Shock Adustment

Well I feel like a fool, but after 40 years of riding bikes I have never adjusted the spring on the rear shock. I would not admit this to you in person, but I feel hidden here on the net. So o.k., jack it up so rear is off the floor; loosen the lock nut with a punch and hammer; here is where I'm a little timid.....can I turn the adjusting nut by gabbing the spring and turning it or do I turn the adjusting nut with a punch and hammer? I want to tighten it and I don't what to strip the treads!!.......Thanks for any help and if you make fun of me I'll track you down and ......well probably not much since I'm 70 and getting a little feebleand a little fat which is why I need to tighten the spring!

there are two spanner/tabbed preload threaded pieces. they are threadlocked together. Take a small driver and a hammer and loosen one or the other, preferrably the one away from the spring. then tighten the one next to the spring to the preload you want; then tighten the other one to lock both in place; I put a drop of blue loctite on the thread and let it seep into the threaded joint. If the spring rotates, don't worry about it. I'm 70 too.

If this doesn't feel ok to you... put the moto on a jack stand and remove the rear shock from the moto, two bolts, one top and one bottom. Then the shock is out where you can really see what's going on and fix the preload. It's a strong spring btw.

the only way you can screw it up is to bugger the threads, so watch for that.

taoshum wrote:

there are two spanner/tabbed preload threaded pieces. they are threadlocked together. Take a small driver and a hammer and loosen one or the other, preferrably the one away from the spring. then tighten the one next to the spring to the preload you want; then tighten the other one to lock both in place; I put a drop of blue loctite on the thread and let it seep into the threaded joint. If the spring rotates, don't worry about it. I'm 70 too.

If this doesn't feel ok to you... put the moto on a jack stand and remove the rear shock from the moto, two bolts, one top and one bottom. Then the shock is out where you can really see what's going on and fix the preload. It's a strong spring btw.

the only way you can screw it up is to bugger the threads, so watch for that.

Taoshum, I'm not quite sure how to tighen the spring nut down. Hammer and driver, turn the spring by hand. I'm afraid that if I turn the nut with a hammer and driver while the nut is under pressure from the spring ,I could strip the threads. I'm I being too much of a wimp here?

It's a piece of cake with a hammer and punch. You won't screw it up.

Sarah

The only way you'd be able to turn it by hand (and with a spanner wrench at that) is if you removed the shock from the bike and put it in a bench-mounted vise.

Everybody I know uses a hammer and drift to knock the lock nuts around in order to save a whole lot of time.
In my experience, as long as you don't smash the nuts or threads with the drift because you were careless, you'll be fine.
You will probably slightly mushroom the part of the nuts where you hit them, but that's normal enough.
Cleaning the threaded part of the shock absorber body and giving the threads a squirt of oil helps.
You'll probably find it wasn't as tough as you feared. :)

YZEtc wrote:

The only way you'd be able to turn it by hand (and with a spanner wrench at that) is if you removed the shock from the bike and put it in a bench-mounted vise.

Everybody I know uses a hammer and drift to knock the lock nuts around in order to save a whole lot of time.
In my experience, as long as you don't smash the nuts or threads with the drift because you were careless, you'll be fine.
You will probably slightly mushroom the part of the nuts where you hit them, but that's normal enough.
Cleaning the threaded part of the shock absorber body and giving the threads a squirt of oil helps.
You'll probably find it wasn't as tough as you feared. :)

Ah, what a help this site is. Thank you all for you advice. I'm off to garage with my hammer and drift . Never owned a bike with a suspension worth adjusting before. I had my XT550 for 23 years and never bought anything for it other other than a chain and sprockets. I've had the X for three weeks and all I want to do is buy it nice things and adjust this and that, and ride the hell out of it.

mordicai wrote:

taoshum wrote:

there are two spanner/tabbed preload threaded pieces. they are threadlocked together. Take a small driver and a hammer and loosen one or the other, preferrably the one away from the spring. then tighten the one next to the spring to the preload you want; then tighten the other one to lock both in place; I put a drop of blue loctite on the thread and let it seep into the threaded joint. If the spring rotates, don't worry about it. I'm 70 too.

If this doesn't feel ok to you... put the moto on a jack stand and remove the rear shock from the moto, two bolts, one top and one bottom. Then the shock is out where you can really see what's going on and fix the preload. It's a strong spring btw.

the only way you can screw it up is to bugger the threads, so watch for that.

Taoshum, I'm not quite sure how to tighen the spring nut down. Hammer and driver, turn the spring by hand. I'm afraid that if I turn the nut with a hammer and driver while the nut is under pressure from the spring ,I could strip the threads. I'm I being too much of a wimp here?

