I need to lift the rear of the bike to swap out the shocks but I don't have a jack. Any suggestions on how to go about this?

 

Lift it by hand and put a log under it

 

It's true. A stock of lumber works too. If necessary, rock it back and forth while shimming under one side and then the other. As long as you change one shock at a time, you don't have to raise it much.

 

I built a jack out of 2 pieces of 2x8 glued and screwed together and then drill a hole and insert a metal pipe as a lever.

 

We had to balance a guy's tire on a trip and this is how we did it

 

A pic of wat Cripple is talking about.

 

Use the scissor or bottle jack from your car with a piece of wood.

 

Honestly, I would just go to Harbor Freight and buy a jack. It isn't necessary and many people come up with clever ideas or simply use a car jack, but when the time comes to really work on your bike you'll be grateful for the jack. I picked up their blue aluminum one for $150 or something; they have a cheaper one that recently went on sale. Don't forget to check their flyers for coupons.

 

Yeah that same blue jack they have at the harbor freight here is 289 plus tax So I haven't had the money to pick one up. Nonetheless, I got it up and progressives installed. Now to feel the difference on my way to work in the morning!. Thanks for the ideas guys!

 

Also note, if you are raising/lowering your shocks, a proper jack will make this job way easier. Watch some of the tutorials on youtube (J&P cycles one for instance) and you just pump the jack to the height of the new shock.