Hello everyone. New member here but have been lurking and reading on these forums for several months. I have benefited from some of the information to be found here so thought I would share this.
We recently replaced the stock rear suspension on my wife's CBR500R with a stock GSXR rear suspension from the 11'-13' model year gixer.
It took some doing but what a KILLER upgrade! The gixer rear suspensions come CHEAP on e-bay and it made my wifes CBR500R feel like a whole new machine.
I suppose it probably voids it at least for anything related to the rear suspension; however, for the improvement it brings to the canyon carving ability of the bike........it's worth it.
Excellent job, please attach detail pictures if possible.
Can I ask why you chose GSXR swing arm and not Cbr600rr or maybe the 1000rr
Thank you for your time
they have a rear YSS shock at Honda Bigwing Bangkok for 12.000 thb which is 400 USD and they have another model YSS for 20 k thb around 650 USD. Both are popular among users.
OP, please post photos!
Sorry for the delay, we have been testing different suspension settings on Angeles Crest Highway as well as street / freeway so that I can post some useful information regarding setup at the same time. Things are going well though. This is a HUGE upgrade and these GSXR rear shocks are cheap on e-bay.
I used the OEM Honda linkages. The GSXR shock is about 1/2" taller than the Honda so you need to be prepared to lift the rear end of the bike once the stock unit is out but it does fit.
Will it fit on the ABS 500? The ABS box is right there by the shocks and the rear shock resevior of the gsxr may not clear. I just got a steal on gsxr 2012 shock with lowering links with 500 miles. I was looking at it and it seems that it may be tight or will not fit under there. Fishbowl, is yours with abs?
Man thank you for taking the time to make the video! You explained it really well, it doesnt seem that complicated. This is something Im going to really look into. Thanks again!
I'm all for seeing people make other things work. But what KG spring do you have? you need to keep in mind that shock was built for that specific bike. Different weight, different linkage ratios. Not saying it's not going to work cuz lets face it. Anything is better than the OEM junker. But this is why I went the extra mile working with penske to develop a shock. But with some work i'm sure that shock can be valved and sprung to work well.
Not sure of the spring rate but I initially got this idea from another forum of CBR500R riders who were doing this and using it out on the track. I was so displeased with the stock CBR shock that for the price, it seemed worth the risk. After all, worst case scenario was the GSX-R shock wouldn't work and I would have to put the OEM one back in. Not a big deal. Considering how cheap these things are on e-bay, it seemed worth the chance.......and it definitely was / is. This is a budget grade motorcycle, why invest any serious time or money into big dollar upgrades? In my opinion, you're better off using that money on a more advanced machine, that's why I ride a Ninja and my wife will be moving up to one in the next year or so.
I don't remember which forum I looked up the GSXR's spring rate on, but it's a tad stiffer than the CBR500R's (like maybe 50 lb/in). Linkage ratio shouldn't be an issue since he's only replacing the shock/spring combo. I'm really in for the adjustable shock, but the one I ordered is snowed in at a UPS transit facility in Memphis, TN. :angryfire
Improving suspension is a much more worthwhile expenditure than most of the other changes people make to their bike. Mine is a 500FA so I'll need investigate the differences between ABS and non ABS models before considering this upgrade.
The forks are as bad as the rear suspension so do you have any plans to upgrade them? For our rough local roads I think adjustable compression damping would be ideal because the OEM forks transmit every bump as a jarring sensation through the handlebars. If available, Intiminators would probably help but since my bike is only one week old I'll wait a while before making any changes.
The forks are as bad as the rear suspension so do you have any plans to upgrade them? For our rough local roads I think adjustable compression damping would be ideal because the OEM forks transmit every bump as a jarring sensation through the handlebars. If available, Intiminators would probably help but since my bike is only one week old I'll wait a while before making any changes.
I agree with you regarding the front forks and after you upgrade the rear suspension, the weakness of the front becomes more evident, not terrible, but evident. I'm considering putting some PVC pipe on the inside of the forks to add some preload but am still undecided. I've got a pretty busy schedule over the next couple months so it probably won't happen until closer to summer.
Rest assured the upgraded rear allows for more aggressive riding as it keeps the rear under control. The wallow is gone and the back end now pushes through corners like a supersport. It is a serious canyon carving weapon.
The stock spring rate for the 500 is 600kg. As far as linkage ratio Im meaning the shock is going to be valved for the gsxr so its not going to be depot on by any means.but like I said it'll be better than stock for sure.
This is really tempting, especially for the apparent bang for the buck. That weird nub on the gixxer assembly, though .. I wonder if one could just saw that bit off with a decent metal blade and save the trouble of hacking up the underside of our bikes? Definitely keeping an eye on this.
this sucks that this does not fit the abs version because of the reservoir. I just received my racetech front springs and it would be nice to have a rear shock with it.. but rear shock is $$$$. I really dont want to spend that much for a 6k bike. What else would fit as a replacement shock? preferable with remote reservoir.
Oh, it doesn't fit with ABS? ****, so much for that.
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