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1982 GS 650G Rear Shocks Bottoming out

  • Thread starter Thread starter Michael
  • Start date Start date
M

Michael

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When riding two up I find that I end up bottoming out on some fairly average bumps (going from the street to the driveway while leaned). I know my left shock (stock) has bit the dust (Leaking a profuse amount of fluid). I was hopping to get some opinions on a cheap new set. The springs look OK so I might be able to swap them over but the shocks are toast.
 
EMGO shocks are about the cheapest I have seen, until I saw shadowfocus' post above. I have ridden a bike with EMGO shocks and will say that 2-up, they aren't bad, but if you ever ride solo, you will think you are riding a hardtail.
 
You can try the ones posted by shadowfocus or you can call Dave Quinn Motorsports and order a set of Hagon shocks for about $215. He prefers to talk with you, not order online, so he can get your bike, your weight, passenger's weight, riding style, etc., so he can select the shock with the proper damping and spring rate. You can also specify length, if that is a concern. Got some shorter shocks for my wife's bike some time ago, they look good and ride real nice.
 
phydeauxmutt said:
EMGO shocks are about the cheapest I have seen, until I saw shadowfocus' post above. I have ridden a bike with EMGO shocks and will say that 2-up, they aren't bad, but if you ever ride solo, you will think you are riding a hardtail.
Click to expand...

I just bought the MDI shocks which I believe are identical to the Emgo shocks.
Stiff. Very stiff. The mdi offers a regular or heavy duty version spring version. I should have got the regular.
My 650 e shocks were completely blown out too. They were so bouncy from being all spring and no dampening that after going over a sharp bump, the swingarm would would snap and buck violently. Not safe. You are one old shock seal away from a bad ride.
This rfyi shocks have been around a couple years. They are typically Chinese average quality. Most people say they come poorly charged with nitrogen and need filled once you get them to bring them up to par.
Shocks are the place to spend the extra money and upgrade.
I would get Hagons next time and know I got something decent.
 
I'm sticking with Harley take-offs. Showa air-shocks that are pretty damn good, but not enough pose factor for the H-D crowd.
These are pretty much the same shocks that Kwak were fitting to the GT750 shafty as factory fitment, years ago. They stood the test of time, when I got a pair from a breaker and put them on a GS, on which they lasted at least another 20 years with no problems, until the biggest pothole I've ever seen killed them stone dead by blowing the guts out of the seals. They're actually rebuildable, if I can be bothered, but the easy availability of H-D take-offs is more attractive.
Worth 25 bucks of anyone's money.
 
Grimly said:
These are pretty much the same shocks that Kwak were fitting to the GT750 shafty as factory fitment, years ago.
Click to expand...
Hang on a minute, Grimster. The GT750 that I know of was a Suzuki, not a Kwak, and it was not a shafty.
Not sure if the KZ750 Spectre was a shafty, but it was a KZ, not a GT.

Which bike you REALLY talking about?
 
phydeauxmutt said:
Hang on a minute, Grimster. The GT750 that I know of was a Suzuki, not a Kwak, and it was not a shafty.
Not sure if the KZ750 Spectre was a shafty, but it was a KZ, not a GT.

Which bike you REALLY talking about?
Click to expand...

The Kwack GT750 was sold as a shafty in Europe. The front bevel drive was actually removeable and it could be converted to chain, which is essentially what the factory did for other markets where the shaft wasn't offered. Whether the chain version was sold in NA as the KZ750, I don't know.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=kawasaki+gt750+shaft+drive&biw=1403&bih=802&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwiK7syJo6DMAhVJJMAKHWyKBZAQsAQIKQ


On some of the pics you will see the air shocks.
 
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OK, we did not get that model, what we had was the KZ750N, called the Spectre. You might have seen it as a Z750N.

KZ1100_02.JPG
 
phydeauxmutt said:
OK, we did not get that model, what we had was the KZ750N, called the Spectre. You might have seen it as a Z750N.

KZ1100_02.JPG
Click to expand...

That may have been available here, but it didn't make much of an impact. The GT750 straight tourer was a fairly popular bike with a similar reputation to the GS line, and I think it was on a hiding to nothing being re-launched as a custom thing. GS L models didn't sell well here either, most buyers preferring something more mainstream and easier to sell on.
What would have filled that factory custom niche in the UK market was the particularly ugly 750 V-twin. I don't recall whether that was a shafty or not.
 
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