Rear shock air pressure

S

Shady S

New member
My 09' SG would bottom out anything under 30 psi ridding solo.Bumped it up to 48 psi turned out to be to much.Have 40psi in right now with a much better ride.Will finish off this yeaar seeing if i can fine tone them.If unable to get the ride i want will try 1" higher stopck shocks.
 
The owners manual has all of the correct pressures for solo and 2 up in differant weight ranges. For my '07 and my fat a$$, correct pressure is 15#, and it rides perfect. ROFLMAO when I read those posts from riders with $25,000 bikes who won't spring for a $30 (essential) tool.
 
Wow.... That kind of psi seems to be high! I have a '05 Ultra and am 200 lbs. Solo I ride it with 15 lbs. pressure, and with my 135 lb wife ride with 20 lbs. When it is loaded with both saddle bags full, tour pack loaded and trunk-mounted bag for 10 days in the mountains, I have it between 25 and 30 lbs pressure -- and it is tight without any bottoming out. I cannot imagine the stiffness of the ride if I put anywhere near 50 lbs of pressure in the shocks...
 
Certainly; this is the worst factory touring suspension money can buy. I have found that there is little to no damping offered by the system. If I pump it up to avoid "bottoming out", I am nearly ejected from the bike when bumps are encountered. I have tried every pressure from the dealer recommended 10 psi that enabled routine "bottoming out", to 40 psi. I always ride solo and weigh 220 lbs. My '10 Ultra is at the dealer now for this very issue, and a few others at 10k after 3 months. I won't rant here about the others. The dealer wasn't thrilled when I asked if HD supplied a kidney belt with their new touring models.
 
I've been running about 20# in my 2004 Ultra most of the time... a little more if 2 up. Interesting notes about losing pressure over time. I check my shocks about once a month and never find any variation in pressure. Whatever I put in, stays in until I change it.
 
I run 35# to 45# in my '09 Roadglide depending on what and who I'm carrying. Me and the Mrs. weigh 300#, together. On the road we probably carry another 40# in cargo combined in the saddle bags and in the roll-away T-bag behind her. Somewhat stiff ride, but it beats bottoming out (gotta hold on over the bumps, I tell her, after I make sure she's awake). Definitely knew about the shock pressure differences in the newer bikes. My '04 Roadglide didn't take anywhere near these numbers.
 
I posted on this thread waaay back and I guess I am not the only one who has an issue with the suspension. I'm not complaining about the bike in whole, love it, just for the $$ spent you would think that the rear suspension would be a bit more advanced. A major re-design of the frame in '09 and all they do is basically install higher psi rated shocks? Seems to me that is what they did. Solo 40 psi and 2-up I add 5 more lbs....fixes the bottoming out.
 
I finally bought the pump this year....well worth the $45. Easy adjustments...we just did a 1K ride this past weekend and I had totally forgotten that my shocks were setup for single riding (20 psi)...I stopped and quickly made the change to 40 for the two of us. The ride was much better. Its a great option having the adjustable shocks
 
Back
Top