Rear shock

anyone have a stock one they want to get rid of seems my stocker is leaking oil at 24k miles.

I'll sell you mine for $595 plus shipping.......oddly enough, the exact cost of the Holeshot/Cogent shock I want!!!!!

Just kidding Roy..but, can the stockers get rebuilt cheap or are they throw aways?

I read somewhere of some one getting theirs redone. Will have to search for that one.

Typically the stock shocks are non-servicable. I found one on ebay, mileage unknown of course, may go that route anyway just hate to dump any money in this work horse. I just spent $200 on a chain and front sprocket last week, already had the rear one in hand. I only use this bike for touring these days so it does a lot of sitting at times.

I have seen stock shocks on eBay before and this one seller that has been selling 1250 parts for quite some time now says that he is parting out a bike and to inquire about other parts you need that may still have.

I have a Works shock on my Bandit but I still keep the stocker to install when I have to send the Works in to have it serviced.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SUZU...ies?hash=item4395a2f289&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245

I am looking to buy the Dale/Cogent shock on or abouts Nov 1st (commission check day). This one is totally serviceable and rebuildable and is recommended for every 2 years of 15K miles or so....just liike the forks.....and it has a big guy spring option!

Anyone bought the Holeshot Rear Shock yet and have a ride report opinion?



Phil

I was checking eBay today and theres a new guy up in Washington parting out a 1250 and he hasn't listed a shock but he may have one but just hasn't listed it yet, so maybe contact him and see if he has one.

I was looking specifically for an aftermarket really good shock as opposed to the budget shock that came with the bike - thanks though. As well, I am not going to pay a grand for an Ohlens! The holeshot fits the bill. A new factory non-serviceable shock is $540 - a high performance serviceable/rebuildable shock is $595. Go figure.

Has anyone checked to see if any other stock shock from a higher-spec bike (GSXR, R1, CBR-RR, ducati, etc) might fit? Sometimes that can be a way of getting a quality, rebuildable shock on the cheap

I have tried different after-market shocks on a couple different bikes. Allow me to share my stories:

For the BMW, I bought HyperPro springs more suitable for my weight. They worked quite well.... but then the OEM shocks onto which I put the springs, got tired & worn out and needed to be replaced. So I sent the shocks to a gentleman who rebuilt and converted OEM BMW shocks to gas charged. They may have been "rebuilt" & gas charged, but they were cheap and didn't last much longer after that. 60,000 miles on the Beemer.... and I wish I woulda just bought Works shock & springs from the git go. A package designed to work as a unit (instead of mixing "parts is parts"), is the better way to go.

I had a Sportster in the garage too.... I simply couldn't find a buyer for it. After 30,000 miles, the gas charged piggy-back OEM shocks needed to be replaced, so I bought some Works tailored for my weight. But I didn't listen to Works when they suggested that I would be sorry with "lowered" shocks.... I was; just too firm, no sag, and on real world tarmac, a ROUGH RIDE! I hadda pay them again to correct them to the right height.....

The Bonneville. I bought some Hagon shocks for it, and the Hagon rep' assured me that the spring was perfect for my weight.... NOT! I weighed 255 lb.s back then.... and the spring was waaaay undersprung for me. Don't believe a distant voice on the phone looking only to clear his inventory.....
When I took the Hagon shock to a local suspension guru, he hooked me up with the correct springs up front and married the correct spring to my Hagon. WOW! A suspension built for ME, both front & rear on the bike, dialed in with all the right sag, preload, rebound, compression dampings, etc!!! It was ORGASMIC to have a bike and suspension work right and add to my level of comfort!

The FZ1..... I bought the right springs for my weight, had the internals lowered front & rear (the Fizzy is a tall bike), and adjusted everything juuuust right. The bike handled well, and I rarely drug hard parts on the most aggressive of rides, but the ride really SUCKED! There was no initial sag to absorb irregularities on the road, it was a ROUGH ride.....

--- What have I learned from it all? ---

1) Avoid mixing different suspension "parts is parts".
2) Marry front suspension components to matching rear suspension components.
3) You can't rebuild cheap stuff and expect it to be better than.... cheap stuff.
4) If it wasn't made for your bike, for your weight, for your riding style, your cutting corners with predictable results.
5) If you're gonna lower your suspension, do it right. And accept that your ride comfort will be compromised.
6) Buy from people you can TRUST.

I'm buying the shock from Holeshot!
A lot of work went into dialing in the Cogent rear shock available through Dale Walker of Holeshot. It was designed for the Bandit 1250, it's available in two different spring rates.... one if your a featherweight, another if you're a heavyweight with hard luggage. Spring rate, rebound, compression, quality components all in one package..... and a matching package of springs & valving up front.

Cutting corners has NOT worked for me, in fact it's cost me MORE money. I'm buying the heavy spring shock from Holeshot.... then the front springs from Cogent. A good suspension on the Bandit will make it feel like a $16,000 designer-name machine. They say the ride is MUCH improved with a good rear shock.

