Rear SW Air Adjustable Shocks (by Monroe)

[IanDMacDonald]

So, went to the worst bike show this morning. Bought a $19 handlebar cup holder. Left after 20 minutes. Drove to my local motorcycle shop (Rocky's Great Outdoors), and found these SW shocks on the wall. They had five other different pairs, with tons of baggies of parts, etc. Not cheap ($140), but everything was there in plastic. I'll mount them another day.

[IanDMacDonald]

I ended-up mounting them, as it's one less thing to do once the rest of the parts arrive. They look pretty good to me. Not as attractive as some chrome Showa's, but they'll work.

Does anybody have a recommended air pressure? Instructions state to inflate to 90 psi to check for leaks, then to inflate/deflate to rider comfort.

[natemoen]

Fill them to 90 and then check your sag and adjust from there.

[jetmechmarty]

From Motorcyclist, setting sag:

Suspension Setup 101 Part I: Setting Sag
Photography by Todd Westover
Motorcyclist, October 17, 2005
2
Ducati Monster Sr4 Front Wheel
Pity the motorcycling newcomer. On top of acquiring an acceptable machine, learning to ride it and dividing one's attention between actually operating the bike and keeping errant cars and trucks from dealing death blows out on the mean streets, newbies must also eventually deal with the arcane and often-confusing subject of suspension tuning.

Ooooh. The words alone strike terror in even the most seasoned riders.

Forget such involved concepts as spring rates, preload, compression and rebound damping. Newcomers are likely to take one look at the bewildering array of knobs, clickers, nuts and screws on today's sportier motorcycles and simply ignore the whole thing. Which would be a mistake, of course, because the simple truth is that proper adjustment of your motorcycle's suspension can make a huge difference in the way your bike handles--and how well you're able to ride it.

Race Tech's (www.race-tech.com) Paul Thede has dealt with dirt- and streetbike suspension modifications for nearly two decades, and his take is this: "Proper suspension setup is key to riding fast and safely. [Your bike's suspension] requires proper adjustment to work to its maximum potential. The cool thing is, suspension tuning isn't rocket science."

He's right. Basic suspension setup isn't overly difficult, especially if you take things one stage at a time. And stage one in the quest for a well set-up streetbike suspension is to dial in spring sag--that is, the distance the fork and shock compress with a rider aboard (laden) compared with the fork and shock fully extended (or unladen).

Step one is to determine your fork and shock's fully extended (unladen) measurements. To do this you'll need to get both wheels off the ground, though not at the same time. On bikes with sidestands, the front wheel can be raised relatively easily by rocking the bike over on its stand and raising the front end; this is much harder to do with the rear wheel, but it can be done if the person doing the raising is both strong and coordinated. Centerstands make raising the rear wheel simple, though an underengine stand (or a sidestand) will be necessary for bikes lacking them.

Ducati Monster Sr4 Right Doing a decent job of measuring and setting spring sag means drafting a few friends to hel
For the back wheel number, measure the distance from the axle vertically to some point on the chassis using a tape measure; metric figures are easiest and more precise. A graphic point on the sidepanel or the bottom edge of the panel itself work well as reference points. Be sure to mark the exact points you used because you'll need to refer to them again. Record this measurement on a notepad next to the notation marked "R, unladen." Up front, extend the fork completely with the wheel in the air and measure from the wiper (the dust seal between the shiny slider and textured stanchion) to a point on the bottom triple clamp (or the lower fork casting on an inverted fork). Record this measurement next to the notation "F, unladen."

Now you're ready to record the same two measurements with the fully outfitted rider on the bike (these would be the "laden" numbers). Ask a buddy to hold the front or back of the bike while you get settled, and have a third person (preferably the one who took the unladen measurements) record the laden numbers front and rear. Mark these as "R, laden" and "F, laden." Subtract the laden front and rear numbers from the unladen front and rear numbers and bingo!--you've got your two sag numbers.

Thede likes to work with 30-35mm of sag on streetbikes, 25-30mm for racebikes. Your numbers will likely be higher than these (a softer ride), in which case you'll want to increase spring preload on the shock and/or fork. If your numbers are less than these (a firmer ride), try reducing preload a bit. Adjust things until the measurements fall within acceptable parameters. You'll have to remeasure after making the preload changes, of course.

Remember, there is no magic number. If you like the feel of the bike with slightly less or more sag than these guidelines, no worries. Your personal sag and front-to-rear sag bias will depend on various factors, including chassis geometry, track or road conditions, tire selection, rider weight and/or riding style.

Next month we'll turn our attention to rebound and compression damping.



Read more: http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/ho...#ixzz2uCZ5dpk1

[IanDMacDonald]

Interesting.

[bikerphil]

I wouldn't even try to put 90 in those 30 yr old shocks, might try like 35 or so.

[IanDMacDonald]

Phil- My young brain never considered the age factor, lol. I have them holding at 60 to make sure they are not leaking. I'll give them a trial in the Spring.

[IanDMacDonald]

Not sure these shocks are holding air. I will return them tomorrow along with that P.O.S. vacuum bleeder. I bought a pair of chrome air shocks off a CB1000. Same shocks on an XJ.

[MindWebs]

another option..

H.D. air shocks will also work on our machines.

just press out the rubber inserts from the original shocks and press them back into the H.D. shocks.

by the way.. the hd's run Showa's

but i haven't seen any chrome air shocks... just black..

usually $40-$60 a set (lightly used)

use a mighty vac and 1/8" MPT to hose barb fitting to remove old oil
and add 350ml fresh fork oil to each, (thin, 2.5wt)

the mighty vac will drain shock upside down.

shock right side up to add and insert drop tube in cup then fill cup and
pull a vac, when vac is released the drop tube sucks the fluid into the
shock.

cheap, mostly easy, ONLY for .... well.... how do i put this...

my buddy... 350lbs+ blew the seals out of these shocks
(set psi high 50-60 to try to accomodate the weight)

i'm 205 lbs and ride hard, never had a bit of trouble with these shocks.
on, or off roading. very rarely do i bottem out off roading.

if a person where in the plus... nevermind..

my buddy loves the shocks we set him up with now,
Kawasaki KZ1000 Police Rear Shocks 13 3/4" tall

these are only for people that can force them down.
or 2 up riding..

these take a bit of muscle to install, you preload them installing them
about 1/2" worth to be exact.

he's had great luck with them handles great, extra clearence, plenty of travel.

hope this helps someone..