Apex Ohlins Shock Rebuild

[biffdotorg]

So I had one shakedown run in fresh snow last week. Rolled the Apex into the garage to thaw as usual.

Rolled it out into the driveway last night to warm up, jumped on and the rear end bottomed out. Check underneath to find that the Ohlins EC shock is blow apart.

If that shaft is not bent or broken, do you think it can be repaired/rebuilt? I don't remember it being this way when I put it away last week. In fact it was working great. I think it just got tired and blew apart?

HyGear did the initial rebuild, would it be best to just send it back to them?

Your advice and opinions are always appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[Snowmobileaddict]

That must have been one hell of a shake down ride!

Just kidding.

How many miles since Hygear's initial rebuild/revalve? Any idea when the failure occured? I'd be prepared to have it go back to Hygear. They might extend some type of goodwill service whereby the entire repair would not be out of pocket.

At a minimum it looks like you'll need a new seal head, and a recharge. Worse yet would call for a new shock shaft, and shock body depending on what got mangled. Either way, time to pull that skid and get the shock out.

 

[biffdotorg]

It was actually a great shakedown run! We had 10" of fresh and blizzard like conditions with deep ditches!!

I just got word back from Jon and HyGear. "We do see this happen to the Ohlins shock from time to time. If the shock is low on oil the seal head has a tendency to move a little bit inside the body. Over time this wears out the components enough to become loose, and eventually fail, causing the seal head to come out of the body. We recommend replacement of bodies and/or sealheads when they start to exhibit internal wear to avoid this problem."

I really don't think I blew it out while riding. I would have noticed it, as it immediately bottomed out the minute I sat on it. I think Jon was right and the body/seal has gotten weak and let go. I just hope the shaft is not bent, but I will know more tonight when I drop the skid.

These were done by the previous owner of the sled, so I really have no idea. Although, I think I have his initial shipping from from HyGear and all that info is on it. Could be a good 5000 miles.

Thank goodness for the Phazer backup sled as we have snow to ride right now! I will report back on HyGear's response time. So far, the email contact and info has been immediate. He estimated 7-10 business days turnaround.

 

[BETHEVIPER]

if you need a shock, I have one with good lead. stocker

 

[Snowmobileaddict]

How many miles total do you have on your sled? And how many since Hygear the ECS apart.

Would have been ideal if they would have cought the potentailly worn components leading to this break down when they had it apart last.

x2 on the thank goodness for back up sleds!

 

[snowbiscuit]

ohlin rear

Just had mine rebuilt and they do excellent work and at a very good price....was less than $75. http://www.deycore.com/

 

[JERSEYJOE]

SHOCK REBUILDS

I HAD MINE DONE BY PIONEER PERFORMANCE IN NY. GREAT WORK

 

[darv]

If you want faster service send to carver performance thief river falls I see you are in Duluth mn 1 day there 1day to fix an 1 day back to you down only 3-4 day mike does good work also give him a call. I use him all the time.

 

[tomanytoyz]

Dam ! i have the same set-up under mine.hope it dont happen when im out pounding the trails..

 

[Shiek]

ohlins

If you want faster service send to carver performance thief river falls I see you are in Duluth mn 1 day there 1day to fix an 1 day back to you down only 3-4 day mike does good work also give him a call. I use him all the time.

Dont count on 1 day service with carver , I had my shock sent to them in august, said " yes we have parts in stock can get it right away", it took them a month with phone calls !!

 

[biffdotorg]

Well, I found the paperwork on the shocks. Those shocks were originally built in November after it was purchased in the spring of 2007. So they were practically new. Since I have around 11,500 miles on the sled, I guess they held up pretty damn good.

Bad news is that the housing is blown, but Hygear can fix it. The other bad news is the stupid non-standard stud pattern used has worn the end of the shock quite a bit. When I pulled the skid last year to have the beef up and powder coat done, they put a loop in the skid to let the track rub above the shock mount. That has worn as well.

I may need the link to the bearing fix, that creates a rolling surface for the track to run on. Otherwise, I may need to pull those centerline studs. I'm not sure what that will do to weaken the track down the middle. I may be due for a new pre-studded track. GRR.

I did get to try out my new lift in the garage though. I guess I will have a couple weeks to do skid maintenance and possibly swap my plugs. The Dupont sliders show no signs of wear from last season either!!

 

[tomanytoyz]

Wow ! i will say that shock did its job for a while.hopefully Hygear can have it back to you soon.looks like im going to pull mine in the spring and send it out to have them freshen it up,.i dont want this to happen to mine.as for the rubbing,you will still get it just not as bad, just wont be beaten up by the studs.little wear on mine from halfbaked,love the Ice-Ripper xt

 

[biffdotorg]

I'm going to order the Ulmer kit. Even though it is $25 for a couple bearings and a bolt, it's cheaper than replacing my track. It's still in good shape, and the studs are holding up.

Isn't there a pre-studded version of the Ice Ripper in a 1.325" like the Cobra? What is that one called? That may be the one to watch for as my next track.

 

[BETHEVIPER]

never install studs in the center, they don't do anything there anyway, there is no pressure on them. The bearing should be on them even if you don't have studs though. I had my apex with 15000 unstudded miles look like that too. left a groove in the middle as well.

 

[Murse]

Same thing happened to my shock with the wear from studs although mine was worn on one side so it appears on your shock that it was previously worked on and turned around in order to even out wear. What I did is got Hygear to replace that piece and bought that same Ulmer kit which seems to work perfectly. A noticeable difference there appears to be less friction when the track is turning while the sled is on a stand.