I did video the Ohlins shocks in action and Gary at Ohlins responded.
The springs do collapse but don't touch
Here is Gary's response;
JV,
It’s important to note that nothing was ‘broke(n)’ on your shocks. The rebound needle was jammed on one, which is traditionally caused by the adjuster being turned past it’s stop-point. The shock that was leaking, well, sometimes mechanical devices leak when they are not supposed to. The factors that make a shock leak have nothing to do with what it’s mounted on. It could have been an ATV, a motorcycle, or a 3-wheeled Morgan.
I’m concerned about the ‘hard metal to metal sound.’ That can’t be good. The spring should never coil-bind. If it is in a coil-bind condition, the act of binding will leave a tell-tale line where the coils touch each other; removing the yellow powdercoat.
Check the coil spring for the signs of coil-bind. If you find none, the mechanical sound has to be coming from another point in the linkage. If it is coil-bind, we have a stroke problem.
Regards,
Gary Christopher
Service Manager - Motorcycle Division
