2001 GS Lowering info (part one)

[Dana]

I located a local dude that makes suspension "Dog Bones". He uses air craft grade aluminum and a CNC machine.

Having a rough idea of the stock length I went to pick up a pair he happen to have in stock.

The stock bone measurement was 7  1/16" eye to eye. He had a 7  5/8" model so I bought them and slapped the on the bike. Guess how much that 9/16" drops the bike?

Three and a quarter inches!! WOW. I had my wife come out and try it on and she liked it. I explained it might be a little TOO LOW, It looked like a drag bike. I think you might have about 3 inches left between the top of the tire and the fender. That's with the shock set at it's lowest setting.

Now that we have a base point I'm going to hook up with the guy and  see if we can come up with something a little more reasonable. Maybe a 7  5/16"- 7  3/8" dog bone will put me in the ball park (approx inch and a half).

Very easy mod to do. You have to remove the left "boot guard" and the chain guard to get to the top bolt. Bottom one was easy. With the bike on the center stand you just have to leverage some 2x4's under the tire to take the weight of the swing arm/wheel off of the bones.

I'll keep you posted on progress.

Dana out.

[pantablo]

Cool, this will be good info to have. People have talked about replacing the dogbones (and several have done it) to lower bike but no one has any specific, hard numbers.

Keep us informed!
Thanks

[Rema1000]

You might leave the dogbones on, and find a GSX1100 or some such shock; that should put-back between 1.5 and 2 inches of height, and when you're done, you'll have a more-adjustable shock with longer travel.

I'd been thinking about doing the GSXer shock + dog-bone treatment, if I fail to find a good new enough Kat600 shock.  It would be especially cool if I could split the dogbones and weld-on a heavy turnbuckle (have to check clearance), so that I could adjust the dogbone length.

[The Buddha]

Dog bones to ride height is 1 to 5...That is old news...But Glad you see the shock value of it... However you might be able to get a good lowering by inverting the linkage so no need to get dog bones. I have never tried it so no idea how much it will lower.
Cool.
Srinath.

[john]

5 millimeters = about 1"  I burned some out of 1/4" place steel and worked like a champ.

[Dana]

I lowered the bike again today. I returned the long bones to MRP but Kenny didn't have any others links that would work with my application.

So he cut me some pieces out of flat stock and he drilled the holes at 7 5/16" center to center. Not as fancy as the milled ones but I was in a hurry. I'll go down and measure them later for you, along with some pictures. I was in a hurry to get the bike back together to surprise the wife before she got home.  The bike is now an 1 3/8" lower and my wife's feet are flat on the ground.

The bike still has a little lean to it on the side stand but I think I'll trim it the same as the drop. The guy at the shop is going to weld a foot on to the bottom of the side stand. I don't think I'll bother with the center stand. You can still muscle it up on to it. If you pull the rear wheel up onto a 2x4 it'll be an easy lift.

As for the bones you don't have to make them look like bones. I laid the stock linkage on to the aluminum part (lining up the bolt holes) and traced around it with a thick sharpie (permanant marker). That probably added about an 1/8" to the outline. I only trimmed the back side because you need clearance between the linkage and the top of the swing arm. If you're worried about weight you can do the other side. The aluminum pieces are still lighter than the steel ones.

I think paying $65 dollars for the milled ones is worth it considering the time you spend working the aluminum. But if you have a nice air conditioned garage maybe it wouldn't be too bad cutting the part out.

I cut the aluminum with a grinder fitted with a cutting wheel but I guess you could do some relief cuts with a hack saw. I then dressed it up with a 4" belt sander, That aluminum sure do get hot!! After that I used a palm sander with 220 grit paper. Then I hit it with some aluminum polish. You really don't need to spend too much time finishing them because you can't see that much of the linkage once it's in position.

Let me go and get some pictures and measurements for you.
Talk to you later.
Dana out.