Im not sure how air ride really works, I was always under the impression that I can dump all the air out of it and ride totally slammed and maybe pump just a little air in to have some cushion at least. But then I was reading that when people cruise they pump the air up to maximum and only slam the bike when they are parked. So is it possible to ride with the bike at the lowest setting, because it would seem like a total waste of money if you can only slam the bike when you're parked.

 

I just put an air ride on my bike and it works well if you want a lowered (meaning lower than stock) look with the ability to adjust firmness/rebound/height for any given situation or environment. It also allows you to adjust to an over-stock height. If you are looking to ride slammed all the time, you would be wasting your money. The only time I would ride slammed with my exhaust (Samson 33" longtails) is on a long stretch of straight, well-maintained road/highway. Otherwise, I'm scraping all over the place...some may beg to differ, but that's my experience. It's a good mod if you want to improve your suspension and comfort with ability to adjust on the fly.

 

Would you say it would be better in my case to just get dogbones and progressive springs to lower it 2 inches and keep it that way?

 

I forgot to mention that one of the reasons I was looking at air ride is because when I would ride 2 up I could lift it up, but when riding by myself I would always lower it. I ride 2 up about 90% of the time

 

I think so.
I have a Shotgun Shock system and can adjust it while riding for load and road conditions.
I don't ride totally slammed, but lowered. I can also raise it 1" above stock height for a little more ground clearance.

 

short answer Yes.Lots of posts on here do a search. Shotgun has got to be the best investment I've made yet.

 

Roblox, what are you riding? What frame you're running dictates what options you have...


That said, we're running Shotgun Shocks on both of our softails - a Slim, and a Lo. I'm absolutely sold on the ride they give. My "sweet spot" is riding it about an inch and a half lowered, and can adjust it on the fly to accommodate road conditions, personal comfort, type/speed of riding...

It's a bit of a leap of faith - fair chunk of change for something you don't have experience with - but one I'm more than happy I took on the first bike. Now, I'd put one on any softail I'll ever own. J.D. also makes them for the baggers, and I'm pushing for a couple of my people to strongly consider them, since they're looking to upgrade their suspensions at the moment.

As was mentioned above - do a search for shotgun shock, and you'll find a LOT of feedback and discussion. Right now in the Softail section, there's a thread there about shotgun shock cheerleaders. I'd recommend you read at least the initial post.

 

Sounds like you might be "right" for an air ride if you would like to adjust your suspension for different riding conditions and passenger vs. no passenger...Shotgun is what I have and no problems thus far (great product IMO). I may put an upgraded front suspension on mine to compliment the Shotgun in the rear.

 

Thanks for all the help guys. I just bought a 2000 FLRHI Road King with salvage title as a second bike, it was a deal I just couldn't pass up although it does have a lot of miles. It's also the bike id like to get my hands dirty with but I don't know anything about Harleys so I'll have to read up on this as much as I can.

 

J.D. is shipping his bagger version of the Shotgun Shocks now. PM him, and he'll very likely offer a discount to forum members.

I've never installed one of the bagger versions, but it's got to be at least as easy as the Softail version is. 2-3 hours, and you should be good to go, with tools you should have already (or will need if you're going to ever do much to your bike yourself).