I have the bike up on a jack, do I need to raise up the rear wheel with a second Jack to take pressure off the shock before undoing the rear shock bolts?

Any helpful tips or tricks for this mod would be greatly appreciated. My downloaded service manual seems to be missing the chapter on shock removal/installation.

Thanks

 

I used my only jack to raise the bike until the back wheel is just about to (but doesn't) come off the ground, so there is hardly any force on the rear bolts.

The bolts are done up VERY VERY tightly (should be 121-136 ft-lbs, but mine were tighter than that from the factory), but should only have been fitted using blue loctite, not red, so heat should not be necessary.

I didn't manage to make any progress using a normal ring spanner and mallet (which is often suggested on here). Instead, I bought myself a 3ft breaking bar. You will need a torque adapter (right angle piece that allows you to get into the awkward space) to use a bar like this, but you'll need it again anyway for tightening them back up.

Be careful when leaning on the breaker bar: You'll need to put quite a bit of torque on those bolts to undo them, and this is easily enough to rotate the bike off the jack. I sat on the bike (which is still just about on the ground) and use a foot to press down on the breaker bar, so I could catch the bike if it started to come off.

Good luck, and let us know the model and year of your bike and we can get you the specific instructions for yours if you are missing it. (In my manual, it is under section 2.19.)

 

Just take the rear wheel off, it makes it a lot easier to get to. I used a 4' metal bar connected to a socket wrench via a water heating element to get mine broke loose.

 

Thanks. Sounds like an extra set of hands would help with this job... What exactly do you mean bey "torque adapter"? The only torque adapter I could find is a snap-on one for over $100....

Bike is a 2014 heritage softail classic. I'm definitely missing the section in the manual (paid for a downloaded version) that covers shock removal/installation.

Thanks

 

Yeah, I was hoping not to have to take the rear wheel off.

How did you get a socket onto the rear shock bolts? From what I can see only a ring end spanner will fit in that very cramped space.

 

They can be a pain in the butt if red loctite is on them. I use was is called a torque adapter. A short heavy duty 6 point box wrench with a 1/2 square in one end. That way, you can do it with bike on the ground. Box on bolt with 1/2" sq hanging down under bike. You put a long extension in the square and put your breaker bar on extension. At the end on the extension near the breaker bar, you shim up from the floor with a small jack or a stack of 2x4s and 1x4s to level. They pop right loose. I have always hesitated on heat on shock end and up under bike.

 

Oops, I lied. I used a wrech with an open end/box end combo to break it loose. After that it was loose, I used one of those nifty ractche wrenches to get it out the rest of the way.

 

When I swapped my shocks out with Progressive 422 RAPs, I recall raising the rear wheel just off the ground when removing the old shocks.

I don't recall the removal being a major issue, so it might be your bolts are just on tight.
I do recall losing a little bit of knuckle DNA on the job.

One other thing; once I got the bike jacked up I placed 4X4 dunnage on either side of the jack and lowered the bike frame onto the dunnage.
This allow for clear access to the shocks.

 

from 08 manual

 

Thanks, are you referring to the rear shock bolts or the front flange nuts??

If you are talking about the rear shock bolts I don't see how there is enough space under the bike if the bike is on the ground??