Corbin hard bags and shock setting

[Mighty Mouse]

Just wondering.... I have Corbin Beatle bags on my Rocket and I am going to get some Progressive shocks soon. I am 5'9" and I touch the ground fine although I shift to the left a little while at a stop. The setting on my current shocks are factory 12.5. I was thinking of buying 12" or 11.5" shocks to be flat footed but I measured under the bags to the TORS exhaust and I only have three quarters of an inch. Anyone out there with say 12" settings with Corbins? Im just concerned about the exhaust burning the paint job.

 

[TurboFan]

lets think this through. The pipes are mounted to the bike. The corbins are mounted to the bike. When you sit on the bike and the suspension sags, (a significant amount I might add, in some cases! ) the distance from the bags to the pipes doesn't change, right? The only thing moving is the swing arm, and the WHOLE bike gets closer to the ground, but the pipe to bag distance remains the same. Split the difference, get the 12" and continue to slid your butt around on the seat, you need to, in order to get the bike to corner really well. Enjoy the ride!

 

[xhdskip]

Don't.
We've ALL said things on here that somebody else had a reasonable answer for.
Things that made you go DUH once you saw it.
Just be glad doc chimed in before about 40 guys with smartassed answers .
Like this.
Just get a sheet of asbestos gasket material from your local parts house,
cut it to fit the bottom of the bags,
and glue it on with 3M gasket adhesive.
Dang near permanent, and protects the bottom of your bags.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Thanks for the help and kind words.

 

[atomsplitter]

Re: Ohhhhh

I feel like a complete dumbass now.

Some things to also consider is the effect on handling. Going with a shorter shock will increase the trail on the front. Rake is unaffected but increasing the trail has two effects. Staight line stability is improved, cornering arc is wider at steering lock. That means it turns slower in corners requiring more steering effort. Cornering clearance (not scraping the chrome off the pipes) on a shorter shock is also reduced.

The standard sport bike uses very small trail values, making it turn quickly at speed. A cruiser uses large trail values for straight line stability on the highway. Going down to an 11" shock is fine, but recognize that you'll need to relearn your bike's cornering characteristics once they're installed.

I'm 6' (just shy of) and I went with 13.5" shocks. I stand a bit tippy-toe at stops, but I haven't scraped a foot board yet and I rode Tail of the Dragon with multiple opportunities. The bike turns in better too, so I can be a tad more aggresive without the physical damage to the hard parts. Things you might want to consider before leaping on a longer or shorter shock length.