| Author | Message | ||
     Captainkirk |
I have the "recall shock" replacement on my M2. Lately (maybe it's age related!) it seems like I can no longer tolerate the thumping and and jarring of going over frost bumps on many of the local highways, though the ride is fine on smooth or resurfaced pavement. Before I throw the bike on the lift and drag out the service manual, do any of you have any suggestions for mellowing up the ride without affecting handling too much? | ||
| 89rs1200 |
That can shock is a horrible ride and will likely fail within 20,000 miles. Best ride is a Penske at a cost of about $1200 or more. Next best are Works at about $1000 or Twin Motorcycles at about $700 USD shipped. I have Penske and Works on my S3s for more than 40,000 miles each. The Penske and Works last for lifetime or tens of thousands of miles. Both easily rebuilt. The one from Twin Motorcycles is too new to know about longevity, but they state; "We will deliver a lifetime warranty when the maintenance is done on the shocks every 2 year". The ride is about the same as the Works shock. All can be ordered in 16.5" or 14.8" lengths. Here are the links for the Twin Motorcycles shocks; https://www.twinmotorcycles.nl/webshop/artikel.asp ?mc=1&aid=4323&cid=0&s=rear%20shock&a= https://www.twinmotorcycles.nl/webshop/artikel.asp ?guid=YXHFSC&aid=3788&cid=9865&s=&a=&aname=Buell_M 2X1S1S2S3_rear_shock_38cm_149_inch | ||
| Captainkirk |
Thanks for that info! | ||
| 89rs1200 |
D'oh! Have you tried turning down the compression and rebound setting? Bumps will feel hard if the setting is high. Higher setting causes the hydraulics from allowing the shock piston to move swiftly. Screw near the end of one of the shock eyes. (Message edited by 89rs1200 on August 05, 2021) | ||
| Captainkirk |
I have played with it a little in years past. I guess that would be a good place to start, although the Twin shock is a hell of a looker and price-wise is really decent compared to the Works or Penske | ||
| Upthemaiden |
My shock definitely doesn't feel adjusted properly, and the cupping I usually get on my rear tires when they're wearing out also points in that direction, but from all the stories I've heard about them I've been afraid to touch any of the settings and have my bike leak from one more spot than it already does haha. I rebuilt the forks when I got the bike about 5 years ago, but anything over 90-100 and my bike tends to get a little squirrely and uncomfortable. Not sure how much of that is the suspensions fault, but I've got good tire tread and the air pressure is fine, so it'd be nice to sort out that suspension someday. | ||
| Captainkirk |
Here is the bulletin that tells how the recall shock should be adjusted from the factory at installation. I guess I just need to figure out where to go from this point. http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/384 2/B033A-263580.pdf | ||
| Captainkirk |
Quote;upthemaiden "My shock definitely doesn't feel adjusted properly..." Yeah, my suspension is so hard that if I had my teeth clenched I would probably be chipping them. I can feel every jarring jolt clear up my spine, it's brutal. I've ridden my other bikes down the same roads and barely noticed anything. I think the pull shock idea was bad from the get-go. | ||
| 89rs1200 |
Hold on! Pull shock works just fine.  What confuses people is that dampening and compression adjustments, that is which screw does what, are reversed from every other motorcycle. Rebound becomes compression and compression becomes rebound.  NOTES: ~ Previous owners adjustments will always be wrong for you. Get used to making these adjustments. ~ Hard suspension means the tire is not getting a continuous grip on the road. Not good. Just needs preload, compression, and rebound adjustments set for you. ~ Set the preload first! This sets how much sag there is. Preload is the measured difference of when a rider is not on the bike, then sitting on the bike. In other words, how much the spring compresses under load. ~ Changes in your weight, baggage weight, and passenger weights will require making these three adjustments. ~ One-up and two-up riding will require a new preload adjustment, and usually small compression and rebound adjustments. ~ The Penske shocks are marked backwards for the Buell. ~ Buell shocks are marked properly for the Buell. ~ When front forks and back shocks are properly set, while riding slowly and safely, standing on the pegs and jumping up and down, front and back of the motorcycle should move up and down together. Make one adjustment and test ride: ~ If bumps feel harsh, then the compression is set too high. ~ If, after traveling over a bump, the tire feels as if it lost grip for a moment, the rebound is too high. Good write-up here; https://www.rideapart.com/features/257984/how-to-s uspension-setup-rebound-and-compression-damping/ (Message edited by 89rs1200 on August 05, 2021) | ||
| 89rs1200 |
Oh Upthemaiden! You said; "anything over 90-100 and my bike tends to get a little squirrely". "At speed" requires the entire frame/engine/swingarm assembly in top shape. No misalignment nor movement among those parts. The following can cause squirrely at speed: ~ Check swing arm bearings are well greased and tightened. ~ Steering head is well greased and tightened. ~ Rear tire and front tire are aligned. Very important to correct any time the rear tire is removed. Check and adjustment requires a very long straight edge, LASER, or two people with a string. ~ On a Buell, worn or broken front or rear rubber engine mounts. This will allow the engine/swingarm assembly to move independently from the chassis. ~ Road surface and gusts of wind. | ||
