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Spirit of America shock replacement
Quote from Gandolf on October 4, 2020, 2:37 pmLooking for info on replacement options of the spring/shock for 70s Spirit of America. It looks like I could use an Inder shock but it is an inch or so longer which might not be so bad.... but will probably put me back in adjustment mode again. Any thoughts?
Looking for info on replacement options of the spring/shock for 70s Spirit of America. It looks like I could use an Inder shock but it is an inch or so longer which might not be so bad.... but will probably put me back in adjustment mode again. Any thoughts?
Quote from jaydmc on October 5, 2020, 10:10 amLength of the shock is not as important as the spring rate. It is not all that hard to change mounting points if need be to use a longer or shorter shock. In general I have found Inder parts to be of less then optimal quality, I doubt if the spring rate is stiff enough, but do not have any first hand knowledge and stock nothing to help you with this.
Jay G
DMC sidecarswww.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
Length of the shock is not as important as the spring rate. It is not all that hard to change mounting points if need be to use a longer or shorter shock. In general I have found Inder parts to be of less then optimal quality, I doubt if the spring rate is stiff enough, but do not have any first hand knowledge and stock nothing to help you with this.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
866-638-1793
Quote from Gandolf on October 17, 2020, 7:26 amWell, I ended up with the Inder shock setup and was pleasantly surprised. It's a perfect fit. The longer length actually puts the axle closer to being horizontal with the pivot bearing much like a leading link which now transfers more energy to the shock and less to the frame. Spring seems to be just about right since this a pretty light weight rig. Running it at lowest preload with room to increase with greater passenger loads.
Night and day difference.... it's like a whole new rig! Hard to believe how much that one item effected the overall ride.
Well, I ended up with the Inder shock setup and was pleasantly surprised. It's a perfect fit. The longer length actually puts the axle closer to being horizontal with the pivot bearing much like a leading link which now transfers more energy to the shock and less to the frame. Spring seems to be just about right since this a pretty light weight rig. Running it at lowest preload with room to increase with greater passenger loads.
Night and day difference.... it's like a whole new rig! Hard to believe how much that one item effected the overall ride.
Quote from Gecker on October 26, 2020, 8:51 pmQuote from Gandolf on October 17, 2020, 7:26 amWell, I ended up with the Inder shock setup and was pleasantly surprised. It's a perfect fit. The longer length actually puts the axle closer to being horizontal with the pivot bearing much like a leading link which now transfers more energy to the shock and less to the frame. Spring seems to be just about right since this a pretty light weight rig. Running it at lowest preload with room to increase with greater passenger loads.
Night and day difference.... it's like a whole new rig! Hard to believe how much that one item effected the overall ride.
Great to hear you are pleased with the performance of the new shocks. We'll consider the Inder shocks setup when we start working on the sidecar, just got to finish installing the parts from 4Wheelonline onto the ATV this week.
Quote from Gandolf on October 17, 2020, 7:26 amWell, I ended up with the Inder shock setup and was pleasantly surprised. It's a perfect fit. The longer length actually puts the axle closer to being horizontal with the pivot bearing much like a leading link which now transfers more energy to the shock and less to the frame. Spring seems to be just about right since this a pretty light weight rig. Running it at lowest preload with room to increase with greater passenger loads.
Night and day difference.... it's like a whole new rig! Hard to believe how much that one item effected the overall ride.
Great to hear you are pleased with the performance of the new shocks. We'll consider the Inder shocks setup when we start working on the sidecar, just got to finish installing the parts from 4Wheelonline onto the ATV this week.
Quote from Gandolf on October 27, 2020, 7:52 amGecker,
Are you also setting up a Spirit of America rig?
First off, it's a pretty light rig so the Inder shock seemed like a good match. Second, the shock assembly was probably the original (close to 50 yrs.) so anything would be an improvement I would think the biggest difference in performance was from the added length which put the wheel axle closer back to level with the pivot bearing so the energy now passes more directly to the shock. Thinking it could be even a tad longer yet.. I'm sure there is a better option out there with some searching but for the price it certainly did the job quite well. Good luck with your rig!
Gecker,
Are you also setting up a Spirit of America rig?
First off, it's a pretty light rig so the Inder shock seemed like a good match. Second, the shock assembly was probably the original (close to 50 yrs.) so anything would be an improvement I would think the biggest difference in performance was from the added length which put the wheel axle closer back to level with the pivot bearing so the energy now passes more directly to the shock. Thinking it could be even a tad longer yet.. I'm sure there is a better option out there with some searching but for the price it certainly did the job quite well. Good luck with your rig!