Best online place to buy MDI shocks...

[philosopheriam]

Has anyone found an inexpensive online retailer for MDI shocks...

Ebay: Haven't found much for my GS650
loudfastugly.com: His payment terms scare the crap outta me
oldbikebarn: seems expensive

Anyone else?

Thanks!

 

[Guest]

Not really sure but please steer clear of old bike barn. Look in the dead beat alerts on more info about that company.

 

[BassCliff]

Hi,

I seem to recall that I got mine from Cycle-Recycle II. But they are sold all over the place. Check the vendor list in the "mega-welcome" and do a little comparison shopping.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[SqDancerLynn1]

As I have said before. Get the OEM swing arm shock bushings, don't waste your time with the crap that comes with the shocks They will press right in.. If you have a good strong vise !.

 

[philosopheriam]

Hmm.. Like you said BassCliff, I checked cycle recycle and they are out of stock :-(

Anyway, without diverting the topic, the stock showas on my GS650 measure around 13.75" eye-to-eye. Do most people pick the 13 3/16 MDI's as replacements?

Thanks!

PS: my plan for the bushings was to use the rubber that MDI supplies yet make my own sleeves that go over the shock studs and inside the bushings.

 

[Rover]

Got a set at JC Whitney. That was several years back.

 

[Guest]

Heres the kind I have on my bike. They are just as good as mdi.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GS65...torcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_2753wt_960

 

[BassCliff]

Heres the kind I have on my bike. They are just as good as mdi.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GS65...torcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_2753wt_960

Hi,

Those are MDI shocks.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[BassCliff]

...the stock showas on my GS650 measure around 13.75" eye-to-eye. Do most people pick the 13 3/16 MDI's as replacements?

PS: my plan for the bushings was to use the rubber that MDI supplies yet make my own sleeves that go over the shock studs and inside the bushings.

Hi,

13.75 inches is 13 3/4". The 13 3/16" will be over a half inch shorter. That will affect your handling, making it slower.

The foam rubber bushings included with the MDI shocks are crap. Check out my crash/restoration thread (link below) starting with post #42. I used some hard rubber bushings I found at the auto parts store. They're not great, but are a long sight better than the junk bushings included with the MDI/EMGO shocks. As suggested by Lynn, I'm going to order the stock bushings with my next major parts order.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[philosopheriam]

Well, I ended up getting the 335mm Emgo/MDI shocks from JCWhitney... $95 bucks with free shipping.

As for the slightly shorter size, I didn't think it would make as much of a difference, considering that the shocks are sprung heavy and the bike isn't going to sag as much in the rear...

It's either the 335mm shock or the one that's around 365mm... So, I opted for the slightly shorter one.

If necessary, I can always drop the front end a touch by moving the forks up in the triples just a tad...

As for the bushings, I need to redo the front fork seals, so I will order a set of oem bushings at this time.

Thanks everyone for the help!

 

[SqDancerLynn1]

Don"t waste your time with the bushings !!! Get the suzuki bushings !!!!!!

pn 09319-10008 5.36 @ at BikeBandit

 

[Steve]

As for the slightly shorter size, I didn't think it would make as much of a difference, considering that the shocks are sprung heavy and the bike isn't going to sag as much in the rear...

Would you do us all a favor? Get a friend and get some measurements (I know where some of the guys are going to go with that. ).
Measure your stock shocks fully extended from eye to eye. Sit on the bike, measure again to get your riding height. Check again, if you want, using min/max preload settings. Now measure the MDIs the same ways. This will help you determine whether they actually will ride about the same height (in spite of their shorter length), and will let the rest of us know, too.

Thanks.

.

 

[philosopheriam]

Well, here's a bit of an update...

My stock showas are actually just a bit over 13.5" - thats not much different than the 13 3/16 of the new MDI's.

This bike actually belongs to my buddy, and he wants to use it for riding in/out of the city with his GF on the back. So, he's around 185, she's 120, so thats around 305 on the bike.

The extra stiffness of the MDI's might just be appropriate for this situation...

 

[BassCliff]

Hi,

Yes, the "not as much sag" observation is valid. I got the stock length shocks and can tell my steering is a little quicker because the back end is a skosh higher. But I like the change it made in the handling. These shocks are just adequate, an improvement over the worn out 30 year old stock shocks. But you must address the bushing issue.

This is what the MDI bushings look like after less than 1000 miles.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[philosopheriam]

Basscliff,

I have to buy a bunch of parts to redo the fork seals and the clutch cover shaft seal, so, I'll buy the OEM bushings and press them in.

Can anyone verify this Suzuki part # for the bushings:
09319-10008

SqDancerLynn1 gave it to me above

 

[BassCliff]

Hi,

I would trust Lynn, she knows her stuff. That same bushing is also used in footrests and swingarms of several different bikes, even though it's not listed as a separate part in the shocks.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[Nessism]

The stock shocks are 12.75" long. You did well to not go any longer than you did.

 

[philosopheriam]

Well, I was going to purchase most of my stuff from DGY, but their 10% coupon expired, so, I founf everything I needed on BikeBandit.com

I purchased OEM busings for the new rear shocks, a set of Bikemaster seals for the forks, Fuchs Silkolene 15W oil, new upper fork bushings, new damper bolt sealing washers, and a new clutch cover oil seal.

Once the forks all all put back together, I'll probably pull the steering head bearings, clean/repack them, and then retighten the head.

Thanks for everyones help!

 

[Steve]

Congrats on finding everything you needed. :clap:

Too bad it was at the second-most-expensive supplier around.

Probably could have found them all cheaper at any one of the dozen other places listed in BassCliff's vendor page.

.

 

[philosopheriam]

I looked at a ton of places, and the problem was the shipping - to save $5 on a part to only pay $6 in additional shipping didn't make a lot of sense.

Because bikeBandit had the fork oil I wanted and the seals at a good price, I got the other OEM parts through them, which wasn't a ton of stuff.

Then, I used a 5% discount code - everything seemed to add up fairly reasonably in the end.

BTW: The forks on the GS650 are stupid easy to disassemble...