Anyone know the wrench size of the jam nut on the 2012 Deluxe Softail shocks?..Harley made it impossible to get in there with an adjustable, and my wrenches only go up to 1". I will buy the wrench, but I need to know the size. I have the spanner, but I can't use it till the jam nut is loose. And to hold the shock shaft with 1 wrench and then get the jam nut wrench in there, it's just too small for an adjustable. Thanks Blooz

 

N/M..I just figgered out that the spanner wrench will work for that...Duuuuuhh!!!

 

thanx - I didn't know that...

 

Well thank God I will only have to do this once. The spanner wrench is so short, I can't get enough leverage to break the jam nut loose. Someone at the factory really tightened these nuts. To top it off, the only position I can get the 9/16 wrench on the flats of the shaft directly interferes with the only position the spanner wrench will fit on the jam nut. Im going to have to go get a piece of angle iron and drill 2 holes in it to match the holes in the spanner wrech shank. Then fasten the angle iron onto the spanner wrench with bolts so I can get some leverage to break the jam nut loose. Who ever invented this system should be taken out back and shot! They put a frame brace right in the way...To make matters worse, the manual says to adjust the shocks with the bike on the jiffy stand. lol...There isnt even 6 inches clearance to do that..They're crazy!

 

It really helps to spray the threads down with penetrating oil and clean the threads with a brush before you start.

 

Yeah, I thought they were crazy too when they said I could do it all on the jiffy. Well, I found out they were right. I soaked the jam nut and threads with PB Blaster and let it sit over night and then took a 1 1/16" open end wrench and cut it to the same length as the spanner. I put the spanner and the open end on at the same time, with a pair of work gloves on, gave it a good squeeze and POP they were loose!

 

The rear tire needs to be lifted to allow more access to the nuts. I jack up my bike and put a stool under the rear wheel. I lower the jack gently to lift the wheel a bit and lock the jack. You will now have plenty of room to clear the brace. That's why the manual says do it on the jiffy.

 

I've got a slim and laughed when I tried to adjust on the jiffy.
Bought a jack. Then had to remove that cross brace in the jack. Sigh.

 

I finally got mine done. I had to actually make an extension for the spanner to get leverage. The hardest part was loosening the jam nuts. Once that was done, I made the adjustments in about 2 minutes..For some reason, the jam nuts were super tight. I dont know why they didn't move the frame brace 1" further towards the front. Whew...Glad that's over!

 

I've used a floor jack for a car for changing the shocks.