If this has been asked before.... (shocks?)

[BILLIJAK]

Realize you already have the shocks in hand...(yes, fast delivery is amazing form DK!). I have the 14" NexGen with Lift on my '21 Tri.

On the '18 Freewheeler, I went with the Twin Adjustable Bitubos with Lift....about half the price.

Very happy with both setups!

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

As MyTurn noted....

What's the purpose of the lift kit and is it necessary to use with those shocks? I really don't want to lift my Freewheeler. I like it where it is.

The lift kit is not necessary, and I want my bike to ride as low as possible, too. However, as MyTurn noted, the lift kit only raises the bike 1/2", and it reportedly improves the ride considerably. I'm not going to run a comparison myself -- I want this job one and done -- but I am taking the word of a number of DK users here and elsewhere that the kit is worth the 1/2".

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

I've had the box off....

Take the body off. It is 6 bolts and one plug. You will save yourself hours of frustration. I have had the body off my freewheeler twice, takes about 15 minutes.

I took the taco box off the week I brought the thing home from Houston, to replace the 4" unbaffled cones with OEM mufflers, and if I need to, I'll pull it off again. However, a number of people, from Duane at DK to users here, have told me I shouldn't need to take the box off. I'd just as soon not, if I can keep from it. We'll see.

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

Realize you already have the shocks in hand...(yes, fast delivery is amazing form DK!). I have the 14" NexGen with Lift on my '21 Tri.

On the '18 Freewheeler, I went with the Twin Adjustable Bitubos with Lift....about half the price.

Very happy with both setups!

Thanks. I went with the 13" because -- based on my weight (185), potential luggage (50 max) and the fact that I'll be riding solo 99.9% of the time -- that's what the manufacturer recommended. He also allowed that, should my wife decide she does want to ride again, I can adjust the 13"s and still get good shock absorption out of them.

I'm flying on trust here, but a lot of folks seem to think the DKs will do the job, so.... fingers crossed!

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

Happy New Year, y'all!

So, once I started I got stuck into the work, and didn't quite do the step-by-step record I'd promised, but I did take some photos.

First, as MyTurn noted, the box had to come off. I have no idea how anyone could reach those top shock mount bolts with the box in the way.

Anyhoo, with the box off, the tear-down and install were pretty straightforward: unbolt and remove old crap, stick in new pieces, apply Loctite and torque to specs, then prepare to rock 'n' roll.



With the 2016 Freewheeler I had two options on the lift kit, per the instructions. The first option seemed to place the bottom shock mount at the same height as the OEM mounting plate, so I chose the one that raised the shock mount by an inch or so. Then I bolted the shocks in, using the bushings provided as instructed.



With the taco box still off, I took the bike for about a forty-five minute ride. I deliberately chose a range of road surfaces, from a crappy two-lane truck route the garbage haulers use to reach our local landfill to a brand-new tollway, and....



....I'm disappointed. The ride feels no different from what I had with the OEM shocks.



Just to be sure, I took it out the next day with the taco box in place, and spent a couple of hours on it. Still no joy. Maybe my expectations were too high, but for $1024 I hoped for a noticeably more comfortable ride, and I don't have one yet.

I say 'yet' because I've just written to DK Customs to ask about possible solutions. I will report back once I hear from them.

Sláinte!

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

View attachment 116296

View attachment 116297

I hate when pics don't post the way I tell 'em to! Rather than jack with trying to delete and repost the pics in the original post, I'll just repost here.





Sláinte!

 

[1dn5up]

Bill , when I replaced my 13” progressives , I also hoped for that cushy ride . Ignoring the bump stop setup , I adjusted for the softest solo ride . There is definitely an improvement , however rough roads will bottom out the shocks . The nature of having a straight axle.

 

[Old Road Dog]

I hate when pics don't post the way I tell 'em to! Rather than jack with trying to delete and repost the pics in the original post, I'll just repost here.

View attachment 116298

View attachment 116299

Sláinte!

