[Needbout350]

It’s been a week and 250miles. The shock is a very nice upgrade. The ride is firm but still soaks up the bumps. The bike feels planted and is more composed in and out of corners. It’s much happier flicking from side to side and doesn't squat under power. On the highway big bumps and dips no longer result in riding the wave. The bike absorbs the bump then settles right back where it belongs.
I haven’t really had to mess with any of the settings as the factory settings for compression, rebound, and preload all feel very good for my 280lbs. I’d expect it to feel a bit stiff/harsh for any one under 200lbs.

The only down side is the shock is so good it highlights that the front is under damped. I think if I throw some emulators up front they will be a better match for the new shock. That will be a winter project tho.

I 100% recommend this shock swap to anyone looking for some improvement. I can’t say how it stacks up to the $800 aftermarket options but it’s worlds better than the stock shock. At $65 dollars shipped to my door it’s a no brainer for anyone looking for a budget upgrade.

 

[RichDesmond]

Ok I went and did the total rear sag and came up with 40mm. I read some where that total sag should be 1/3 of total travel which is 130mm so anything close to 43 is ideal. I’ll probably just leave it alone at this point. Unless someone else has seen other numbers. Let me know if I’m making sense...

The 1/3 number for sag has been quoted for decades, and for street bikes it's wrong. 30% is more accurate (and yes, the 3.333% makes a difference)
The other mistake is using the publish travel numbers from the OEM. They typically include the compression of the topout springs in the travel, and that's not a useful part of it.

Making things easier is the fact that most street bikes have almost the same travel, close to 4 1/2" (~115mm) If you use 35mm as you're target for total sag you should be fine.

 

[RichDesmond]

It’s been a week and 250miles. The shock is a very nice upgrade. The ride is firm but still soaks up the bumps. The bike feels planted and is more composed in and out of corners. It’s much happier flicking from side to side and doesn't squat under power. On the highway big bumps and dips no longer result in riding the wave. The bike absorbs the bump then settles right back where it belongs.
I haven’t really had to mess with any of the settings as the factory settings for compression, rebound, and preload all feel very good for my 280lbs. I’d expect it to feel a bit stiff/harsh for any one under 200lbs.

The only down side is the shock is so good it highlights that the front is under damped. I think if I throw some emulators up front they will be a better match for the new shock. That will be a winter project tho.

I 100% recommend this shock swap to anyone looking for some improvement. I can’t say how it stacks up to the $800 aftermarket options but it’s worlds better than the stock shock. At $65 dollars shipped to my door it’s a no brainer for anyone looking for a budget upgrade.

Springs in the forks are more important than the emulators. 0.95s and 15w oil.

 

[Needbout350]

Springs in the forks are more important than the emulators. 0.95s and 15w oil.

I went with 1.0 springs and 15w oil from sonic springs. It feels properly sprung now and was a huge improvement over stock.

It still lacks a bit on the dampening side tho even with 15w oil in there. I was pretty satisfied with my fork upgraded but now that the rear end is performing so much better it’s obvious that the front still needs some work. I’ll probably wait for a sale or get it as a nice Christmas present to myself.

 

[Needbout350]

The 1/3 number for sag has been quoted for decades, and for street bikes it's wrong. 30% is more accurate (and yes, the 3.333% makes a difference)
The other mistake is using the publish travel numbers from the OEM. They typically include the compression of the topout springs in the travel, and that's not a useful part of it.

Making things easier is the fact that most street bikes have almost the same travel, close to 4 1/2" (~115mm) If you use 35mm as you're target for total sag you should be fine.

Sounds good to me thanks for the info. I’ll throw a few turns of preload in there to get my sag closer to 35mm.