Suspension Progressive touring link

[Gypsy]

Saw this yesterday and wondered if anyone had this fitted on thier tourer ,mine is a 2008 electraglide ,.Does it make a lot of difference to handling ,realise have to be fitted proffesionally as alignment has to be checked when done ...

Progressive Suspension - Performance Suspension Components for Harley Davidson, Honda, Suzuki, Polaris, Yamaha and Kawasaki

[girlyglide]

Haven't fitted mine yet but we supplied one to SJC69 who has just finished fitting it and was very pleased with the result. Ask him.

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by girlyglide

Haven't fitted mine yet but we supplied one to SJC69 who has just finished fitting it and was very pleased with the result. Ask him.

Thank you

[SJC69]

Just writing it up as you asked......

Yes I fitted one this weekend.

I had considered and done some www searches on most of these stabliser devices and was originally planning on the Sta Bo bushes route on simplicity and cost, but was a bit concerned about reports of additional vibration and even effectively wearing out. Sta Bo have recently just changed the material they made the bushes out due to issues, see their www site.

Then Progressive released their touring link at a much lower price than the most expensive and not much more than the Sta Bo.

Now I must admit the name did have a deciding factor. All their products I have previously used and seen have always been good quality and did exactly what they said. So I found a few reviews on it and was considered importing one from the US but got mine form Phil & Karen at Fatboyzdiner for a very good price and excellent service, they even managed to get it to me the next day, so well done to them.

Right

The product:- Well made and with solid components finished with a good powdered coating, the fit and instructions were good and no further modifications required, see later as to fitting.

The fitting:- The instructions are good but you will need a factory manual or at least some relevant information from it to fit the part. What is not clear though and certainly in my case with the stock exhaust system is you will need to remove the whole system to fit the replacement swinging arm mount, just loosening the system will not give enough clearance.

Also I had an issue regards clearance of the rear exhaust and the lower bolt head of the swinging arm mount, this is due to the replacement Progressive swinging arm mount being flat and substantionally thicker than the OEM mount which is stepped. The difference is approximately the same as the thickness of the original fasteners thick spring washer, so thus when the mount was installed with original bolt and spring washer I had no clearance on the pipe. The solution I used was to remove the bottom bolt's spring washer and use a very thin wave washer with loctite to achieve a similar clearance to what was there originally.





I contacted Progressive and they say that there can be a clearance issue but as long as it is not touching it is OK.









So it's worth being aware of this and checking before the exhaust is removed as to whether there will be sufficient clearance with the standard washer and new part fitted before starting & refitting the exhaust!

Vehicle alignment:- I have done this before on FXRs and use the section B vehicle alignment process in the factory manual with two box section steel tubes clamped to the rear wheel with studding and set them parallel with vernier calipers along their length.
This needs to be done carefully and is time consuming if to be accurate.
Phil at Fatbozy also gave me some advice here and he has a Laser alignment device to set up bikes at his workshop.
If you are unsure of doing it I would recommend you taking it to someone who knows how to do it, with the right set up and know how it doesn't take long to do.

Mine as it turned out was OK and the link itself then just fitted on with no adjustment needed.

The difference:- Well I suppose this depends how bad your bike is in the first place, I assume a new bike will suffer less from any problems than one with a lot of miles or years on it.

I can honestly say that yes it did make a big difference on the twisty roads I have tried it out on, so yes I am pleased it has done what it says it would do, I obviously have yet to do any real mileage though.
I have also not noticed any increase in vibration either.

A couple of tips, if you have the stock exhaust and remove it make sure you follow the factory reinstallation and tightening sequence so as to avoiding problems later and a second I picked up form some of my www searches, use loctie on all the fasteners.

[Gypsy]

Thanks for that Steve a very good write up and easy for me to understand .
Will consider this after few more miles ,cheers, stay lucky

[grbrown]

There are probably a dozen brands of devices like this available, generally known as stabilizers. I wrote up about my experiences with an alternative some while ago, so search on 'stabilizers'.

All tourers bar the 2009 models, which employ a different mounting system, have a stabilizer at the front of the engine and another at the heads, but not by gearbox, unlike all Buells and recent Sportsters. These stabilizer kits rectify that and improve handling and stability. I have had them for a year now on my Glide and Dyna.

[Gypsy]

I did spot your write up after i had posted Grahame,my preffered route would be the progressive type .But both your replys are very helpful to me ,thank you

[Phil]

We have fitted a couple of these now. A good bit cheaper than most others.

Most owners that fit a device like this are the more aggressive riders. Poor choice of words. Maybe the more experienced rider that knows what he is doing!

So far reports are two thumbs up for something that does the same as devices that cost two or three times as much! I like it!

After faffing about over the expense (tight arse), I have managed to get a set of these for my FXDX in a deal with Alan Sputhe. Sputhe Engineering is just up the road from us, & we have worked up a handy trade. I am thinking that they will make a big difference. My Dyna has a big Engine & I am tired of replacing rubber mounts!

SPUTHE Engineering, Harley Davidson Motorcycle After Parts

[Gypsy]

Thanks Phil just what i needed to know
That Sputhe kit looks very well made and would be interesting to see the difference it makes

[Ukkid76]

How much is the kit for a 03 Road king?