Shocked II - The sequel

[steveh]

Sounds good....might give them a try

[Eveready1100]

Steve, yes mate. They're the ones I bought
Still haven't got around to doing a fully loaded run to really test them out but they've been quite ok on my daily 120klm commutes to and from work. My comments about them being on the stiff side are probably a bit biased as I'm only 68kgs, so take that into account if you're going to get a pair.

Irish, just wondering if you have any real concept of what being on a tight budget is like? If I could afford to go out and buy a pair of Hagons or other high quality shocks, I would, but that's just not possible given current circumstances.
So I'm just trying to put forward options for those without spare $$$ laying around that just want to be able to ride their bikes, albeit a bit more conservatively than they would otherwise.
Perhaps you would prefer for me to have continued riding (while saving my pennies for more expensive shocks) while my rear brake got continually doused with oil from my leaking shock and risk an accident from diminished braking performance???

[pgnz]

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/13-5-340mm-2PCS-Air-Shock-Absorbers-Yamaha-VMAX-Suzuki-GS500-Honda-CB-500-Gold-/261284474204?pt=AU_Motorcycle_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3cd5c4ad5c&_uhb=1

Come on dudes,    it's chintzy chintzy inferior junk that doesn't belong anywhere near a 600lb musclebike,   GUARANTEE they'll be rooted and stuffed and pounding your lower back and spinal column before you know it,  hit a proper bump mid-corner, chinese junk it'll send you flying man,  if riding the bike you can't expect or pretend otherwise,  cheap  shocks are crap shocks Jose,  worse thing you can do with an xs1100 is skimp on suspension or brakes,  if no choice but to stoop that low then accept that they're $120 bucks worth of stop-gap temporary band-aid   

[steveh]

are the shocks in your post the same as these?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/13-5-340mm-2PCS-Air-Shock-Absorbers-Yamaha-VMAX-Suzuki-GS500-Honda-CB-500-Gold-/261284474204?pt=AU_Motorcycle_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3cd5c4ad5c&_uhb=1

[Eveready1100]

After nearly a months use, I thought I'd better put up some sort of a report on these units.

I'm still very satisfied with the ride characteristics from the rear end. Still a touch on the stiff side (for me) but very livable. It has shown up a bit of a deficiency from the front end, though, as I can very clearly feel the front doing a double pump over some of the bigger bumps around the place. Looks like I'm going to be playing with fork oil shortly in order to rectify this syndrome.
When the front's sorted, I'll mock up for a fully loaded trip and see how they perform with a full pair of saddlebags along with the top pack.


^To date, the only other thing I've had to do is add to my toolkit, a short 14mm socket and uni joint to reach the seat mounting nuts.


^ as the shock reserviors get in the way of my previously used deep 14mm socket, so a universal joint is needed to get onto the seat nuts.

[Jonesy :-)]

look pretty smart too Ev with colour match of the wheels and side cover emblems

[Eveready1100]

I suppose that it was inevitable that my $30 investment in the original thread (CLICKY) would have a limited lifespan and sure enough, after experiencing the back end pogoing over some especially undulating bends on my work commute and cleaning ever increasing amounts of oily residue off the back end, my GPZ shocks are now in the bin!
They served their purpose though, and after a 12 month test run checking for any extra vibration etc, in the drive train, especially the uni, I took the plunge and got a new set of shocks that are the same length

Always budget conscious ( have to be, don't want to be), and always ready to try something different, I had a squizz around my local international bike accessory hypermarket and found a pair of these -


 ^ where else? I compared specs and the spring diameter and thickness is the same as my original XS shocks but has infinite adjustment of preload via two collars using the supplied C spanners.


 ^ Shocks arrived in just over a week and fitting was really straightforward, barring a tustle with the lower (brake side) bolt which has always been a tricky SOB to get in.


 ^ I had visions of having to move the rack back out of the way of the reservoirs but miraculously everything fitted straight in and back on.


 ^ I will be keeping an eye on the caliper to reservoir clearance as per Peterjw's experience with his XJR ohlins fitment issues, but am pretty confident that the extra length will help stop the two from meeting.

The initial run up to the servo and back felt promising. Just tweaked the headlight aim and I headed off to give them a good workout on my nightly commute.
I'll give a full review in a few weeks once I get used to the new firmer ride (set on minimum preload - remember, I'm only little) and let you know if they continue to impress as much as on the first trip.