If you feel enough resistance to bother you, put a small dab or squirt of lube on the threads and between the nut and the spring. Probably need to clean this lube off later so you don't pick up dust or have it work loose. If it really bothers you, get a spring compressor and compress the spring before changing the preload. You should be fine without this however.

taoshum wrote:

mordicai wrote:

taoshum wrote:

there are two spanner/tabbed preload threaded pieces. they are threadlocked together. Take a small driver and a hammer and loosen one or the other, preferrably the one away from the spring. then tighten the one next to the spring to the preload you want; then tighten the other one to lock both in place; I put a drop of blue loctite on the thread and let it seep into the threaded joint. If the spring rotates, don't worry about it. I'm 70 too.

If this doesn't feel ok to you... put the moto on a jack stand and remove the rear shock from the moto, two bolts, one top and one bottom. Then the shock is out where you can really see what's going on and fix the preload. It's a strong spring btw.

the only way you can screw it up is to bugger the threads, so watch for that.

Taoshum, I'm not quite sure how to tighen the spring nut down. Hammer and driver, turn the spring by hand. I'm afraid that if I turn the nut with a hammer and driver while the nut is under pressure from the spring ,I could strip the threads. I'm I being too much of a wimp here?

If you feel enough resistance to bother you, put a small dab or squirt of lube on the threads and between the nut and the spring. Probably need to clean this lube off later so you don't pick up dust or have it work loose. If it really bothers you, get a spring compressor and compress the spring before changing the preload. You should be fine without this however.

Thanks Taoshum. I've got my Big Hammer and I'm goin at it. A shock compressor sounds like open heart surgery. Any idea who makes a good replacement shock? Anybody what to buy a brand new slightly fucked up WR250 shock?

Come on back and confess...how'd it go?

Sarah

p.s. I know exactly how you feel when it comes to the wrenching. I'm a cavewoman myself....

mordicai wrote:

I've got my Big Hammer and I'm goin at it.

Have you undone the locking nut?

There should be two "nuts" on the top of the spring, the top nut is the locknut.

greer wrote:

Come on back and confess...how'd it go?

Sarah

p.s. I know exactly how you feel when it comes to the wrenching. I'm a cavewoman myself....

I've been waiting for my Yamalink to arrive which came yesterday , so hopefully I'll get the deed done today. Bought a brass drift for the job.

greer wrote:

Come on back and confess...how'd it go?

Sarah

p.s. I know exactly how you feel when it comes to the wrenching. I'm a cavewoman myself....

Well Sarah my hammer isn't big enough and I haven't even gotten to the schock yet. Been trying to mount the Yamalink. Should be a piece of cake except I cant get the old link off!!@#@#%% That thing it tight. I've run a bolt through the bottom and tried knocking it off with a hammer. Got in half way and it's stuck. I don't think I've got cockeyed, but that sucker is dead stuck. All I can think of is heating the mount which I would do if it was steel, but I'm not familiar with Aluminum andf I don't know if that would work. I'm going to get a buzz on.

Loosen the nut for the swingarm pivot bolt.

mordicai wrote:

greer wrote:

Come on back and confess...how'd it go?

Sarah

p.s. I know exactly how you feel when it comes to the wrenching. I'm a cavewoman myself....

Well Sarah my hammer isn't big enough and I haven't even gotten to the schock yet. Been trying to mount the Yamalink. Should be a piece of cake except I cant get the old link off!!@#@#%% That thing it tight. I've run a bolt through the bottom and tried knocking it off with a hammer. Got in half way and it's stuck. I don't think I've got cockeyed, but that sucker is dead stuck. All I can think of is heating the mount which I would do if it was steel, but I'm not familiar with Aluminum andf I don't know if that would work. I'm going to get a buzz on.

Just a little out of square. A little tap here a little tap there and there she is.Motto is a little hammer is often more helpful then a big one. Sag adjusted , chain adjusted. RIDING TOMORROW!

There you go!!

Sarah

New to the WR community. Just wanted to say thanks for the input on the this particular thread. Picked up my 09 WR all set up for a shorter rider, so been getting it set back up to the height I like. Appreciated the useful tips regarding the pre-load "hammer-punching". Thanks.

I've been riding an 08 KLR for the past 3 years and this new-to-me WR seems to be the answer. Just need winter to pass quickly now, so I can put some trail kms on the new beast.

Sproat Sport wrote:

New to the WR community. Just wanted to say thanks for the input on the this particular thread. Picked up my 09 WR all set up for a shorter rider, so been getting it set back up to the height I like. Appreciated the useful tips regarding the pre-load "hammer-punching". Thanks.

I've been riding an 08 KLR for the past 3 years and this new-to-me WR seems to be the answer. Just need winter to pass quickly now, so I can put some trail kms on the new beast.

Your welcome. Sweet bike. Your going to love it. I came from a 650 and never looked back