I ride 2-up a lot. I place Elka stage 4 in the rear so I would not bottom out. Much of the time Im ok, but still have been bottoming out here and there. I adjusted preload as much as I could and I REALLY REALLY REALLY do not want to take off the suspension to replace or add any spacers. I see that there are spacers widely available for cars but I do not see anything for motorcycle suspension. Any suggestions on where one might find something that i can just slip between the coils to add some stiffness so the fender does not meet my top case anymore?
I do not know of a spacer for the Elka. But I highly recommend NOT using the turn knuckles. They are easy to install and will work fine at first. But they put all the load on a small area of the spring. The spring tends to flex on each side of the knuckle which fatigues the steel. After awhile, you will need to add more knuckles or replace the spring.
Yeah I saw those, but it seemed to me that the spring would bend around those knuckles over time. I saw the round plastic ones that wrap around the coil for the car but I cannot find anything that is small enough for the elka shock - probably around the same size is Fox shocks or the OEM one that came with the Ryker Rally
you are not the only one - the shock is too short - (Can-Am uses now longer shocks on the 2022 Rally) - I used these here and changed now to a "Shock-extender" (from 260mm to 400mm) ..
Did you provide weight to elka? are these shocks hi/lo adjustable? Did you set pre-load with the ring around, the coil, or only via the knob on the extension hose.(just for my understanding)
the lenght of movement on this shock is rather short, I don't think, that it has sufficient travel... I don't own a ryker, but that my two cents worth.
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Spyder F3s 2019 All Black ( Named it: Brutus)
Carbon Items added, just for looks
Upgraded Shocks Trac-Tive, Rear hi/lo and rebound adjustable, with Hydraulic Pre-Load adjuster
fronts hi/lo and rebound adjustable, custom made by the Trac-Tive Guru's
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I ride 2-up a lot. I place Elka stage 4 in the rear so I would not bottom out. Much of the time Im ok, but still have been bottoming out here and there. I adjusted preload as much as I could and I REALLY REALLY REALLY do not want to take off the suspension to replace or add any spacers. I see that there are spacers widely available for cars but I do not see anything for motorcycle suspension. Any suggestions on where one might find something that i can just slip between the coils to add some stiffness so the fender does not meet my top case anymore?
I may be headed for this , if I ever get last bolt removed from suspension. I have the stage 4 to install, it's why I'm working on bike.
Baja Ron are you still working on producing shock extender, for Rally that could work with elka possibly?
The 2019 Ryker Rally has a rear suspension travel of 6.9" - rather respectable. I would surmise the rear shock is designed for this.
As mentioned what information was sent to Elka to determine how the rear shock would be put together? A riding profile is hard to determine. Need weights, solo/two up riding, and such.
You mention riding two up a lot. Solo/two up riding percentage: 80/20, 70/30, need estimate. The rally does not have an air ride assist for the rear.
The Elka shock you have does not have a remote adjustable preload setting. You have to manually get at the shock to move the preload collar. Remote adjustable preload adjusters are the best.
The shock spring should have the spring rating embossed on the spring, would be good to know. I installed M2 shocks all round. The rear shock came with a 525 lb/in shock spring, but I wanted a heavier one so as to minimize preload setting. My Spyder also has the ACS system, an auto leveling system for the rear depending on the setting I select. Maintains the ride height when I start to load up the Spyder, or ride two up.
I tried a 700 lb/in shock spring, a bit too stiff especially riding solo. Have settled on a 600 lb/in spring rate and the ride is quite good solo or two up.
I would surmise that you need a new shock spring that has a stiffer spring rate. Since you do not have a remote preload adjuster, would recommend an increase in the spring rate of 50 lb/in to 100 lb/in. This should do for two up and solo riding. Set the preload for two up riding - preload is for ride height only, and left there. Ride quality and performance is determined by internal shock valving and rebound/compression damping adjustments (if available).
I would not recommend any aftermarket shock spring enhancers. It's either the shock spring is adequate for the riding profile or not, if not replace with a proper sized shock spring. Coil over shock springs will be easy to change on the Elka stage 4 shock. There should be enough shock valving and rebound/damping adjustment to accept a modest increase in spring rate.
You can always contact Elka or the supplier you purchased the shock from, have a review of your riding profile, and get a recommendation from that.
Ride quality and performance is a personal, subjective issue. How often do you bottom out in the course of a two up ride? What type of roads are you riding on when this happens? It's not an easy issue to identify and rectify. The same identical shock for a different riding profile may be quite acceptable, and not have the issues you mention.
Having mentioned all this, my first recommendation would be to contact Elka or the supplier of the Elka shock, and discuss a way ahead. My second recommendation, if the first does not achieve your aim, is to do a test/trial program; however, unless this interests you and you are willing to do this, I'd stick with recommendation #1.
Good luck on your quest.
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suspension coil spacers for Ryker?
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Originally Posted by snayl135
