hi everybody,
I just received my 93 gsx-r shock in the mail and am planning on doing the install tomorrow. I've done most of the homework, but I just have a few questions:
does the top mount of the shock need to be greased or lubed for install? if so, what type of grease?
can anyone recommend suspension settings for a 160lb guy that will be riding two up fairly often? I've checked out the info on the gspower page, but I was hoping for some kind of "base" setting before I begin to ride the bike and tweak it.
thanks for any help in advance :icon_mrgreen:
no, you don't grease it, as the grease whould affect the tourke of the bolt and could possibly cause it to fall out.
just leave it whare it is when you get the shock and go from there.
ok will do.
one more thing:
I'm doing the install from the steps listed on http://www.bikepower.net/gs500e-power/gs500e-power.htm .
on the opening page for the install it says to "make sure the upper ball bearing works". does anyone know what exactly he is referring to?
The comment refers to the Rod-end or Gimbal bearing at the top of the shock that the mounting bolt passes through. It swivels about the axis of the hole, the idea being to compensate for any misalignment between the shock and the frame. They can be prone to siezure as once the shock is installed they have very little free travel.
It looks like the one in the link.
http://www.ahrinternational.com/ahr_rod_ends.htm
ok thanks sledge. I thought that was what he was talking about, but I've never heard that type of bearing called a ball bearing.
ok here's the update:
I'm in the beginning phases of the mod & that's probably where i'm going to leave off for today. I finally got all the grease off my hands & I had to come up & grab a beer before I started to flip! :laugh:
this is by far the biggest endeavor I've undergone on my bike so I'm just taking those little nick-nacks as they come and remaining patient.
so, after about 20 minutes of looking for a big enough piece of wood to put under the center stand (which was a helluva way to get things started), I got my bike jacked up by myself with a little sweat and muscle. I should mention that I removed my centerstand a few months ago. today I just lined up the holes under the bike, and slid the bolt through one side. a lot of you probably know that the bolt on the other side is blocked by the exhaust pipe. I just shoved a spare allen wrench in there and put the bike up. It's working great :icon_mrgreen: .
I removed the rear wheel for the first time; which after today will be a sinch. Once I got the axel bolt out, I just pushed the wheel foreward, sort or wiggled the chain off the sprocket and draped it around the end of the swingarm. Once the chain was off it was easy to just tilt the wheel and pull it out without it hitting the rear brake.
Then I moved on to the stock shock and linkage. those bolts.... are a Buddha Loves You!!! after working up a sweat I was able to get the bolts out of the top & bottom of the shock & pulled it out. disconnecting the dogbones from the lower linkage is where I have left off for the day. I cant get that nut to budge for the life of me....
I wanted to get more done today, but I guess I'm still on schedule. I gotta ask a friend at work to let me borrow his grinder and torque wrench, and I'm insanely busy monday & tuesday with work all day and class all night. Wednesday I'll head back down into my garage with a vengeance!
So I've just doused that bolt with WD-40 and left it. any other suggestions to get it off?
PB blaster, it's normally right next to the wd in the stores, it works much better than wd for breaking stuff free. other than that for those really stubborn ones you take the wrench on the BOLT head and wedge it against something solid on the bike, so when you turn the NUT it will push against the frame/swingarm. then you use a combination wrench (aka a monkey wrench) and with the closed end on the nut, you take a second wrench, and using the closed end you hook it over the top of your first wrench. this will in effect double the length of your lever. just remember that you have a second piviot point whare the two wrenches meet and that when it breaks free will try to twist, so grab with one hand there and the other on the end. if you want pics lemme know. the other thing to remember is that those nuts need to go back on there just as tight.
Quote from: l3uddha on June 04, 2006, 04:07:26 PMI removed the rear wheel for the first time; which after today will be a sinch. Once I got the axel bolt out, I just pushed the wheel foreward, sort or wiggled the chain off the sprocket and draped it around the end of the swingarm. Once the chain was off it was easy to just tilt the wheel and pull it out without it hitting the rear brake.
You didn't mention this, but the "torque arm" that the rear caliper is attached to is designed to swing upwards and give you a little more clearance. YMMV.