Well........$607 later shipped to my door, my new Holeshot/Cogent Dynamics Shock is on it's way to my home. I plan on installing this thing sometime late next week. I have a ride to Mid Ohio Race Track on the 12th to see the races, so I may install this thing when I get back just in case I screw something up and can't reverse it and jeopardize my ride on the 12th.

Either way..........front and rear suspension will now be complete.

I will photo-document this swap out when i do it - even though it looks uber easy.

Later - Phil

Installing a shock is typically pretty straightforward - not a lot to really go wrong, I'd put it in and have fun with it on the trip!

BikePilot said:

Installing a shock is typically pretty straightforward - not a lot to really go wrong, I'd put it in and have fun with it on the trip!

Click to expand...

It only takes about 10 minutes to R&R the rear shock on the Bandit, so like you said install it before the trip.

Can the Holeshot/Cogent shocks be rebuilt? How long does a good shock last and how many times can they be rebuilt before they're done?

GregH said:

Can the Holeshot/Cogent shocks be rebuilt? How long does a good shock last and how many times can they be rebuilt before they're done?

Click to expand...

Rick told me to service it every 15K or 2-3 years. It is obviously serviceable and completely rebuildable. I do not have costs to do so. I am still working through the $600 shock shock!!!

I am soooo jealous; what a good purchase!

I met a gentleman who put a Holeshot/Cogent on his Bandit, he said it transformed the bike. Not only did his ride improve, making it much smoother.... he said the bike would stay the course while leaned over, no longer hopping and changing it's line mid-course.

I need it because my factory shock's damping is really tired. On those spirited runs where the shock gets hot, it compresses to the point of allowing my bike to drag parts during high speed sweepers. I have beveled down one side of my Rentec engine guards, and my sexy new belly pan touches down and drags on the tarmac on both sides of the bike.

In addition, I firmly believe that the $500 we spent for our ABS is almost wasted when the suspension is allowed to get tired and ineffective at doing it's job. My ABS computer is often fooled into thinking that simple bumps in the road is a condition for the ABS to kick in.... causing the bike to "freewheel" beyond my anticipated point of stopping.

Looking forward to hear how quickly your "shock shock" will wear off, and to hear what YOU think of your upgrade!

Fittysom'n said:

In addition, I firmly believe that the $500 we spent for our ABS is almost wasted when the suspension is allowed to get tired and ineffective at doing it's job. My ABS computer is often fooled into thinking that simple bumps in the road is a condition for the ABS to kick in.... causing the bike to "freewheel" beyond my anticipated point of stopping.

Looking forward to hear how quickly your "shock shock" will wear off, and to hear what YOU think of your upgrade!

Click to expand...

We?!?!? I had never had ABS before and was a bit reluctant to buy it, so I saved the $500. Plus, RED is much cooler and was a non-ABS color!!!! Take that Greg!

On the shock though, I have never riden a bike with a great suspension made to my spec's, so this will be interesting. When it comes to dampening settings, the difference between 30-35-40-45 mm's sag, I am unclear of the "ride results", but Dale, as usual, will work wiith me to set it up in all aspects and will do so even after I have some time in the seat and on the shock as well to experiment.

This is just another reason that Holeshot will continue to get my business (TFI, brake parts, header (there ya go KenB and IndyBandit), and so on. His customer service is unsurpassed.

I had like wise with Fifty on ABS releases on my R11** BMW's. Some of the roads, well lots of the roads, down here in South Louisiana are really pretty choppy from our soft based land on which to put roadways. Many times, hard on the brakes, the front tire skipped over a little bump and the ABS released the brake. Talk about a pucker factor when coming into a corner already very close to the edge.
Guess that this winter I'll have to budget about 900 bucks to the Bandit's suspension. Shock in the back and Gold Valves and spring in the front. Since after 14 months and 20,000 miles on this RED Bandit, it's going to be a keeper, I may as well upgrade the Tired suspension.

I had that notorious servo ABS on my '01 BMW R1150R.... I was one of the few riders who had no objection to how it operated. 60,000 miles in the saddle, and I have no stories of how ABS saved my skin. I started running lower air pressures in my tires to address the wheel hop. It really cut down my freewheeling surprises significantly. By the way, I had to pay an additional $1,500 for BMW's ABS.

So on a couple outings recently (when I shouldn't have been on the bike), I ran 36 psi up front and 38 psi in the back tire. This, while running my new Givi hard bags. I used to run 38/42 all the time on the Bandit. While out with lower psi in my tires, I had no issues with my ABS kicking in when it shouldn't have. Don't know why I didn't think to do it during the previous 16,000 miles......

