Shock Bolts Seriously Glued In

Has anyone else had problems trying to remove the bolts holding the rear shocks? I needed to remove them to replace the springs with the next lighter set from Ohlins. Just experimenting with spring rates. I was unable to get satisfactory sag settings with the originals, and they felt pretty harsh on bumpy roads. But I couldn't get the original bolts out using the correct size Allen wrench. I rounded the sockets in all four bolts, and none of them even tried to turn. I had to slot them with a grinder and use an impact tool with a wide screwdriver blade to get them out. They had a white thread locking substance on them that must be meant for permanent fitting. The small size of the hex socket head also contributed to the difficulty. It seems really small for an m8 fastener. So I replaced them with some taking the next larger hex key, and used blue Loctite, so I shouldn't have this problem again.

These are the original bolts, with slots cut in them.



And these are the replacements.



Not really that big a deal, but I wondered if anyone else had run into this frustration.

Ken

Yes, I had to use a chisel to get them to turn - hit the washer on the edge as the bolt & washer are one unit

I managed to get my top bolts out for my bag brackets . The bottoms I rounded out and are still in there. I am glad that you found a solution to get them out. I will try this next slotting and imact tool removal . Do you have a dual seat ? Because oddly I found my spring rate to be good on my single seat . I have reduced the pre-load to just less than 2 rings showing and this and re-bound set to 22 to 25 clicks out and compression to minimum seems to have made me happy . And I am not heavy either . I do run the saddle bags which adds weight of course.

I had the same problem a few years ago when I replaced the washers. As noted above, the hex socket was too small and one of mine rounded off. I can't remember how I got it off but it ended up looking like this:



The replacements have a larger hex socket:

TonyA said:

I managed to get my top bolts out for my bag brackets . The bottoms I rounded out and are still in there. I am glad that you found a solution to get them out. I will try this next slotting and imact tool removal . Do you have a dual seat ? Because oddly I found my spring rate to be good on my single seat . I have reduced the pre-load to just less than 2 rings showing and this and re-bound set to 22 to 25 clicks out and compression to minimum seems to have made me happy . And I am not heavy either . I do run the saddle bags which adds weight of course.

Click to expand...

I do have the dual seat. With the original spring set to zero preload, I still couldn't get the sag right. Couldn't get static sag above 8.5 mm. With the new springs, I get 15 mm static sag with zero preload. I've set it to 10 mm with preload just showing the second ring, for a start. Will check rider sag as soon as I have someone around to help, and then do some test riding to sort out damping. I don't think there would be much benefit in changing damping until the sag is within reasonable bounds. With the lighter spring, I'm expecting to need a little more compression damping, and a little less rebound, but the truth will be in the ride testing.

Ken

comet said:

I had the same problem a few years ago when I replaced the washers. As noted above, the hex socket was too small and one of mine rounded off. I can't remember how I got it off but it ended up looking like this:

View attachment 11194

The replacements have a larger hex socket:

View attachment 11195 View attachment 11196

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I like the look of yours better than the original flat washers on mine. I might have to make up some like that.

Ken

lcrken said:

I like the look of yours better than the original flat washers on mine. I might have to make up some like that.

Ken

Click to expand...

Ken, you might wanna look at these:

https://www.thiel-motorsport.de/angebote/special-parts/47-norton-conversion-kit

I fitted some of these, and my bolts came out fine, so I can only assume assume the factory changed the loctite used ?

I use these black spread washers: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M8-Load-...hash=item41d3f2b7ae:m:mRMJ-HFGTWaDgR7jUI08pgA

Fast Eddie said:

Ken, you might wanna look at these:

https://www.thiel-motorsport.de/angebote/special-parts/47-norton-conversion-kit

Click to expand...

That's the kit I got, although it came from someone selling on eBay.

regental said:

I use these black spread washers: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M8-Load-...hash=item41d3f2b7ae:m:mRMJ-HFGTWaDgR7jUI08pgA

Click to expand...

A lot cheaper. The dimensions are smaller than the Thiel ones, what do they look like on the bike?

comet said:

what do they look like on the bike?

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Sorry not a VIP member so can't post pics but they look black instead of silver in the photos above - I have used them on the top & bottom shocks & also removed the passenger footpegs so put a pair there also - will be at NOC Morpeth rally next weekend where they can be viewed

Interesting. Thanks for the various links. I'll knock out a set on the lathe when I get around to it.

Ken