Steering Damper Reviews

In reading some posts about dampers I just thought I would share with you my thoughts on 3 different Dampers that I have owned and maybe it may help you in a future purchase. In the last 3 years I have used 3 different Damper on my bikes. A Hyperpro, Matris M3-Pro, and a Ohlins. The Hyperpro was a good damper I had it on my old 2000 R6. It had a nice mounting kit that didn't require any drilling or permanent modifications to the bike. While the claims of being an active damper may be true, I never seemed to notice it automatically stiffening up due to the onset of a tankslapper. Maybe it did, and was so smooth that I just never noticed it, that would be a good thing. :) On my 2002 R1 I installed a Matris M3-Pro Edition Damper, and was a really nice unit. The Mounting Kit was Anodized Black to match the Frame and Triple. Also the damper it self was also nice and compact, and the movement was very smooth from left to right. The only thing I did not like about the unit was that they require that you drill 2 small holes into the triple to mount the support bracket. This isn't that big of a deal as when you remove the mount, it is covered by the stock bolt and washer. While this wasn’t the most adjustable of units, only 13 clicks, it definitely did the job well. http://www.r1-forum.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=381311 On my 2003 R1 I just purchased and installed the Ohlins Steer Damper with the new Ohlins Mount. I purchased this item as it has been hailed as the best damper money can buy. The new mount for the R1 is an improvement over last years, in my opinion. What I found though is that the Ohlins is not as smooth as the Matris and would stick a little when moving from side to side. Also the mounting kit is not as tight, and as some play in it. This movement in the mount causes an annoying vibrating noise when riding in the higher RPMs (Going to fix that with a quick trip to the Home Depot) This unit is more adjustable than the Matris as it has 16 clicks, so you can fine tune it alittle bit more. http://www.r1-forum.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=438515 Basically they all did their job, and haven’t caused me any drama. But in the end, the Matris was my favorite due to the size and the Smoothness. Just some information to keep in mind if you are looking around for a new Damper. Thanks, Ray

Good read there. I had a Matris on my R1 and I didn't have the luck like you did. When I would turn the handlebars side to side very quickly imatating a tank slapper there was a slight drag before the stiffness kicked in. Then in April as I was leaving the house the seal broke in it so I had to replace it. I decided on a Scotts. So easy to put on, no drilling like the Matris and only took less then 30 minutes to put on. Talk about a world of difference! I wish I would have bought it when I first got my bike, no slack or nothing! Oh well, just wanted to input my $.02

yes the scotts is a great damper....I like my ohlins as well but the scotts seems to tighten up a lot more than my ohlins

Ohlins = :rock

I agree, that from the information that I have researched, the scotts definately seems to be a quality item, and also affective. The reason why I ruled out the Scotts is just the added maintenance (aka, fluid change) and I must say, I'm lazy. I just like to turn the key and ride.

I have a Sprint damper with a Harris mount, no complaints http://www.traxxion.com/store/detail.asp?product_id=SD Traxxion Dynamics recommends Sprint Steering Dampers exclusively. This high quality damper was designed by, and is manufactured by, a former F1 engineer in England. They are 14-click adjustable, and are rebuildable with readily available parts (try that with Ohlins…). These dampers have a unique, simple, and reliable internal mechanism to allow for expansion of the heated oil. (Scotts and WER do not have this, which is why they are assembled with an air bubble. This bubble allows the damper to skip as it changes direction.) These dampers are manufactured from the highest quality materials and are available in an array of anodized colors.

I'm slightly confused by their website...does that damper come with any sort of mount? Or does that still have to be purchased separately? I like the placement of the Toby mount (in front of the triple tree), but I'm not sure where to get it separately... Also...what's the appropriate size for an '02 R1?