Regarding the tire mixing issue; I'll regurgitate something I read on the topic awhile back so,,,FWIW:

A pair of radials or a pair of bias tires is OK (obviously).

A radial on the rear and a bias on the front is OK (Breakouts come that way).

A radial on the front and a bias on the rear is a bad idea (per what I read).

I can't swear to the veracity of the last statement but did read as much so offer it here as a caution. Anyone contemplating biased rear and radial front should know what they're doing or find credible confirmation that its OK. I think it isn't.

 

Thanks Dog....yeah the front end redo is the next project (including tire). My indie contacted Racetech (he's a dealer) and told me the shock cost, so I presume they have something. I was just looking for a budget number for the back and didn't get into particulars, since the back shock is 'ok' (prefer better).

 

Can you see if you can find out what the "something" is?

 

Finally got this done this week. Had a little delay because my bike had gaters on it and they ripped getting them off so had to wait for new ones.

Either way, got 150 miles on it and love it. Nose dive is almost gone, turn in is much smoother, and I can take corners a lot faster and more aggressive without hitting my heels like I used to(Size 13 boots, heels hit before pegs do).

The brake pad number above in the quotes is correct. I'm not to sure if it's necessary, I think the stock pad may be do a lot better with the stiffer front end. It's a whole lot more comfortable grabbing a lot of front brake knowing the front end won't dive on you.

Now I need a rear shock solution, I was almost set on a Shotgun, but seems like weekly someone is posting about an issue with them. The rear is horrid now compared to the front.

 

Thanks for posting your impressions and results. nice improvement eh?

for the rear, there is nothing decent other than the Shotgun Shocks or Works shocks. AFAIK only the Shotgun Shock has any sort of rebound adjustment.

Yes overall I am disappointed too- none of the performance suspension manufacturers take Softail bikes seriously at all (other than for "cruiser" scenarios and typical air suspension raise / lower gadgetry), and we get charged a ridiculous high price tag for a limited selection of mediocre shocks.

 

Got more miles in today, the front end is so much better. Everyone should do this and the tires right away. Makes the bike feel 100 lbs lighter to me.

LA- rear shock dilemma is making me crazy. I know you didn't like the 422's, so I was gonna go with Works. Then I realized there is zero adjustment on them except for height, and that seems unacceptable to me. Arnott has a new shock, but it's unproven. Shotgun seems ok, but for the price it should be bullet proof. Are you happy with your Shotgun, and is it really $1000 better then the 422's?

 

Indeed- It is amazing how much new tires + fork springs / dampers changes everything about how the bike rides, turns and stops. Like 400% worth of improvement. It's very nice when a relatively low cost upgrade gives you so much back. The HH+ front brake pads help too, and, cheap $$.

I still have the 422's - some guys like them, and they probably ride fine, better than stock, if you leave the height at stock. it is only when you drop the bike 1.25" that it rides very poorly on the rebound. But this is JMHO, some guys like it and to them it rides fine. it's still better than stock, but just not that much and (JMHO) ridiculously overpriced for what they are.

Works makes GREAT shocks. I run their shocks on my Big Dog FXR chopper, triple adjustable. love it. I have their shocks on all my offroad bikes. killer. But their softail shocks? Good quality but no adjustability. I talked to them about it and they said that softails are not a popular bike and there is no interest in improving their suspension offering for them. Lame. I would not drop almost a grand on non-adjustable shocks. that is nuts.

Ohlins an RaceTech were supposed to come out with new offerings in a true fully adjustable set of rear softail shocks. but every time I have called them, both places, the projects are "on an undetermined schedule". Joy.

Really not much out there unfortunately for legit, performance oriented shocks with both compression and rebound adjustment- really sucks. I hope at least one vendor is listening and eventually steps up.

Still right now Shotgun seems to be your best bet, albeit a seemingly pricey one if you don't care about the push button raise and lower setup. I do know they have stellar service and they participate here often.

Me personally I don't care about changing the ride height I just want to set it once, then be able to click-adjust my rebound & compression for 2-up when needed.

 

GREAT WRITE UP!!!!!!!



Question time, I have your lil brother a rocker c, can I do this mod, I see they make 41mm Ricors,just not sure what spring to use, I sent them a email after reading this on if there parts will fit, and should I get progressive front springs or the racecraft? im all for it, the rocker needs it MORE trust me!!!, and the 422's not good to hear,

 

and works are great, I think I had triple rate for my quads, but defiantly ran nothing but works, they built them custom valving for my weight etc...great company...

 

Should work fine- I would call Ricor if you can, they unfortunately don't answer emails much. The parts will fit but you'll need to know how much fork oil to put in. Be sure to use 5w fork oil and not 10w, sometimes one of the jr tech's at Ricor will say get 10w but for Rocker / Breakout it is 5w.

I don't think there is any difference in length of fork tubes between Rocker and Breakout so I'm anticipating you could use the same amount of fork oil as I outlined for Breakout. Member 'Rocker B' might know since he owns both.

Never get progressive-rate front fork springs. in any bike (JMHO). Go with the exact RaceTech single rate springs as for the Breakout.

422's are better than stock and are an ok value if you can find them on sale. I just think they are a total rip for what they are trying to sell them for full price. Still seems that ShotgunShock is the best all around ride from what I keep hearing. Me personally I just don't want to install a compressor and air shocks. I'm sure a set of Works would ride very well, but again it just pains me to spend that much money on a set of non-adjustable shocks. that is just nuts. Works says that "softail shocks are not popular", well, if Works actually made a set of triple adjustable softail shocks priced around $900 / set I'd be all over it - and so would a lot of other softail owners...

The high quality shock companies (Ohlins, RaceTech, Works etc) keep saying the Softail is not a popular bike to make decent adjustable rear shocks for (which is a stupid thing to think, right?)- But if they never actually make the shocks to sell, they will never know how popular an item it will be. I think all of these companies are busy addressing other markets and to them, the HD market is very small in comparison / not worth the effort.