Beg, borrow or pinch a breaker-bar if you can (like the one in the link), they can deliver much more force than a ratchet-arm and only use good quality sockets and ring-spanners. Cheap poor fitting tools will round the nuts off then you will be in trouble.
http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item.asp?P65=&tool=all&item_ID=63004&group_ID=233&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog
so here's the next update:
it's been raining all week... the perfect time for a lengthy mod. I finally got all the bolts off the other day. the breaker bar suggestion was a great idea. I took the frugal route though and just lengthened my wrench with a piece of steel pipe. Even with that the bolts were still a pain.
I grinded the shock linkage last night. It was a piece of cake. My first time using a grinder and things went very smoothly. Rather than take the whole thing apart I just taped over the holes in the linkage with some electrical tape to prevent any crap from getting in there. The same thing for the spraypainting afterwards as well.
today I filed the shards off the linkage and spraypainted it black. well, before I did the painting I did a test fit. Things seemed OK. The linkage anyways. there is plenty of room to get the shock in and still be able to turn the adjustment nob on the bottom.
BUT....
the test fit is where I am a bit concerned. with the shock installed in its place, the swingarm is close... very close. it seems that the end of the swingarm actually rests between the very bottom part of the spring itself and the second "curl". I know it's a stiff shock and that it probably won't compress far enough to actually sandwitch the end of the swingarm. does anybody have any experience with this~ it's normal right?
Next my search for a torque wrench has turned up unsuccessful so far. apparently Lowes doesnt carry them, nor do Home Depot, my mom & pop hardware store, or the really crappy auto parts store nearest to my house. Can anyone suggest a good place to look for one to buy? maybe Autozone or other auto parts stores??
and finally, can someone give me the torque specs for the bolts that I have removed. I'm sorry I dont yet have a Clymer's manual or something that can tell me them.
the torques I need are for:
1) the top bolt for the shock and the frame
2) the bottom bolt for the shock and shock linkage
3) the bolt that connects the dogbones to the shock linkage
4) and the bolt that connects the linkage to the frame
ANY HELP IS FRIGGIN AWESOME :icon_mrgreen:
this weekend should be sunny and I'm hoping to have my bike ready to ride for saturday :thumb:
Sears.
See if the second half of this old (LONG) post (http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=13203.msg111669#msg111669) helps any.
thankyouthankyouthankyou :icon_mrgreen:
my paint should be dry so I'm gonna go put everything together so all I have to is torque it down tomorrow. I'll let u all know how it feels!
just wanted to let everyone know that I have finished the GSX-R shock install with HUGE success!
this shock is the balls; plain and simple. the difference is literally like night & day. I love it!
I finished early this morning & was able to ride my bike to work... in the rain, but it was awesome!
the shock itself did raise the rear end quite a bit. How much exactly I dont know, but I would have to say about 2~3 inches. it is a HUGE difference. I am 5'10" and I am still able to (just barely) flatfoot both of my feet when standing still on the bike, but It feels a lot higher up there. At the same time it feels a lot more comftorable and a HELLUVA lot more "crisp" and stable while steering through turns. It's really amazing.
The shock itself is a LOT stiffer. when I sit on the bike it doesnt even feel like the shock sags any when I put my butt down. I used to be able to feel the stock shock compress with just my butt on the seat. When I put ALL of my weight on the shock & bobb the bike up & down it does compress, but very slightly, and it seems like there is a lot more feedback coming from the rear than just the tail of the bike bobbing up & down like with the stocker. It's really awesome.
While riding it really feels like the whole bike's ergonamics have changed. While I know that the footpegs and bars havent been relocated; everything feels different. Lifting the rear of the bike has rotated pretty much everything; leaning my whole body foreward more to the front. But it feels like a good change, a very good change.
I completed the modification in the span of close to an entire week. Luckily this week it has rained straight every day (and it is still raining so I finished early :icon_mrgreen:). I didnt have the time to sit down & do it all at once; I could really only work on it at my leisure. Also, I didnt really prepare things ahead of time at all. I took the rear wheel off & moved on to the shock bolts & found out I needed a breaker bar. the next day I got the bolts off but was still waiting on a grinder. got everything grinded & together, but still didnt have a torque wrench, hose clamps, or the bolt specs. & the spraypaint took time to dry.... I had no problem doing things at this slow a pace. I think if someone were to attempt the mod & have everything planned out well and all the necessary tools, it can be done in a day. Most of the time would be spent waiting for the shock linkage to cool from the grinding and for the spraypaint to dry.
