uhm....so, having taking the bike on a bit of a trip over the weekend, I encountered the typical ohio potholes at a high rate of speed...for the second time my rear swing arm compressed enough to smack my rear fender into the license plate...I obviously have a tuning problem with the rear shock.
Heres the deal. My inseam is @30", so the bike is set low. I weigh about 160lbs I presume I need to stiffen it up or relocate the license plate. I have the stock Sachs shock on my 99 750 monster. I would like to upgrade at some point, but not quite in the budget yet.
I bought my bike preowned like so many others. I have no original manual. Can someone point me in the direction of tuning info for this old beast or just give me a bit of advice from experience?
At 160, your actually in the weight range for the stock spring... it sounds to me like the license plate may be in a precarious position. I'm 195 lbs, and live in Pittsburgh... I've seen my fair share of grand canyon-style potholes... Never had my wheel smack my plate... even on the stock spring.
I'm a 30" inseam also, with a raised bike. It's not so bad, you'll get use to it. Raise it back up.
Full travel is full travel. Regardless of tune, if the bike hits a big enough bump or hole your plate will get smashed. The answer is move the plate.
The tire's not hitting the bottom of the 'tray' under the seat, is it?
Nope, just the license plate, not the liner.
Coming from a mountain bike racing background, I looked at the schrader valve on the top of the shock...I presumed I could add pressure...is this so?
The shock really has to have dry nitrogen in it.
You could have a shop check the pressure in it.