I am looking for the best replacement shock for the 2019 Softail Slim...

I would go with RWD but his are only available in 13.5" which would raise the rear of the slim too much.
I've heard the 13" Ohlins aren't trhat great and can still be a harsh / firm ride.

I'm looking for max comfort over bad roads and have never ridden or considered air rides. In theory it sounds great, but I don't want to be bouncing down the road if you know what I mean. So far I see that Legends and Arnott's do AIR rides for 2018 + softails.

Thanks for any wadvive.

 

I had run the Platinum Air on an old 2018 Breakout.

I was after a lowered look with that particular build. That is my only experience with an air ride system and after that shock, I said I would never do it again. The ride was terrible and when the system failed it left me stranded a few hours from home.

I can't speak to Legends or Arnott's system. I do have the Legends Revo A on my 21 FXLRS and it's not great.

 

Okay, this'll sound stupid, but before you spend anything, verify that your preload setting is correct, it can make a HUGE difference!

So, long story but, I shattered my spine a couple of years ago and couldn't ride for 2 years. Had 7 vertebrae fused, which means that instead of a giant multi-piece shock absorber in my back, I have a solid hunk of titanium. Which means that whenever I go over a bump, the entire weight of my upper torso slams down as one onto my remaining normal vertebrae, and it's really, REALLY uncomfortable.

So I started shopping for shock absorbers, looking for that "floating" ride. Thought about trading in the bike for a long-travel adventure bike with 7" or more of shock travel, etc. On a lark, I looked at the preload setting. Apparently when I got the bike, five years ago, I figured "well, sometimes I'll be riding solo, sometimes 2-up, sometimes with luggage, so I'll put the preload at about halfway between, set it and forget it." Which meant that the preload was set at 2.5, which is a setting for about 100 pounds more than I weigh. And when I had a working spine, it was fine, I never had a problem with the ride. But now that I'm super-sensitive to jolts and bumps, something had to change, so I looked up the chart and found that for my weight, the preload should actually be at zero. So I spun that adjuster all the way out, and went for a ride, and DAMN was it so much better! I went out looking for train tracks and potholes to ride through, and the bike practically glided through them. The improvement was so dramatic you'd have thought I'd gone and spent for a touring bike with air suspension.

My Fat Bob has 4.7" of shock travel, and now that the preload is set correctly, it rides great, and I am extremely satisfied and quit looking at alternative suspension options. Can't say you'll have the same experience, but just raising it as a possibility for you to check on in case it helps.

 

I have the Platinnum Air Suspension on both my FXBB and FLFB, happy with it.

 

what did you do about the stand on the fatboy?

 

I don't quite understand your question, I also have the Platinum Air Suspension installed on that ( Fat Boy is the FLFB ) Is in the lowest and highest position in the photo.

 

ok. In the lowest position, does the sidestand still work properly.

 

Yes, no problem at all, same on the FXBB, no alterations done to the sidestand.

 

Thanks for the reply. ​​​​​​​can you tell me a little more about the characteristics of the air ride, compared to the conventional coil monoshock?

Is it a bouncy ride? Or nice and smooth?

​​​​​​​Cheers

 

What are those Front axle covers?