Rear shocks for 850 Mk III. Something aftermarket, not stock

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I am looking for new rear shocks for my 850 Commando Mk III. I would like something aftermarket, possibly adjustable and not the stock Girling type. Anything available from Koni? Something else? Where, on-line would I look? Thanks.
 
Hagon shocks are popular replacements. Here in the USA they sell for about $200 USD. I put a set on my bike and have been happy with them.

Koni motorcycle shocks are no longer available (unless you find an NOS set) but there is an Aussie company called Ikon that makes shocks that I'm told are basically Koni reproductions.

Debby
 
I use Koni's and there was a big improvement when I upgraded from the original girlings, if they ever need replacing I will be looking at YSS Koni replica's

http://bikerevival.co.uk/exp.html

If you google YSS a lot of racers are using them with good results.
 
kommando said:
I use Koni's and there was a big improvement when I upgraded from the original girlings, if they ever need replacing I will be looking at YSS Koni replica's

http://bikerevival.co.uk/exp.html

If you google YSS a lot of racers are using them with good results.

Thanks. I'll try to find a N. American reseller.

How about progressive or Works performance?

Those Hagon "nitros" look pretty good.
 
I would like to lower the rear end about an inch as well. I plan on doing it to the front by an inch too, so I should probably do that at the same time.

I assume lowering the rear an inch without doing it to the front will drastically effect the handling of the bike in a negative manner.

I am not totally convinced I want to lower the bike an inch, but I am seriously thinking about it. This would be more for cosmetic reasons rather that better handling due to lower centre of gravity.
 
kommando said:
I use Koni's and there was a big improvement when I upgraded from the original girlings, if they ever need replacing I will be looking at YSS Koni replica's

http://bikerevival.co.uk/exp.html

If you google YSS a lot of racers are using them with good results.

The YSS shocks seem to be 5mm longer (eye to eye) than the stock replacement and the Hagon NITROs is not available for Norton Commando yet.
 
I have fitted shocks from tri-corengland.com, they are intended for Triumphs but fit ok on my commando roadster.
They have progressive springs, three preload settings and a variable damping control, and are not expensive (can't remember the pricebut cheaper that Hagons and a bit more sophisticated).
The springs are slightly bigger in dia. and rub a bit against the chain guard but this can be adjusted. More importantly they work well.
Geoff
 
Folks - Beware of the limitations of Chinese Koni replicas that I fitted to my Commando early this year. My 850 is in daily use and the shocks are about to go in the bin. The seals have gone on the damping rods on both units and one of them is leaking badly from the damping adjuster area at the top. Surprisingly, I thought it would be the cosmetic finish on these units that would be their worst feature, but this has held up really well to riding in all weathers.
I'm sure these shocks are a good budget replacement option for a bike that only has occassional use or little two-up riding, but I would advise anyone that does a reasonable mileage to invest in some known-brand units. I took some 20 year old "cosmetically challenged" Hagons off the bike in order to fit these, but the Hagons are going back on.......
Cheers - Nick
 
hal20308 said:
Folks - Beware of the limitations of Chinese Koni replicas that I fitted to my Commando early this year. My 850 is in daily use and the shocks are about to go in the bin. The seals have gone on the damping rods on both units and one of them is leaking badly from the damping adjuster area at the top. Surprisingly, I thought it would be the cosmetic finish on these units that would be their worst feature, but this has held up really well to riding in all weathers.
I'm sure these shocks are a good budget replacement option for a bike that only has occassional use or little two-up riding, but I would advise anyone that does a reasonable mileage to invest in some known-brand units. I took some 20 year old "cosmetically challenged" Hagons off the bike in order to fit these, but the Hagons are going back on.......
Cheers - Nick


Thanks for the heads up and as I suspected, the replicas aren't worth their salt.
 
Help please!

I have decided to go with Works performance shocks for the rear of my Commando www.worksperformance.com I am going for the Street Tracker model.

My rear shocks measure 13" centre to centre and the Works are available in 12 3/4". Will the 1/4" drop in shock height really affect the handling of the bike or will I be ok?

Any response will be great as I want to order these things pretty quickly. Thanks.

http://www.worksperformance.com/html/street.html

$489.00 for the pair of chrome Street Trackers.
 
The original shocks should actually be 12.9 inches between centres, so there's really not that much difference.
 
L.A.B. said:
The original shocks should actually be 12.9 inches between centres, so there's really not that much difference.

Thanks, L.A.B. that is what I'm thinking so I assume I should be ok. Is there a possibility of dropping the height of the front forks by around 1/4 or 1/2 inch to compensate? The fellow at Works Performance mentioned I could simply put a longet top-out spring in the top to lower the fork a bit. I'm not too up to speed on the workings and internals of the Norton front shocks so I'm a bit out to lunch with all of this.

The rear shocks might also be available in a 12 1/2" as well. If I can drop the front a bit with the different top-out springs (if my 75 Commando even has them) I might go that route.
 
I would be inclined to leave the forks as they are for starters, and if you are going to use 12.75 inch shocks then the difference (0.15in) is hardly worth worrying about, and I cannot see that 0.4 in would make a huge difference either, although you need to be sure the tyre won't come into contact with the underside of the mudguard/fender on full compression when using shorter shocks. Also the spring poundage and the preload adjustment affects the ride height, and just clicking the adjusters up or down will affect the ride height.

There are no top-out springs in the Norton forks and again the ride height is mostly governed by the length and poundage of the main springs, so to lower the ride height the springs would need to be shortened or replaced with softer springs or alternatively the damper units could be shortened I suppose?

But it can be wiser to make one adjustment/modification at time and see what effect it has rather than do a whole lot of things at once.
 
L.A.B. said:
I, so to lower the ride height the springs would need to be shortened or replaced with softer springs or alternatively the damper units could be shortened I suppose?

I was told I would have to cut the stanchions and springs and I don't want to fart around with that. I've seen a Commando lowered two inces and it looks great. I was thinking of doing it an inch but I think I'll give up on that idea.

Does going with an 18" rear wheel and a 120/90 - 18 change the height of the wheel, or will it be pretty much exact to the 100/90 - 19 that is on there?
 
I have both the koni's (on my commando)and the works (on my 74 ducati) - and both are great shocks, much much better than the stock or cheap replacements - if you get the works though i would get them paired with the works progressive front springs - a this is a real sweet setup but $$ - the koni replacements IKONS -appear to be exact replicas and while i don't know the $ for them don't think they sell paired front springs

over all neither is a bad choice - if just easy street riding and the occasional go fast i'd have to say i'd get the ikons with some good progressive front springs- if you like to dig frequently in you can custom order the works (give them your weight, height, and the shock length) - takes 2 weeks - and a custom setup perfect for you
 
Coco said:
Does going with an 18" rear wheel and a 120/90 - 18 change the height of the wheel, or will it be pretty much exact to the 100/90 - 19 that is on there?

No there's not much difference, about 1/4 inch less radius.
 
Re: shock

txnortonrdr said:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Marzocchi-Strada-Shocks-For-Moto-Guzzi-Ducati-BMW_W0QQitemZ220049294815QQihZ012QQcategoryZ35615QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Check these out Ive got the same on my 73. They are pretty hard to find

I can't get the link at work here so I'll have to check when I get home. Company software just doesn't allow some websites to be accessed here at work. :?:
 
Apparently the Wroks Performance shocks I am looking at need a bit of work to fit properly. I heard that the shock interferes with the chainguard so it might end up being a complete pain in the ass so I might just go with a fancy Hagon instead and save myself some cash and some anguish.
 
I've just put Hagons on my mk111, work very well, transformed the ride.
 
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