I am getting some Progressive 412s delivered today. I do not have a lift for my Sportster. Any tips on getting them installed? Can I use a car jack with some blocks to help take the weight off the rear end?

 

You'll have to get weight of the rear end somehow. If the car jack is low enough you could do that. You can also get a 4x4 block and rock the bike up on to it, etc. More than one way to get it off the ground.

 

Try doing one side at a time. You might not need to jack it up at all. I never changed the shocks on my Sportster but did it that way on the Dyna.

 

Why do you not want to buy a lift? If you are going to DIY maintenance and upgrades, it will be worth the investment.

You can also make one i.e. DIY lift out of wood that works as well.

I have never not use a lift when changing my shocks...in fact, I use two lifts one for the bke and one for the rear wheel... it is just easier with a lift.

A car lift can work, just lift slightly and use the kickstand and front wheel as your balancing points to get the weight off the rear. Find a place where the jack will be stable like the crossmembers on the frame wihere there is a ridge

 

I thought craigthecarpenter 's homemade lift was quite good. It had side to side support:

post #10 in this thread shows it really well-
https://www.hdforums.com/forum/sport...sportster.html

 

If you do 1 side at a time you won't need a jack, but lining up the upper bolt while lifting the rear end isn't easy, but it is doable.

 

 

+1 on making a lift, they work great for Sportsters. I made this one and it will either end of the bike depending on where it is placed and was changing shocks in the picture...welded it together but there are plans on the web for simple plank and pipe designs that can be built with basic hand tools, used these as a basis for my steel tubing lift
http://www.nightrider.com/biketech/bikelift.htm