2021–2022 Riese & Müller Homage

[grone]

They had a look at the shock today and will be replacing it as it was deemed to be kaput after less than one month.

I am glad it is being replaced, but man, why did R&M use such a dud shock to begin with? I have a feeling it was malfuctioning from the factory (based on what the mechanic was saying when testing it), but being as I have no experience with shock absorbers I didn't know how it should behave.

Hopefully the replacement functions correctly or else I may have to spend money I don't want to on what has been recommended in here previously.

 

[Clamps]

I would like to suggest that there have been some cost-cutting decisions made at R&M that I'm pretty unimpressed with. That shock is one. But the real issue for me is the gear interface for the Rolhoff system.
I know R&M didn't design that object. But I believe they're in a position to have Rolhoff do something about it. It's the worst.

 

[grone]

Four weeks later and the new shock has been installed.

R&M are in no rush to send out replacement parts.

 

[Apparatschik]

I got the same problems with the suntour rear shock like many users. Significant Loss of pressure within in short period of time. Today I replaced it by a Marzocchi Bomber Air Inline rear shock which is recommended by Marzocchi for my Marzocchi Bomber Z2 fork. (Due to the supply problems during covid r+m equipped the Rohloff variant of the homage with this fork.) A minor problem is the position of the valve which is closer to the frame (second photo) due to the shorter "neck" of the Marzocchi spring element in comparison with the original Suntour shock (first photo). As a consequence the original BETO pump provided by r+m can't be used anymore, since the valve head is too long. But a fox pump with the flexible valve head should work very well.
There was just one aspect, which irritated me. The Marzocchi spring element has got no lever for adjusting the pressure stage, although the product picture of my dealer had one. Apparently there are two variants of the Mazocchi Bomber Air Inline rear shock. I wrote to Fox to explain this difference. Hopefully they will answer soon. Since I use my Homage only as a commuter, this missing feature doesn't matter for me. I didn't use the firm position the last three years.

 

[Apparatschik]

Curious how many miles to expect to get from the Super Moto tires? Also, has anybody switched from the Super Moto to the Johnny Watts tires? I ride on pavement about 75% of the time but was thinking about switching for the extra off road traction. For those that have switched, is there a significant decrease in the ride with the JW tires on pavement?

Thank you.

I chose the GX Option when I bought the bike. Hence I got the the Johnny Watts from the beginning. Nice tires, very grippy on snow (I use the bike also during the winter) but there is one disadvantage. Higher risk to get a flat tire. It happened to me two times. Of course it was always the rear tire. Alas I decided to exchange the Johnny Watts by a more robust Marathon Plus MTB (only the rear tire). The riding feeling doesn't differ very much.

 

[Apparatschik]

Any thoughts on when a new Homage model might come out?

In Germany delivery of the Homage5 starts in spring 2025. Pobably April. Since I really like the Pinion MGU I almost decided to get the new one. Beside the engine there are a lot of other improvements. Unfortunately there ist one aspect I really dislike. Weight has increased by 3 kg up to almost 35 kg. Although the Pinion with battery is lighter than the Bosch with battery and the Rohloff speedhub. I can't understand this and r+m didn't give me a proper explanation why the new model is so much heavier. As a consequence I decided to keep my old Homage GT until the Homage5 is available for a test ride. Probably in march 25.
If you check the Rotwild R.C1000 which has got a similair or better equipment you will see this bike is incredible light, although it has got the biggest battery from FIT (960 Wh). Below 26 kg.

 

[dblhelix]

I chose the GX Option when I bought the bike. Hence I got the the Johnny Watts from the beginning. Nice tires, very grippy on snow (I use the bike also during the winter) but there is one disadvantage. Higher risk to get a flat tire. It happened to me two times. Of course it was always the rear tire. Alas I decided to exchange the Johnny Watts by a more robust Marathon Plus MTB (only the rear tire). The riding feeling doesn't differ very much.

Exactly my experience -- 2 flats within first 1000 miles. I also experienced sidewall damage. Sidewalls were thin, presumably to accommodate folding.

 

[TrevorB]

10,000km between bikes, with lot commuting and no flats with JWs.

 

[grone]

I've had one flat on the Homage JW rear tyre at about 2,000km (it looked like half a staple caused the flat). Now at 4,000km with none since.

My Gazelle has 14,000km running the same set of Marathon tyres, and I haven't had a puncture yet.

 

[Apparatschik]

After 50 km with the Marzocchi rear shock it's time for a first conclusion. It does its job properly after I increased the rebound by some clicks starting by the value which is recommended in the manual. This was necessary because of the higher mass of the rear wheel with the Rohloff speedhub. Hopefully there won't be any significant pressure loss in the future.