After bending a front wheel on my '97 R11R and never feeling the bump that did it, I'm always reluctant to to run very low front pressures. Our roads just are not that good here on south Louisiana Back roads where I prefer to run. I do my best to keep my front at 36 to 38. Rear at least near 40. Course, I don't have to deal with ABS on my Bandit or DR650 .

achesley,

Those three spoke mags on the older 1100R models were known to be susceptible to bending. That's what started the rumor to run higher air pressures in tires mounted on BMW wheels.
But I think higher air pressures is a good way to prevent a wheel from bending easily. My buddy bent both wheels on his 1100S, even though they weren't the old three spoke design. 'Stuff' happens.

Holeshot Rear Shock Installation Post:

Hi Guys:

Well, I did it. Now I am $600 poorer, but tons happier on the bike.
Here's how it's done.

Step 1: Call Dale at 831-761-2808 and order a heavy spring version for all of
us over 225 lbs or a standard version for those of you smaller. They are both
$595 plus about $20 US shipping.

Step 2: Put the bike up on the center stand.



Step 3: Lock in the rear tire so the swingarm/rear tire combination does not
hit the floor when the shock is removed.



Step 4: Remove the seat and left side cover as you will need access to this hole to get to the top of the shock bolt/nut.



Step 5: Remove the lower shock bolt but leave the center cushion lever bolt
in - no real need to remove it unless you want to clean and grease it. Then remove the foward cushion lever bolt.



Step 6: Now remove the upper shock bolt and the shock will drop out the bottom.



Step 7: Sell your shock and admire your new one!!
Here it is - soon to be for sale on Ebay!!!!
Only 11,000 miles and in great shape. Make me an offer!!!!
Here is the new unit - MUCH BEEFIER and very very very high quality.



Step 8: Clean and repack the cushion lever spacers and bearings.



Step 9: Insert the shock into the bike from the bottom but do
not insert the shock bolts. Insert the forward cushion lever bolt first.



Step 10: Insert the lower rear shock bolt second.



Step 11: Insert the upper shock bolt last. The length of this shock
may be longer or shorter than the one you just dropped on the floor.
So, raise or lower your rear tire to align the upper shock bolt holes.



Step 12: Admire how good it looks on the bike and how good it
feels under your butt!!



Step 13: Now you need to set the sag and rebound to your liking and loading. Call Dale - he will help you out if you buy it from him.

Ride report coming soon - like next week.

Later - Phil

Phil
Great write up and great pictures. Dang man, You're fixing to cost me some money. ha ha ha . Well heck. Just sold my DR today to get back to just one bike so what the heck.

Well Phil,
they say timing is everything.... and your posts are synchronicity at it's best. I followed your pictorial to remove my secondaries, and it looks like I'll be following your tutorial for shock replacement as well.

Long story of what led up to my decision to jump, Jump, JUMP!
(and what if any of my stories are NOT long.....?)

I called Dale for his Stage 2 TFI settings, and commented about my bike's head shake and wallowing with all my hard bags I recently put into place. He said that his fork brace should do the trick, that people with added weight on the back of the Bandit (hard bags & top box), and/or folk who charge heavily into corners could easily benefit from his brace. He pointed out how (fatter) tubes and (inverted) front-ends on most modern bikes are waaaay more heavy duty and up to the rigors of aggressive riding & touring than the old fashion tubes on our 1250's.
Whip me, beat me, make me write bad checks....
Connie took my phone number and will call me when they come in.

I told Dale of how my new belly pan is dragging on both sides, and that my crash bars are dragging on one side. He suggested that I might consider a cheaper alternative to his $600 shock, that I consider his dog bones to raise the rear end of my bike. At 5' 2" and unable to touch the ground right now, raising the bike was not a reasonable option.

He then went on to tell me how he's moving his operation to Nevada, won't have money enough to buy but only a couple shocks at a time from Cogent, and that he has only one left..... but it was spoken for.

I've got a nice bike, and I shouldn't ride it to it's potential??? And given as how I tend to forget that I'm NOT a smooth and skilled rider.... well, I could put myself in a position of bike wallow, front end wiggle, and generally getting out of control...... I need all the help I can get, I need a suspension that WORKS!

So I called Dale of 'Holeshot' back, and expressed interest in the next shock absorber with a heavy duty spring that he gets in. I gotta do what I gotta do, and I gotta do it now. All his money will soon be going into moving/shipping all of his stuff, machinery, Dyno, etc. outa state and into Nevada. And a 'supply' of Bandit shock absorbers is just too expensive for him to order just prior to Winter..... I hadda move on it, I hadda JUMP, and apparently I'm willing to pay 12% interest to borrow the money from my overdraft protection line of credit that I just paid off...... I got little self discipline.

Phil,
I hope to use your pictures soon..... I just ordered a new $hock absorber!

Fittysom'n said:

Phil,
I hope to use your pictures soon..... I just ordered a new $hock absorber!

Click to expand...

Well then..perhaps a deal on some Holeshot stuff is in the future for my "endorsements"!!!!!