| Upthemaiden |
"If the shock should break, the underside of the vehicle could drag on the ground, which may adversely affect handling" underside of the vehicle dragging on the ground MAY adversely affect handling. Bahaha who writes this stuff?? Thanks for that service bulletin though. I do have one of the 14" shocks and the matching front mount sitting on a shelf. I'll have to find some time to try to swap it on and set up it up now that I've got the instructions for it. Thanks for the link! | ||
| Captainkirk |
Well, it appears that preload is within limits when I'm on the bike...15.25" to be precise. Compression screw rear shock eye) was turned to the stop at "S" (S=soft, H=hard). Rebound screw (canister)had plenty of adjustment so I backed it out a full turn (towards "S"). I'll see if anything changed on my next ride. I have other maintenance I'm doing now so it may be a few days. Upthemaiden, all the service bulletins, etc are in the Knowledge Vault, here: http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/384 2/263547.html?1458420118 Pick through them and see which ones apply to yours. | ||
| Screamer |
I can’t open the ride apart attachment, so I apologize if I’m repeating info in the attachment. A key item is to be certain the belt is extremely loose before doing the preload adjustment. A belt can limit the movement during the adjustment and alter the correct preload setting. It was discovered (after releasing the late Showa shock) that using the “sag” method of preload adjustment was not accurate - because of the amount of sag/movement at the rear isolator gave a false measurement. Trying to adjust preload that included the isolator movement usually resulted in extremely harsh settings. This led to the shock stretch method of adjustment to which removes the isolator variable. I’ve installed the late Showa on four personal bikes and have had great success with both handling performance and durability (accumulated 60k mi.). | ||
| Upthemaiden |
I've been trying to picture myself laying on my seat and dangling over the side of my bike with a tape measure trying to get that that measurement before the whole bike tips over with me on it  | ||
| Captainkirk |
Definitely a two man job. Trust me on this. | ||
| Upthemaiden |
"~ When front forks and back shocks are properly set, while riding slowly and safely, standing on the pegs and jumping up and down, front and back of the motorcycle should move up and down together." I took a look the other day when I was riding past some large windows... when I stood up and bounced the bike the movement was pretty much all in the back end, so I'll have to stiffen up that rear to match the front. | ||
| Screamer |
I use a (about)17” piece of 1/4” steel rod, sharpened to a point with a rubber sleeve that fits snugly in the rear shock mounting bolt. The cable strap cut to a point can slide to be centered on the front mounting bolt. Measuring from point to point after having a helper center the cable strap point - is easier and less stressful (for your helper) than trying to measure the stretch on the bike.  | ||
| Screamer |
And… of course the measurement is taken with a rider, gear, and passenger if appropriate. | ||
| Jayvee |
Are the service bulletin measurements still valid for a Penske shock? It seems to give a range of 2 mm for the preload! If my adjustment needed is more or less than that, how many mm before it can cause problems? Or could I ask what measurement you wound up with for an M2 (2000 M2) with or without a Penske? | ||
| Captainkirk |
Not sure what measurements would be for the Penske. My "recall" Showa is showing 15.25" with me on board. Correct range per the SB is 15.2-15.5" so I'm right where I'm supposed to be, if I read things correctly. (Message edited by captainkirk on August 13, 2021) | ||
| 89rs1200 |
Preload is about keeping the shock working in it's mid-range so that it does not bottom out or sag. In other words, close enough is good, and can be changed as weight changes and fine tuned on a ride. Work on getting the compression and rebound correct. Note the stock shock is not that good at compression and rebound. As stated above concerning the belt; Putting the weight on the motor will show how tight the belt gets when the pulleys are furthest from each other. At that point, the belt should be just snug and no more. Might have read in other places on BadWeb people talking about "scarry loose". That is what you want. A belt that is way loose when no weight is in the saddle. Why? Because a too tight belt can lead to premature belt failure, or failure of the front sprocket bearing and seal. See the last photo of this thread; http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/476 23/712589.html | ||
| Upthemaiden |
Does anyone know the length of the longer 16" shock should measure with correct pre-load? I looked in the manual for my S1 but it lists the pre-load instructions for the exposed spring shock, and not the (16")covered version that I have. It gives the instructions to measure the squat(.25-.75") from the axle to the turn signal bolt. I'll still check it that way but I'd be curious to see how it compares. |
