shorter rear shocks on an XJ

I just lowered my Seca XJ 750 4 full inches using tube steel struts...It is a rigid now, but the fender really hugs the rear tire and looks great.

 

You can always take an electric carving knife and cut the seat down some.

 

Have you tried KYB? They carry everything including cutom applications. I am sure they have a lower application for the bike.

 

They make a kit that lowers the rear shocks.

www.merriamcycle.com

 

I rode my XJ on short steel struts for 2000 miles before a friend took pity on me and pulled out his welding gear. (There's a pic of the Yama-HardTail in the Gallery). He took a pair of shocks from a wrecked XJ (a moment of respectful silence for parts bikes everywhere) and cut them nearly in half. By re-locating the cut-down spring on a shorter tube and re-assembling the eye and mounting, it all fit fine. The frame fits with room to spare (as long as I keep my big boyfriend off of it!) and I still have the notched adjustment ability. You can also trim the seat foam but I don't know how well the cover would fit after doing so. Let me know if you want a close-up of the shocks and I'll go uncover him - it's not supposed to snow today! Good luck with your project.

 

If your bike isn't a seca, you can used the adjustable rear shocks from a seca and they drop the rear a bit. It's nice because you can get the same(or better) dampening without having to crank up the spring preload. I did the swap on my maxim and noticed a huge difference over stock.