V7II Stone Rear Shock Preload Problem

[swordds]

I am a fairly light rider, less than 140 lbs. I have fully reduced the spring adjustment on the rear shocks but they are still a little too stiff. As adjusted from the shop I was considering buying a mouth guard to keep from chipping a tooth when I hit a bump and things are better than that now but I still feel the ride is more harsh than it needs to be. Are there "softer" springs available or other simple solutions?

[pyoungbl]

You won't like the solution....new shocks and softer springs in the forks.  Seriously, the OEM shocks are pretty crappy.  There are a few aftermarket shocks that won't break the bank and can be built to match your weight.  I got .80 springs from RaceTech for the front end because once I fixed the shocks it showed how stiff the forks were.

Here's one sample: http://www.davequinnmotorcycles.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/HAGON_TWIN_SHOCKS.html

Peter Y.

[tonUPRacer]

I am a fairly light rider, less than 140 lbs. I have fully reduced the spring adjustment on the rear shocks but they are still a little too stiff. As adjusted from the shop I was considering buying a mouth guard to keep from chipping a tooth when I hit a bump and things are better than that now but I still feel the ride is more harsh than it needs to be. Are there "softer" springs available or other simple solutions?

I was told the stock shocks are rated for the average 175lb rider. I'm in your weight class, since my Racer has BiTubos, I chose to get new weight-rated springs from Race Tech, made a big difference. Since you are a lightweight like I am, I highly suggest replacing those with something specific to your weight. GuzziTech as lots of options, some are very pricey, all are high quality and better than what is on the bike.

[frans belgium]

Are you sure the rear shock is the culprit?  Sometimes a lighter oil in the front fork might help?

[swordds]

I suspect that fixing the rear shock will highlight the problem with the front fork. I may just talk to the dealer about making the changes when I bring it in for the 6000 mile service, that will give me some time to save some money and I don't feel up to fooling with the front forks.

[Penderic]

Here is your problem.





Notice the disassembled rear shock on the right. Not only is the shock a bit oversprung, but it is overdamped too. It will actually pump up and get stiffer when going over a series of bumps.

Also notice the big yellow bump stop. That there is 1/3 of the available travel on the rear shock!!!

Advise you to put on a set of Ikons or other aftermarket shocks. I put on YSS shocks, which work well -the one shown on the left, and other than the crappy, rusty YSS springs and crappy, rusty YSS shrouds, the YSS damper section works much better that the stocker.

[ohiorider]

The 'new' Bonnevilles (2001-2016) came with shocks and forks that caused similar problems.  My 2003 T100 rear shocks were really oversprung and had too little rebound damping to control the springs .... so the bike kicked like a bucking bronco over humps and bumps.  Upon the advice of a Bonnie rider I respected, I installed a set of Progressive 440 shocks.  I should have contacted Progressive before ordering the shocks, since the mail order house simply had 'one size spring fits all.'  I sent the shocks to Progressive after finding the springs on mine were for a much heavier bike.  Once the correct springs were installed, the rear suspension improvement was like day and night.

The front fork had issues, but as I recall, the front suspension was mostly made up of long pre-load spacers with short springs providing suspension travel.  I replaced those with aftermarket springs.

Problem needed one more tweak.  I found that, perhaps as critical as fork oil weight, fork oil level was crucial.  Too much air in the top of the fork tube, and the ride is mushy.  Too little air 'cushion' and the front was like a jackhammer over bumps.

Although it is a small PITA, I 'suspect' the cheapie front forks on the V7 Series are much like the Kayaba forks on the Bonnie.  No preload, no compression, no damping adjustments.  The up side was ..... they were simple to remove, and simple to remove the top cap to access fork oil.

Once removed and pumped dry, I used a simple Turkey baster marked in increments to suck out a measured amount of fork oil.  I went thru a wide range over time, from 120mm below top of collapsed fork legs to (as I recall) 160-170mm below the top of the tube.  It was important to record the previous level for the next adjustment, if required.

Here was my simple setup.



From what I've read, if and when I purchase a V7/V7II, I'll be going thru the same routine.