WTF is the matter with you? I told you on 12/12 not to expect a Cadillac ride due to the solid axle. Now your complaining? Do this: loosen and remove top nuts on each shock. Place a suitable block of wood under the differential. Place your head on block of wood and knock the top shocks off the bolt with a hammer and squeeze the Fu.king juice out of your head. There- issue resolved.

 

[ROAD DOG]

WTF is the matter with you? I told you on 12/12 not to expect a Cadillac ride due to the solid axle. Now your complaining? Do this: loosen and remove top nuts on each shock. Place a suitable block of wood under the differential. Place your head on block of wood and knock the top shocks off the bolt with a hammer and squeeze the Fu.king juice out of your head. There- issue resolved.

I did that & it worked great, I feel so much better but it still rides like Shit !

 

[Dfriz]

Maybe you need to put some Intimadators in the forks to balance your ride

 

[rhino 2]

Maybe you need to put some Intimadators in the forks to balance your ride

Daniel..........Welcome to Trike-Talk.....:wave4:.....

 

[Jack Klarich]

Maybe you need to put some Intimadators in the forks to balance your ride

Hi Daniel, :welcome: to Trike Talk and your first post

 

[Jarhead1775]

Bill from Austin let us know if there's any resolution on your shocks and lift.

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

RESOLVED!

WTF is the matter with you? I told you on 12/12 not to expect a Cadillac ride due to the solid axle. Now your complaining? Do this: loosen and remove top nuts on each shock. Place a suitable block of wood under the differential. Place your head on block of wood and knock the top shocks off the bolt with a hammer and squeeze the Fu.king juice out of your head. There- issue resolved.

Who the feck do you think you're talking to? Because you told me something, I'm supposed to shut up and accept crappy performance from a $1000 set of shocks? How about you knock the feckin' juice outta your head before you go running that mouth at me, jackazz?

For those of you who are not azzhats: this has been a comedy of errors, or might be a comedy if it didn't kill my back to do the same installs over and over again.

The first time I contacted DK, it was suggested that I use the other mounting holes on the lift kit, which meant taking everything off and putting it back on again. I did that. No improvement.

DK asked me what the shocks were set at. I told them what it said on the box (8 1/2") but when I got a chance to measure the actual shocks they were 1/4" off. Made the adjustment, and saw some improvement, but when I mentioned that surface streets were still pretty rough, I got kicked up the chain of command to Devin, who designed the things. There, I learned that they'd made a mistake in the very beginning, when they chose 8 1/2" for me, and that it should have been 8 11/16". I made the adjustments (again!) yesterday, and definite improvement. Took it around this afternoon, and feel like it's way more in line with what I was expecting.

And for the record, despite what a certain azzhat seems to believe, I never expected a Cadillac ride, but I did expect some improvement. After the aforementioned trial-and-error-and-error-and-error, I got the improvement I'd been expecting.

To those of you who were kind and helpful, my heartfelt thanks and kudos. To Old Road Dog: you can kiss me where the sun don't shine, darlin'.

 

[Bill J. from Austin]

Bill from Austin let us know if there's any resolution on your shocks and lift.

Jarhead, please see my response to Old Road Dog, above. Dunno what set him off, but it took me by surprise.

Anyhoo, as noted in that post, it took a while, but we got it sorted. Thanks for asking.

And by the by.... I want to add a big thumbs up to DK Customs for customer service. Yes, they made a mistake, and yes, it cost me some extra labor, but they were unfailingly kind and genuinely interested in getting me the biggest bang for my buck. Even after I had accepted that the ride was as good as it was going to get, when I readjusted the shocks to 8 1/2", Dwayne was not satisfied, and kicked me upstairs to Devin for a better solution.

People make mistakes. Good people own up to them and try to correct them. IMO, DK Customs is good people.

Sláinte!

 

[Gorilla]

To all concerned. Please this is the end of the personal attacks. That is not what this form is about.

Gorilla Senior Moderator

 

[DK Custom Products]

DK asked me what the shocks were set at. I told them what it said on the box (8 1/2") but when I got a chance to measure the actual shocks they were 1/4" off. Made the adjustment, and saw some improvement, but when I mentioned that surface streets were still pretty rough, I got kicked up the chain of command to Devin, who designed the things. There, I learned that they'd made a mistake in the very beginning, when they chose 8 1/2" for me, and that it should have been 8 11/16". I made the adjustments (again!) yesterday, and definite improvement. Took it around this afternoon, and feel like it's way more in line with what I was expecting.

And by the by.... I want to add a big thumbs up to DK Customs for customer service. Yes, they made a mistake, and yes, it cost me some extra labor, but they were unfailingly kind and genuinely interested in getting me the biggest bang for my buck. Even after I had accepted that the ride was as good as it was going to get, when I readjusted the shocks to 8 1/2", Dwayne was not satisfied, and kicked me upstairs to Devin for a better solution.

People make mistakes. Good people own up to them and try to correct them. IMO, DK Customs is good people.

Bill, I just saw this post/thread.

I am so sorry. We do not normally make mistakes like this.

I sincerely appreciate you contacting us and giving us a chance to fix this for you. (I realize you did the actual work of fixing our mistakes).

Our priorities are:

Making Quality Parts

Fast, Accurate Shipping

Superior Customer Service

We really dropped the ball on getting accurately adjusted shocks out to you, again, my deepest apologies.

I am happy to read that you are not experiencing the improved ride quality you were expecting, just sorry for all the hassle you went through to get there. That should not have happened.

We are reviewing/revising procedures on our end that will reduce the chance of this occurring again in the future.

Please send an email with a subject line of "Attention: Kevin" to Support@DKCustomProducts.com

I want to do something for you that will be a thank you for your patience and giving us a chance to get things right for you.

Kevin

 

[DK Custom Products]

What's the purpose of the lift kit and is it necessary to use with those shocks? I really don't want to lift my Freewheeler. I like it where it is.

With the 14" shocks on the Freewheeler the Convertible Comfort Mount™ is necessary. This is to accommodate the taller shock and to maintain clearance of all hard parts.

It also changes the angle of the shocks to make them articulate better for an improved ride quality. It will not lift the Freewheeler more than 1/2".

With the 13" shocks, the Convertible Comfort Lift™ is Not needed to maintain clearance of all the hard parts. However, it will provide a small improvement in how the shocks articulate, giving a bit better ride quality than just the shocks by themselves.

More details and how they work can be found at the two links above.

Always feel free to email or call with any questions.

Thanks for looking at our parts.

Kevin

 

[DK Custom Products]

View attachment 116166

I took the taco box off the week I brought the thing home from Houston, to replace the 4" unbaffled cones with OEM mufflers, and if I need to, I'll pull it off again. However, a number of people, from Duane at DK to users here, have told me I shouldn't need to take the box off. I'd just as soon not, if I can keep from it. We'll see.

We have changed shocks on Tri Glides and Freewheelers well over 100 times with never pulling the body off....we have gotten pretty good at it as seen in the video below. (and neither Devin nor I have small hands)

However, it is definitely easier to do the shock install with the body off....we have just found that we can do it more quickly without futzing with taking the body off. Either way works, and many folks prefer not laying on their back and reaching up to that top shock bolt.

Kevin

 

[Notgrownup]

I have the 14” pro action with the comfort lift. It is better than stock but it’s not as drastic of an improvement compared to the improvements I got on my 2 wheeler . It’s better but I am pretty sure I need some better adjustments. I took my shocks off of my 14 TG and installed them on my 21 and it rides better than the improved suspension that Harley used now but I can’t call it a Cadillac ride.

I may change them eventually to the Nextgen ones but I spent quite a bit of money for 2 shock absorbers so they will see many more miles as mine. Happy trails on yours.