I contacted Chris about the RFY shock without the reservoir, and he can make one up for me.  I might give it a try.

Dave wrote on 11/08/16 at 05:37:22:

I contacted Chris about the RFY shock without the reservoir, and he can make one up for me.  I might give it a try.

Reading Chris' review of the Model 0 teardown, maybe a Model 1 in an USD or forward facing configuration is a better choice.

Seems like the shorter than 320mm shocks are for scooters and mopeds.   I've reached out to Chris about something shorter.  I may just bite the bullet and work my bike around the 320mm shocks.

BTW, what is our bushing size?

14mm is correct. Make sure Chris knows that the shocks are going on a Savage because he has special thin walled bushings specifically for the Savage.

Sounds like a good plan. If I remember correctly, you wanted shocks in the 12.6" range - which these are..

I ordered a pair of non-reservoir RFY shocks from a Chinese Vender on eBay.....and they got posted with UPS on November 22nd.  They were supposed to be delivered between November 23rd and 28th according to eBay.  The tracking number they provided would not produce any results when I checked.....and eBay showed them to be stalled at the senders end and not in transit yet.

I contacted the seller, and they said the shocks were stalled in Customs (I suppose they do look a bit like rockets, grenades or large bullets!).  The seller also said that this is Chinese New Year.  They felt the shocks would clear customs in a few days, and arrive 2-3 days later.

It is no big deal - but is representative of problems that can occur when you have to deal internationally to get these shocks.  Chris evidently can't find a place where he can become a dealer and get these shocks (or parts) directly from the maker.

You might be able to trim some of the shock height away by working on the lower mount.....or do they make this shock in a length that is a bit shorter?

My shocks still haven't left China from what I can tell by the UPS tracking.  The seller stated that some additional paperwork was required, and they also stated that Chinese New Year might be slowing the process down a bit as well).

ohiomoto

One of the problems with the stock shock, is that it only provides about 1.5" of travel.  With the original 140/80-15 rear tire - or the replacement 130/90-15 or 140/90-15 tires, there is a lot of tire sidewall to help soak up the bumps.  When you switch to an 18" rim and a tire that is 110-130 wide and a 70 or 80 aspect ratio you have a lot less rubber - you really need some additional shock travel.

I wonder if the 800 Intruder shocks would be a good affordable replacement for your bike?  The stock shocks are 10.5", the Intruder shocks are 12.5"....and the 340mm shocks are 13.4".