Street bike shocks on go kart

[yellokart68]

I'm trying to upgrade/redo the suspension on my kart,And was wondering if i could use the shock & spring from a streetbike,A suzuki gsxr 600 to be exact.My plan was to put both streetbike shocks (I already have 2)on the back,& then take the shocks that were on the back and put them up front.Has anyone tried this?

[Masteryota]

Originally Posted by yellokart68

I'm trying to upgrade/redo the suspension on my kart,And was wondering if i could use the shock & spring from a streetbike,A suzuki gsxr 600 to be exact.My plan was to put both streetbike shocks (I already have 2)on the back,& then take the shocks that were on the back and put them up front.Has anyone tried this?

Unless it is a bigger buggy, I doubt the Gixxer shock will even compress with 2 of them on the back, unless you were to back out the spring preload, but then you might get a lot of bouncing and damage the internals. It's a delicate issue with suspension either way, and you will always have to compromise something for something else, unless you want to spend a G-note on a set of custom made fox shocks I am finding this out quickly while looking to upgrade my spiderbox.

I see you have a manco in your previous posts. How long are the Gixxers' compared to the stock ones? You may have to relocate/reinforce the mounting tabs before installation. You might be better off trying it, and see how it rides, then adjust the tabs from there, remember, the more upright the shock is, the softer it will be, but the softer it is, the more likely it will bottom out.

[yellokart68]

They're about the same size actually,And the cart they're going on is a manco model 906,I keep forgetting to put another pic up of it And I definetly don't have a grand to put towards the suspension lol thanks for the help

[SLESTAK75]

I have a shock question. How do you take the measurements. I know this may sound ignorant but do you measure them center to center or end to end? do you measure them mounted or off and fully extended? Thanks.

[Jeff52]

Originally Posted by SLESTAK75

I have a shock question. How do you take the measurements. I know this may sound ignorant but do you measure them center to center or end to end? do you measure them mounted or off and fully extended? Thanks.

From my experience you measure bolt center to bolt center. On Fox and other shock sights they measure both fully extended and compressed.

[bear]

Yep, center 2 center.

[Masteryota]

It really depends on the seller and maker, some do both, others only do one. This is especially true on Ebay, but you can guess about 1/2-3/4" subtracted from the total length. Either way, for our karts/buggies, its all a guessing game to find ones that match.

[x-bird]

ditto the above. i always advise to go with fox or king etc that are rebuildable. that way if you end up getting burned with a scored or bent shaft or leaky seals, you can always fix it. also a lot easier to find different springs to use on them for testing and on most of the older fox shocks you can mess around with the shim stack to change the rebound/compression rates.

[Masteryota]

Originally Posted by x-bird

ditto the above. i always advise to go with fox or king etc that are rebuildable. that way if you end up getting burned with a scored or bent shaft or leaky seals, you can always fix it. also a lot easier to find different springs to use on them for testing and on most of the older fox shocks you can mess around with the shim stack to change the rebound/compression rates.

I have an opportunity to pick up a used set of HD sporty fox shocks for cheap, but unsure whether they would be too tight up front for the light spiderbox. Still beating my head against a wall trying to find set for cheap that might work.

[larangure]

Hey Masteryota, did you end up using those HD shocks? If do how did they work? What do you have in your rear? I just want an upgrade from the oem springs nothing to fancy.

[Masteryota]

No, I decided to pass on the offer, based on the spring rate and length, but I am still actively looking for ideas. I was supposed to get a stock pair for free to test, but the guy flaked out.

[mikesova@gmail.com]

I'd love to hear what shocks people are using in the front.

[x-bird]

My front end is all custom modded--as is everything on my buggy -- but i found that sled shocks might be the best choice for fronts and quad shocks for the rear. I'm running Foxes that were OEM made for a 90's Arctic Cat El tigre 500 and the rears are Fox podiums from a predator 500 that i made a set of softer custom springs for.

[Masteryota]

Originally Posted by x-bird

My front end is all custom modded--as is everything on my buggy -- but i found that sled shocks might be the best choice for fronts and quad shocks for the rear. I'm running Foxes that were OEM made for a 90's Arctic Cat El tigre 500 and the rears are Fox podiums from a predator 500 that i made a set of softer custom springs for.

I have been thinking the same thing about the sled shocks up front, as they were made to absorb and compress more than quads are. The only real issue is finding some the correct length to fit in the space you have. I have found a few charts with different quad and sled shock lengths, and not much on the sled side are smaller than 15" eye to eye, which is far too long for a stock or near stock spiderbox.

ATV shock chart

Sled shock chart

[yellokart68]

I'm actually thinking of taking the rear shocks that came with my kart and putting them on the front since i have gsxr shocks that i'm putting on the back, does anyone have any thoughts on doing this?