Page 12 - Microsoft Photo Editor - FLYER2 FRONT.jpg

THE FITTINGWhen Bertrand Cadart turned up in Sydney with the “Pan-Cruise” shockies in tow, they were the first ones in the country and cos of that no one had much in the way of experience at fittin’ them up. First thought was to head out to Frasers and grovel to Matchy to see if he’d do it, but then we figured that yer average bloke ain’t gonna have a workshop at his disposal – ’specially if he lives out the back of bum-fuck.So it was back to the West residential slum with Bertrand and Freeby (who took the pics and handed out advice while avoiding the spanners we threw at him) to see how good the “Do It Yourself” instructions were.They turned out to be pretty bloody good, although we did come across a coupla handy hints that will make life easier if ya end up gettin’ some yerself...First up you’ll be pleased to know that ya don’t need a stack of tools or much in the way of experience to fit the “Pan-Cruise” shockies. Spanners needed for the job are 7/ 16ths (to get rid of the placky mudguard extension), and a 3/4 inch for the shock mounting bolts. Probably the biggest pain in the arse is loosening off these bolts which were no-doubt put on at the factory with an air wrench. You’ll also have to get the whole plot in the air to take the weight off the rear end. We used the trusty CBA single rocker stand, but if yer doin’ it hard a jack and bricks’ll do the trick.You can get a ring spanner on the rear shock bolts but the front ones are a bit of a squeeze so you’ll need an open ender (was that Matchy I just heard screaming?) . Once the old shocks are all unbolted it’s time to squeeze the buggers out.The first thing ya notice once the old shocks are off is the difference in size and weight between the standard ones and the “Pan- Cruise” jobs. The standard ones weigh twice as much and seem to be made of pig iron compared to the beautifully made Fournales.One thing the instructions don’ t mention is that you’ll need to put the & front mounting bolts through the yokes before positioning the new shocks. There just wasn’t enough room to get them in later on, and apparently there’s even less clearance on later models. Bertrand has already put together a supplement for the instructions including that.Once the rear mounting bolts have been loosely tightened up you have to raise the rear wheel to get the front mounts lined up. Bertrand tried to do this manually but one herniawas enough for him and we ended up using an old car jack to push the swingarm into place.THE RIDEWith the “Pan-Cruise” shocks tightened up it was time to go out and see how they worked. Just sitting on the bike the difference was obvious straight away. My old shocks weren’t totally fucked but it seemed that my weight alone was enough to take up half their travel. The “Pan-Cruise” shocks settle down about half an inch and then feel nice and firm. Goin’ round the block you could really feel a change, the whole rear of the bike felt firm and tracked straight. Like anything built to close tolerances there’s a bit of stiction at first but this slowly went away after about 500. . . But remember to position those front mounting bolts before the shock is in place.Lining up the shock’s front mount: The wrong way.