Anyone tried lower rear shocks?

[rpeckham136133]

I have a real interest in lowering my '75 R60/6, as I have, to put it bluntly, short legs. I hate standing on tippy toes! Am thinking that I can replace the rear standard shock/springs with something shorter: stock is 13.5", there surely are shorter shocks that will work? Any thoughts? Opinions?

Bob Peckham
Vero Beach FL

[35303]

I use 12.5 inch Progressive shocks 12-1201B with with 90/130 springs. This drops the seat about an inch. Boots with thick soles and heels such as the River Road Field Boot add an inch at the pavement.

[tghsmith]

the shorter shocks will work fine, solo or two up depending on weight, check clearances and make sure the rear fender is centered over the tire to prevent any rubbs(there is a little wiggle room with the rear fender mounting bolts) another route to take is a custom seat, I made one so my 6'2'' frame gets behind the rs fairing, my wife r100t has both the short shocks and a modified seat but then she's 5'2''!!!

[20774]

Wasn't there an article in the MOA News in the past 6 months about someone who lowered their bike by changes to the seat? Changing only one end of the bike is going to upset the geometry in terms of handling and stability, etc. Be careful when you do something like that...

Also, try an advanced search using the word "lowering" (without the quotes) and search only the Airheads forum. You'll find there's been previous discussions on this topic...one about lowering a /6.

[tghsmith]

the problems with the changes to the wifes include scuffing the browns side stand and flat out leaving me in the tight twisties...

[rpeckham136133]

A thanks to all... my previous archive search had been less than informative, finally figured out how to get Airhead only material, and found some good threads... All in all, take the frame geometry changes carefully, for sure. Will hack away at the seat problem... A fun thing for my son and I to work on: he is getting me into a custom seat job for our airhead-to-be-cafe'd-in-the-not-too-distant-future.... Photo shows some cosmetically-challenged, but nonetheless "good bones" of a 1975 R60/6

[Paul_F]

I put a 1/2" lower shock on my K and lowered the front by half an inch. I was surprised how much more grunt was required to put the bike on the centre stand. Even a grunt won't put the bike up when it's loaded for a trip.

[tghsmith]

my wifes lowered r100t has had the main stand modified, also rear axel removal requires the left muffler to be removed or the shocks to be unbolted at the top, if all your going for is seat height , seat mods are much simpler.