Normal to be bounced off the seat? VFR700 '86

I'm 180lbs and any time I hit a bump in the road I'm bounced off the seat. Adjusting the rear preload to full soft reduces how high I'm bounced, but it still happens.

Are these rear shocks supposed to let that happen or do they just totally suck?

I can push it down and it does not bounce like a typical worn out car shock, but something is just not right. Are there any cheap ways to fix this?

 

Check the air pressure, sounds like you need to drop it a few LBS.

 

OEM says 32psi front, 42psi in back. I dropped it to 35psi and it helped, but I don't know if lowering it any more would be safe.

 

I was refering to the air pressure in the shock. I am assuming it is an olhms air assist shock same as an 83?

 

If it is a coil over, it may have a stiffer spring in it for a rider that was over 200 lbs.

 

Nope, it's a different unit and has no air assist. It only has the hydraulic preload adjuster. The springrate seems fine. I can compress it with my body weight a good inch or so if I push hard.

To me, it seems the high speed rebound is way too soft or else the high speed compression is way too firm. I'm thinking I might need to swap in an adjustable shock from a better, newer bike. An aftermarket one is not an option for this $800 bike.

 

I could put you on the same diet as me. A few juicy hamburgers along with some chili cheese fries followed by some rice pudding and we'll have you up to 220 pounds in no time and your ass will stay firmly planted.

 

as I was going to say, but Pilskin beat me to it. Basically, put a little lead in your butt and you'll stay on.

 

I'm pretty sure a 220lb person would get bounced up as well.

Any other ideas?

I've looked at Daugherty Motorsports, but they don't show a shock for the RC26's.

 

You probably have it set too stiff but odds are your stock Showa is toast by now any way. That aids in you nearly flying off your seat on each and everyu bump.
You can look on Feebay for aFox Twin Clicker or get lucky and score an Ohlins, Works performance and Hagon make new shocks for these models though.

 

Are you talking about the preload? I've tried it at all the adjustments.

Full firm gets rid of the small undulations I feel, but bounces me pretty good on the bumps.

I tend to ride it at full soft, I feel the undulations, but at least the bumps aren't so bad.

Bike has 50K miles on it so the shock probably is worn out.

I need a better shock, but my budget is about $50-$100. Luckily, I'm skilled at fabricating mounts and such. Does anyone know of a better, newer shock that can be made to fit?

 

Velcro????

 

Will that make it ride smoother?

 

well... without knowing exactly what shock you have in there it's very difficult to provide specific guidance. When I bought my '86 last year it did the same thing - until I adjusted the damping correctly (I have a Fox twin-clicker). Preload should make very little difference until the damping is very close to correct. Have you tried going back to square one on the suspension setup? As in get the sag/sack setup first (spring preload), then start with damping at a 'nominal' setting and tune from there? That's what I did, and the bike is both comfortable and planted after following the procedure.

 

I thought it was obvious, I have the stock shock in there. There are no adjustments at all except preload and I tried out all it's range.

I don't think you can adjust the sag, it's just there. I don't know what "sack" is.

 

I would say that sag is the amount of travel the suspension travels when you mount the bike.
If you have a coil over shock, it should ( but some-tymes not) have an adjustable collar ring & jamb ring, so you can adjust it.

 

A whoopie cushion? Come down on one of those and all the harleydoods that can read will think you got a blower or an N02 injection system.

Hang in there, somebody will know.

 

In my world, 'sag' and 'sack' are the same thing, and you adjust it with spring preload. If there truly aren't any adjustments for damping then the shock is shot. Don't know about the Gen 2; but a Gen 1 shock could be disassembled and rebuilt.

 

It looks like these RC26's have unusually short shocks and that's why it's hard to find replacements.
270mm eye to eye on the '86 model.

 

The mileage on the bike needed to be mentioned in the first post for accurate replies.

Wear is related to mileage, and anything much over 35-40,000 miles on a stock Honda shock means it's best days are over, and you need a replacement.