AT lowering kit

[scarfacehugo]

Hello again, chaps!!

Here are the pics from 1gear1brake's rear suspension linkage rods.


PICT6840 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

PICT6842 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

PICT6844 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!


I've cut 8mm because he wants his bike higher. This is the first "butt lift" I've done, so we'll have to wait untill he gets this on his bike and hopefully publish some results with numbers.

[jonnybgood]

Looks like a really neat job - interested to see fitted results and numbers

[1gear1brake]

Wow, it looks great Hugo. I will put up pics of my bike with standard and shortened linkages to show the difference.

[1gear1brake]

The link arrived and it is a work of art . All clean and painted too. So I went to fit it on Monday night. I wanted to fit it to Red Bike though the original link had been taken from Black Bike so first I had to remove the standard link from Red. Problem is that the forward bolt on Red's linkage is siezed in place. It's probably been in there for the 12 year 62000 mile life of Red so perhaps it's not surprising really. So I put the new shortened link back on Black. Result - a definite increase in seat height and it looks top. Unfortunately I haven't been able to test ride or photograph it yet. I'll do it as soon as it stops raining (next Spring then ).

Anyone got any bright ideas regarding freeing siezed bolts? I guess it's stuck in the tubular sleeve that goes through the bearings. I haven't yet been able to give it a good whack on the threaded end to see if I can force it out as I've got to remove the exhaust headers to gain access to that side ) It doesn't matter if the bearings are destroyed in the process of removing the bolt as I have a set of spares, but what I don't really want is to destroy the bearings and not remove the bolt as that would render Red unrideable which is not good at all.

Anyway, thanks again Hugo. The work you've done is awesome as you will see when I finally photograph Black.

Cheers
Dylan

[kitped]

The link arrived and it is a work of art . All clean and painted too. So I went to fit it on Monday night. I wanted to fit it to Red Bike though the original link had been taken from Black Bike so first I had to remove the standard link from Red. Problem is that the forward bolt on Red's linkage is siezed in place. It's probably been in there for the 12 year 62000 mile life of Red so perhaps it's not surprising really. So I put the new shortened link back on Black. Result - a definite increase in seat height and it looks top. Unfortunately I haven't been able to test ride or photograph it yet. I'll do it as soon as it stops raining (next Spring then ).

Anyone got any bright ideas regarding freeing siezed bolts? I guess it's stuck in the tubular sleeve that goes through the bearings. I haven't yet been able to give it a good whack on the threaded end to see if I can force it out as I've got to remove the exhaust headers to gain access to that side ) It doesn't matter if the bearings are destroyed in the process of removing the bolt as I have a set of spares, but what I don't really want is to destroy the bearings and not remove the bolt as that would render Red unrideable which is not good at all.

Anyway, thanks again Hugo. The work you've done is awesome as you will see when I finally photograph Black.

Cheers
Dylan

Liberal spraying of WD40 or similar and a large hammer and drive. i had the same problem with a 20 year old main stand spindle on my RD03

Looking for forward to the pics as I have made an adjustable set of dog bones using high quality rose joints but not had chance to fit yet.

[scarfacehugo]

The link arrived and it is a work of art . All clean and painted too. So I went to fit it on Monday night. I wanted to fit it to Red Bike though the original link had been taken from Black Bike so first I had to remove the standard link from Red. Problem is that the forward bolt on Red's linkage is siezed in place. It's probably been in there for the 12 year 62000 mile life of Red so perhaps it's not surprising really. So I put the new shortened link back on Black. Result - a definite increase in seat height and it looks top. Unfortunately I haven't been able to test ride or photograph it yet. I'll do it as soon as it stops raining (next Spring then ).

Anyone got any bright ideas regarding freeing siezed bolts? I guess it's stuck in the tubular sleeve that goes through the bearings. I haven't yet been able to give it a good whack on the threaded end to see if I can force it out as I've got to remove the exhaust headers to gain access to that side ) It doesn't matter if the bearings are destroyed in the process of removing the bolt as I have a set of spares, but what I don't really want is to destroy the bearings and not remove the bolt as that would render Red unrideable which is not good at all.

Anyway, thanks again Hugo. The work you've done is awesome as you will see when I finally photograph Black.

Cheers
Dylan

Hi Dylan!

Nice to ear that your pleased with it.

What's probably happened to your bolt is the old "battery effect". When you get 2 different kinds of metal and add a liquid,the liquid turns into acid with time and welds both metals up.
Step one is to remove the complete exhaust headers. Next you need to screw the nut on the bolt 3 or 4 turns. Get a 17mm socket in the nut, the long ratchet extention (I'm sure you have a proper name for it) through the centre stand hole and hit it as hard as you can. Dont do it directly to the bolt, because it's going to open up and wont go through the hole, besides ruining the thread. I bet it comes off at the second stroke of a big heavy hammer.
Heat would solve the problem fast enough, but there is no way you can get it there.

Let us know how it came out.

Cheers

[1gear1brake]

Thanks for the advice regarding getting my bolt out. That'll be a job for the weekend.

So here is a height comparison. Compared with my 'normal' height bike:





I can feel the difference sitting on the saddle with my feet on the floor. It feels more comfortable that little bit higher up. I can't really tell any difference in riding it yet as I didn't go that far today. Both my bikes ride differently anyway due to their differing tyres. I'll have to put some miles on it to find out.

[scarfacehugo]

Hello again.

I know this isnt as linear as we see it on the photo.
First of all I think TKCs make the bike a bit taller and THEN the shock sag...
The spring compression on each bike, is it the same? These are details that matter to the bike's seat height.

Do you notice any difference in the shock stifness after getting the shorter links in?

[1gear1brake]

The problem is that I was unable to do a before and after photo. This is because I intended to put the link onto Red bike and was going to take pictures when I did it. When I do get the link off of Red bike, I could try the long and short links on one or other bikes. It's a quick swap (now I've done it a couple of times). As for the spring tension, I am going to have to put a few miles on it to get a better impression. It feels good on the saddle though. I can feel the extra height and it does feel very comfortable.

[1gear1brake]

Hugo, your technique for shifting a stuck bolt worked a treat! So I now have managed to put the shortened linkage onto Red Bike. I have also spent a morning learning to make a picture do this:

Before and after...


I reckon it has made about 2.5 inches of difference at the back end. I have not done anything to the rear shock yet however. In fact, it's about time that I had the shock serviced (or renewed) as it's old and tired. I think that the height difference is fine and any more would have serious issues with chain slider wear and head tube (steering) angle. What do you think?

Dylan