Finding a good place to mount the remote resevoir was pretty simple as well. I didnt take the advice from http://www.bikepower.net/gs500e-power/gs500e-power.htm and mount it under the right rear fender, I crossed the hose under my seat & clamped it under the LEFT rear fender. the hose seemed too long to go under the right fender and not be fighting to get it in, and there is just too much crap within the right fender for it to fit in with ease. On the left side ther is a lot more room. I sawed off the helmet holder (which isnt necessary) for more room, but I havent used either of those things since I bought my bike 2 years ago. I went to the plumbing section of Lowes (any hardware store should have them) and picked up a rubber pipe-fitting. the one I got is 3" in diameter & comes w/ two hose clamps around it. I think the whole thing is about 4"~5" in length as well. I just cut part of the rubber out so it would wrap around the resevoir perfectly. Then I just clamped it to the frame. I wrapped the hose (already in good shape) in electrical tape and just used 3 zip ties across it's whole length to tie it down to the frame as well. Piece of cake. Also, I was able to position it so that all I have to do to adjust the compression damping is stick the screwdriver under the fender from the bottom & turn the nob. I dont have to unbolt the whole fender or any of thar crap. a huge plus.
Some people mentioned that they had a problem with the chain scraping some part of the swingarm, because the swingarm is bent more downwards with the shock installed. I don't have this problem. The only place that I can see where it could possible scrape is where the chain exits the front sprocket housing. I read that the fix was to just put a piece of rubber there. On my bike (04 F) there already IS rubber there that comes stock. There is no scraping whatsoever & the chain sounds as smooth as normal with the wheel turning.
I had my centerstand removed before the mod, so it wasnt an issue. just reattaching it with one bolt worked out very well & it is a SINCH to get it on & off.
The sidestand is short. I knew this would be a result but I also read that it will still work. YES it IS still very functionable and holds the bike up very well, but the bike is leaned over a lot more than usual. Kind of freaked me out at first but the sidestand will work fine with no modification. My advice is to just be cery careful on the surfaces that you put the bike down on, or leaving it on hot pavement. Instead of the very bottom of the sidestand being flush with the ground, the outside of that little plate is now angled down more INTO the ground. that, with the extra weight on a hot day could cause it to dig into the pavement and fall over. I have resorted to just keeping a very small block of wood with me (pocket size) to put under the bike if I am going to be leaving it for a while. NO biggie. most harley riders do this all the time because there bikes are so heavy they will just dig into hot pavement stock. It will fit under the seat as well.
that is all I can think of for now. I would just like to very much express my thanks for all who helped with this modification; I would still be lost. Even you TragicImage who just posted "SEARS.". I picked up your recommended torque wrench (Kerry) at SEARS for just $25. Thank you all for your help.
P.S: I will be posting pictures ASAP of the results. The bike looks AWESOME with the rear lifted, and I'll show pics of the other stuff as well like the remote resevoir mounting & hose route. thanks again everyone!
Sounds good man....I'm currently shopping around for a Kat shock right now....can't wait to do this mod....
here are some pics after the install. please excuse my shaky hands...
the bike on its sidestand; no block:
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018232224.jpg)
the remore resevoir mounted to the frame inside the fender. Also, the piece of rubber I cut out or the hose fitting so it would fit the resevoir. I think you can see the two hose clamps as well:
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018251833.jpg)
the routing of the resevoir hose. It's not going anywhere:
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018281963.jpg)
With the fender bolted back into place & the seat on, this is the only part of the resevoir that you can see. not bad eh?
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018300392.jpg)
a crappy picture of the shock:
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018320230.jpg)
my bike from the left side, propped up to be close to vertical. can you see where I lowsided?
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018333588.jpg)
I love this view, the bike's lines look really clean.
that box to the right is holding my kat 4.5" rim which will go on as soon as I need new rubber.
and check out my toolbox (er...shoebox) that got soggy from a little basement flood & turned to crap. time to reorganize...
(http://f5.putfile.com/6/16018374044.jpg)
comments/questions welcome!
Is it me or are there no pictures :dunno_white:
yea yea i'm working on it.... does putfile.com not work for hosting pics?
It should do - try fixxing your links. The first image has come up now.
SHAZAM! :icon_mrgreen: