SuzukiSavage.com - slam it?

Rocco

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south florida
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slam it?
03/27/10 at 13:02:28

a friend of mine has a wicked 1900 custom bobber, bare metal tank, header wrap, no front fender, the thing just screams! he was asking me if i would want to slam my bike, make it a hardtail by removin the springs and using a shorter piece of metal.

has anyone else done this? i think it would look amazing but he said i would lose my cornering ability....how badly?

he also has a clear tube on his tank that is his gas gauge, i want one so he's gonna ask his friend if he would Wink

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'95 bobber rat...i guess it's a "bat bike" haha flat black mostly, bare metal tank, header wrap, always a work in progress !

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Serowbot

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OK.... so what's the
speed of dark?

Posts: 29282
Tucson Az
Gender: male

Re: slam it?
Reply #1 - 03/27/10 at 13:21:18

Some guys here have done it,... a few have thought better of it and changed it back...
It's a young man's mod, and you'll have callouses on your butt (read as... it's jarringly hard ride)... and you'll loose cornering through less ground clearance, and more wheel hop on road irregularities...
You'll probably be replacing more tail light bulbs too... the jarring ride breaks the filaments in the bulbs...

Overall... it's a purely cosmetic mod that will cost you dearly in handling performance, and reliability...
Still,... these aren't race bikes, and if the look will give you more riding pleasure...
PS... you've fiance will probably not want to ride on the back for more than 5 miles...

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Ludicrous Speed !... ... Huh

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EJID

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Pocatello, ID
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Re: slam it?
Reply #2 - 03/27/10 at 14:10:17

I agree with the Bot, the hardtail is a rough ride and personally when I bought my bike with hardtail struts I had a hard time riding it more than 10-20 miles without stopping and resting for a while. Don't think you're gal will like riding with you if you do this mod.

When I got my bike it had hardtail struts installed and I would not go back to them for anything, but if you insist, mine were 9" from eye to eye, and looked to be made of 1/2" steel that was powder coated. Considering stock shocks are what 10 1/2" or 11 1/2" inches eye to eye you have a substantial difference in ride height.

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05 S40 15" Memphis Slim, FXDWG Bars, Moved Rear Signals, Saddlebags, Fork Bag, Mini-Tach, Raptor, Cone Filter, Fishtail Muffler, Mix Screw Out 2.5 Turns, 4" Fwd Controls, 147.5 Main/55 Pilot @ 4500

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Serowbot

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OK.... so what's the
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Tucson Az
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Re: slam it?
Reply #3 - 03/27/10 at 23:31:03

Funny,.. I expected some heated disagreement... I know there are a couple hardtailers out there...

So I'm giving this thread a bump. "Bump!"...

Rocco,.. I'm not trying to "Slam" your dreams... just letting you know, that it's an option with positives and negatives...
I usually get my own "slams" for saying anything negative about hardtails... We do have a few rigid fans here...

Maybe they are having too much kidney pain to respond?...

Okay,... ...now I'm just slamming them... Grin

...

... I feel like I'm poking a bear!... Grin

....

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Ludicrous Speed !... ... Huh

...

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: slam it? Reply #4 - 03/28/10 at 03:44:45 I know I woulkd never go hard tail. I enjoy the handling way too much.
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miker Junior Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 53 Texas, USA Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #5 - 03/28/10 at 04:43:59 Looks great sitting still, but is an awful lot of work to ride. I am taking it apart and putting it back on a swingarm frame. I turn 47 tomorrow and I am afraid that my rigid days are over.
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Mr. Hyde Serious Thumper Alliance Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 565 Kingston, Ontario, Canada Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #6 - 03/28/10 at 06:10:16 Hard tails are for the ultra young at least they were for me. I was watching a clip from the Easy Rider link I put up in the cafe and was watching Billy and Wyatt bouncing down a paved 2 lane highway. Reminded me of my pre-hemorroid days - ahhhhhhhh.
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bill67 Serious Thumper Offline old tired Posts: 8517 genoa city wisconsin Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #7 - 03/28/10 at 06:58:26 justin_o_guy2 wrote on 03/28/10 at 03:44:45: I know I woulkd never go hard tail. I enjoy the handling way too much. I would go hard fork too so the rides not so mushy.
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Rocco

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addicted 2 riding
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south florida
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Re: slam it?
Reply #8 - 03/28/10 at 20:37:43

well i guess that answers that! if my woman can't ride she'll be pretty upset, as she likes to ride more then i do!!

it would look NASTY but i love how i can throw the beast into a corner and haul out of it!

is there a way to lower it a little with the stock shocks?

AND speaking of my woman not wantin to ride, she hates the stock passenger seat, it's hollow with electronics underneath. is there somewhere i can put that crap and get a better seat for her? i also love the spring seats for bobbers, but if it's not a hardtail there isn't a point for them right? lol

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'95 bobber rat...i guess it's a "bat bike" haha flat black mostly, bare metal tank, header wrap, always a work in progress !

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Serowbot

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OK.... so what's the
speed of dark?

Posts: 29282
Tucson Az
Gender: male

Re: slam it?
Reply #9 - 03/29/10 at 00:18:16

Rocco wrote on 03/28/10 at 20:37:43:

... is there somewhere i can put that crap and get a better seat for her? i also love the spring seats for bobbers, but if it's not a hardtail there isn't a point for them right? lol

a. you can stow it in the air box,.. but then you have to fab a new pillion frame to get more depth... how about a black sheepskin cover for the stock pillion and keep the electrics where they are... just a thought..

b. don't spring your seat and not hers,... some of her important parts might get pinched while you bounce up and down...
...if you know what I mean... Huh

...

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Ludicrous Speed !... ... Huh

...

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babyhog Serious Thumper Offline On two wheels... again Posts: 3805 WV Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #10 - 03/29/10 at 05:38:44 Was it here or another forum that I heard about a "Butt Buddy"? Might be of interest to you. Yes, Butt Buddy is its real name... lol
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bill67 Serious Thumper Offline old tired Posts: 8517 genoa city wisconsin Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #11 - 03/29/10 at 05:41:31 You have a nice seat there Piglet.
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babyhog Serious Thumper Offline On two wheels... again Posts: 3805 WV Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #12 - 03/29/10 at 06:20:30 bill67 wrote on 03/29/10 at 05:41:31: You have a nice seat there Piglet. Its not mine! Mine is much better than that! But I don't need the butt buddy thing. Hubby's pillion is nice and wide for me, and I certainly don't need one on my bike. I just saw it somewhere and thought it might help Rocco and his girl.
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Oldnewguy

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thumpin' along!

Posts: 369
Upstate NY
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Re: slam it?
Reply #13 - 03/29/10 at 06:50:53

If you want a better rear seat you can make a frame for one in just about any shape and style out of 3/4 inch copper pipe. I made one to carry hard saddle bags, new directionals on rear and a large luggage thingy. I moved the electronics to the air box and used the 2 tapped holes for my frame. I also added a padded back rest with storage to the unit. I will be posting pics soon.

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'96 with Voyager kit, White spacer mod, K&N air filter, HD muffler, solo seat/back rest, hard saddle bags and trunk.

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Oldnewguy Senior Member Offline thumpin' along! Posts: 369 Upstate NY Gender:	Re: slam it? Reply #14 - 03/29/10 at 07:01:55 Here is a pic of my rear end.
Back to top	'96 with Voyager kit, White spacer mod, K&N air filter, HD muffler, solo seat/back rest, hard saddle bags and trunk. IP Logged