ride continued to improve to the point that I was shaking my head after only a few miles. Was this a placebo effect or real? More miles confirmed the improvement in ride quality was real. My skepticism indeed was unfounded. I was pleasantly surprised to experience having a Harley that rode this nicely. I started aiming for imperfections, being careful to avoid the rim crushing, tire popping kind. As there are no shortage of road imperfections in our area. Fast or slow, highway or twisty road, the ride quality is much more refined than the stock and many aftermarket components. Expansion joints on highways all but disappear. Bigger bumps are smoothed out while small road imperfections go almost unnoticed. After only a few hundred miles of road testing, the ride quality remains consistent, rarely bottoming and with more controlled front fork dive under braking. The kit is marketed as a self-leveling system - but the improved ride quality is an equal and important part of the story.

It was time to try with a passenger. With my Mrs. on the back, true to their word after a ¼ mile or so the Nivomat system works as advertised. The bike resets the ride height to compensate for the passenger weight and the ride quality remains excellent. Gena noticed immediately, commenting on how much the ride is improved. At speed, the handling was smooth and predictable and imperfections in turns did not upset handling. The system is very confidence inspiring no matter the conditions. Solo, twoup and with luggage this kit is a highly engineered solution for Harley Davidson motorcycles.

Having spent considerable time with the kit, I would confidently state that the EPM Wilbers LDC system is the single best upgrade you can make to a Harley Davidson Touring motorcycle. Never mind, the chrome, engine kits, exhaust, lights or controls. If you want to transform the ride of your heavy weight touring machine and unlock the stability and comfort the bikes were intended to have, install this system. Yes, it’s that good. Prices for the kit range from $1856 to $1948 depending upon the application. Simply visit Wilbers at wilbersusa.com and order based on the make, model, year and rider weight. Or call EPM Wilbers at 732-786-9777. , ~ Tony Lisanti