lowering hits for intruders

[sburton1]

well my buddy has got a lowering kit for his m50 and it looks great and it only cost 30$ dose any one make a kit for the intruder 800? ive looked every where on line and cant seem to find one! ive found one for the front but not the rear like i want

[DrBob]

The M50 has a soft tail type frame, where the shock is hidden under the bike and the whole rear part of the frame bends up and down to act as the suspension. The "Kit" consists of a pair of metal brackets called dog bones, which change the geometry to basically bend the rear part of the frame up to lower the bike.

The Intruder 800 does not have this type of frame, is has a conventional swing arm with two shocks. So you lower is by putting on shorter shocks. You can get new ones from Progressive Suspensions, or there are several shops that can cut down our stick shocks and make them an inch to an inch and half shorter.

The front lowering “kits” you see online are simply shorter springs for inside the front forks.

[sburton1]

so will it hurt the performance that much if i lower it? will the shorter springs in the front bottom out on hard bumps? im just trying to figure out if the lower feel is really what i want before i take the leap . i need my front fork seals replaced so itll be cheap to get the front done all at once. im just wondering if i should lower the front or the back or both. ive seen new shocks for about 250 that drop is 1-3/4 and 2inches in the rear. whats your opinion on the lower ride drbob?

[DrBob]

When I changed my fork oil I put in stock length progressive springs, which give more suspension travel, a better ride, and better handling. I also put on progressive shocks, stock length, for WAY better handling and ride.

I've ridden many a lowered Intruder, and I don't like them much. They bottom out more easily, significant because I'm 6 foot, 230. I also ride very aggresively in the mountains, and the lowered bikes touch down too soon when you lay into a corner. I actually use stock length progressive heavy duty shocks on the stiffest setting, so my bike sits 1/4 inch higher than stock.

If you just ride around town, don't put a passenger or heavy pack on the back, and don't scrape the pegs in the twisties, you can get away with lowering the back an inch to an inch and a half. Any lower than that and on bumps the passenger peg mounts will hit the swingarm.

A good place to get shocks is MAW Online. Last time I checked they had progressive shocks for $189. The stock shocks are 12.5 inches, so 11.5 is fine, but if you get 11 inch be prepared for quite a bit of bottoming out. I much prefer the heavy duty ones. Here are the part numbers so you can locate what you want on their site:
Standard springs:
412-4233C 11"
412-4201C 11.5"
412-4228C 12"
412-4207C 12.5" (stock length)

Heavy Duty springs:
(no heavy duty 11-inch)
412-4236C 11.5"
412-4238C 12"
412-4214C 12.5" (stock length)

Lowering the front causes a greater loss of cornering clearance, as that peg bracket will hit sooner, but again, it is OK if you don't ride agressively in the twisties.

[sburton1]

wow thats really cheap for a set of shocks! I weigh 200 and havent really bottomed out any ive got foward controls so i dont think ill lower the front any. the 11.5 heavy duty looks like a good bet my shocks are rusted out and could use a replacing. do the heavy duty give a ruffer ride? or is it not noticable. ive run deals gap and really like getting a little low looks like ill just drop the rear for now thanks for the info. now you said you changed your front springs for a better travel? ive noticed mine are super stiff did you get your front springs from the same place? if so whats the part number as im getting my fork seals replaced next week. i dont think i can tackel that by my self. thanks for the help as always.

[sburton1]

drbob this part number 412-4236C really comes up as a 11inch shock i cant seem to find the 11.5 inch heavy duty spring part number that web site is a little confusing i guess thats why its cheaper!

[DrBob]

The Progressive application guide shows that the 412-4236C is the official progressive suspension part number for the 11.5-inch heavy duty, so the error is on their website. You might want to order by phone 1-800-241-2222 and make sure you get the right progressive part number.

The HD shocks don't bottom as easily, but the ride is not noticably rougher over most surfaces, thought the regular duty are a touch smoother over real small bumps. Either is a 300% improvement over the crappy stock ones. And if you check the with the dealer, you'll find that the progressives are actually a LOT cheaper than the stock ones also.

Yup, their website sux, but $182.95 for Progressives is a great price.

No, I didn't get my fork springs from there, I got them at a local shop that price-matches for me (I am great friends with the owner and his wife).

Now would be the time to do the fork springs, as the new fork seals may last longer than the bike so you may never have the foks off again. If they have your forks off for seals anyways, the only extra labor is cutting the spacers, maybe 15 minutes. The progressive springs are longer, so they do not bottom out as easily, but the way they are wound makes them softer over small bumps for a smoother ride, yet firmer over big bumps for less bottoming. I love them. I also use 20-weight fork oil instead of the factory 10-weight- the heavier oil slows the dampening a little so the front end is less 'busy' over washboard roads.

[sburton1]

thanks for the great info! your a big help as always