better ride
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The best way to get a better ride is to remove the L (low) part of the 883L. The primary reason it rides so rough is because you're blowing through what little travel you have and bottoming out. Better quality shocks in the stock length will improve the ride marginally as the dampening will control the compression of the shock better and hopefully bottom out a little softer but your still stuck with far too little travel for any kind of "good" ride quality.
The very best thing I ever did to my 883C was to ditch the 11" Progressives the PO had on the back and put on a set of 13.5" ones. The ride was WAY better, the steering was quicker, the bike responded to bar inputs better and it gained a considerable amount of much needed cornering clearance. There is NO WAY I would ever have another Sportster with less than a 12" shock on it.
The very best thing I ever did to my 883C was to ditch the 11" Progressives the PO had on the back and put on a set of 13.5" ones. The ride was WAY better, the steering was quicker, the bike responded to bar inputs better and it gained a considerable amount of much needed cornering clearance. There is NO WAY I would ever have another Sportster with less than a 12" shock on it.
#4
Pretty much what I figured.....not a great deal can be done it seems. I am kinda of spoiled I guess too because I have a 2010 RG.....cadillac ride in comparison, but mucho heavy...lol. The sportster sure is a blast to ride though! I bought this bike for my short commute to work and because I have a very short inseam. Much easier to park in a parking garage at work.
Will a 13.5 shock work? I have already replaced the seat with a mustang....that helped some. Thanks for the replies, I knew someone would have some first hand experience and could provide a suggested solution.
Ride safe!
Will a 13.5 shock work? I have already replaced the seat with a mustang....that helped some. Thanks for the replies, I knew someone would have some first hand experience and could provide a suggested solution.
Ride safe!
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sandman...try some streetglide air shocks in the rear and some progressive fork springs with new screaming eagle fork oil. search "road king shocks on sporties". i have yet to read anything negative and speaking from personal experience...i have 09 883l. after a few different shocks on the rear, and reading numerous post about rk shocks on the sporty, i found a set on ebay for 35 bucks. worth every penny. by the way, the streetglide shocks are an inch shorter than the rk shocks. and, with the addition of the mustang seat, you will be amazed.
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I need to change shocks on my 883r as well. Im about 225 and I had to stiffen the shocks up in the back to keep the bike from bottoming out, but now my back is just getting pounded. Ive been debating between the progressive 412/440's and the road king air shocks. For you guys that went the air shock route, are they a direct bolt on and how hard are they to set up and adjust?