I recently got a pretty nice raise at work and decided its time to finally get better suspension to avoid the peg scraping. I have a 2014 Iron and I know it has 11" shocks and they hurt over bumps. I am 5'7" and have high pipes so I cant keep my right leg very tight to the bike. I have an inseam of about 29" and where I am at is to get the most spring length without going too high and not being able to touch both feet at intersections because I rarely ride in boots. Has anybody around my height had experience with 13" shocks? I really enjoy the look of 13" shocks but I worry they will just be too long and I actually need 12. And nobody around me has a similar bike so I cant just sit on others to gauge it.

 

I have been pondering 13" shocks on my 48 as well. My Bobcat exhaust scrapes way too easily when leaning over. I put my motorcycle jack under the rear frame, lifted it 2" and sat on the bike to get a feel for it. You must also take your weight into consideration for rear sag while your seated.

 

You could get the 13" shocks that you like and install 1" lowering blocks.
http://dkcustomproducts.com/1-Loweri...-SPT05UP-B.htm

 

My (UK Spec) Iron has 13" shocks n it as standard and I changed them to 13" RK shocks. For me the stance is just right and keeps the exhausts in line with the road, if you see what I mean, and looks just right. I've still dragged the pipes once or twice so wouldn't want the bike any lower tbh.

Only pics I have to hand is with the bike on the side stand. I can take some later with the bike upright at balance point if you want.











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Ideas like this are why i came here. Ill look into these. But i see what you mean about the 13's looking just right and i cant tell of they put the 11 on the US model so women are less intimidated or some market research said the US liked that look more. I will be at a large bike event tomorrow and hopefully i will find a similar bike that has longer shocks on it i could sit on.

 

I have also been thinking about the roadking shocks and i realized i knew nothing about them? Did you have to modify anything or they just slipped on? Are they more of a comfort deal or do you notice more playfulness in the bike? I never knew if people put these on because there was some great performance benfit to those shocks or the air shocks just made the ride smoother.

 

I just put 12" Progressive 444's on my Iron and it only raised it a little bit but the ride is fantastic now.

 

They fit straight on with only the addition of 8 washers as spacers (2 on each bolt). They have much better damping characteristics and I find my bike holds its line round corners much better with these on. The standard shocks used to bounce me off line.

I got some great advice from the guys on here when I asked in this thread. https://www.hdforums.com/forum/sport...-question.html

 

My 2011 Low XL1200L had 11.5" stock shocks. I am vertically challenged so I had to lower both my seat and the shocks in order to plant both feet on the ground. I am using Burly 10.5" slammer shocks and Mustang Tripper Fastback 2-up seat. I do not go on long trips and I like the slammed look so my set-up is fine to me.
Not sure what kind of seat you have but changing the seat also can change the height and/or comfort. That being said, if comfort is an issue, you can also use longer lowering blocks (i.e. 1.75") and install a more comfortable seat...or if height is still an issue, changing the seat can also lower you a little more but you will sacrifice some comfort.
Just another thought to consider.

 

I got the biltwell seat because it is nice and thin and that got me closer to the ground for sure and i still have my youth so my butt hurting isnt a huge deal. At 11 inches i am perfectly comfortable at intersections and now i just want to go as high as possible before i cant get both feet on the ground.
As bogie mentioned i will probably end up with the 12" progressives but i was just wondering how high i could go because on the angle 1 inch of spring length isnt exactly 1 inch of seat height.