[Slaydaddy]

I have a 2006 Raptor and weigh right at 200lbs. I have been very happy with my suspension for the riding I do (Mainly rough trails). We all know that the Raptor needs adjustables up front and a better overall quality of shock dampers to boot.


Rather than locating a set of 450 shocks that are sprung and valved for a different bike and surface, I would rather just find some new 2007 Raptor Ltd adjustables. It seems that they would be perfect for what I'm looking for (Raptor spring and valving w/ adjustability). Now, I just need to find a set. How long before online OEM parts stores will have 2007 catalogs?

Is this something that I am going to have to see my local dealer about?


For anyone ho hasn't seen them, they are black w/ piggyback reservoirs (looks very close to a 450 shock) and have adjustable comp/rebound. I Felt of a set on a new Raptor Ltd at the local shop and they seem to be in the ballpark of what I'm looking for. Of course I could only tell by hopping on the bike in the show room. There was a regular Raptor right next to it to compare. They felt pretty decent in comparison. I figure that they would be as good as the 450 shocks, but valved and sprung for 'Raptor' duties.


Has anyone heard of anyone else doing this?


Also, I know I could use the benefit of Pro-level shocks for the features they have, and I ride pretty hard, and could use all the travel I can get, but I have other hobbies and a family to feed. I don't think I can let go of $1,600 for two shocks.


I'm a suspension tuner in the RC world, and I like as much control and asjustability from my shock absorbers as possible, so if I am spending any money at all, they will be at least comp/rebound adjustable along with preload, of course.



Are there any alternatives for fully adjustables that could get me set up for under a $grand??? Or is finding 450 front take-offs the only way to go?

what do y'all think about the new Raptor Ltd shocks (for anyone who has ridden them)???

 

[RaptorRacer45]

If you find a set tell me.....but Ebays the best bet for now

 

[Havn2muchfun]

My dealer, who knew that I could get a set of Elka's for 500$, was quoted 495 a piece from Yamaha. They were so new that they didn't have the part #. For that kind of money, a set of shock's set up for the specific machine, riding style, and weight sounds even better.
And out of curiosity, is your R/C work for Traxxas?

 

[GEARHEAD9969]

I was told the same thing HAVN, I'd just as soon buy after market for that cost.

 

[281pony]

i believe it probably is for traxxas. a couple years back i was real heavy into r/c and used to see his sn as a moderator.

good luck on finding shocks :thumbsup:

 

[Slaydaddy]

Yeah, it's me. Still racing and working for Traxxas. I love it.


Well, my point about the shocks is that most of the shocks that I've seen from the aftermarket world are around $800 to $1000 each for fully adjustables. The Yamaha shocks would save around $600 or more for the pair - not bad IMO. And if you could find somebody's take-offs then it would save even more.

I've seen the $500 to $600 a piece aftermarket shocks, but they are only preload adjustable. They may work great, but I absolutely have to have adjustables. I just want to be able to tune the shock. Especially if I'm paying a grand or more for shocks - they better be adjustable. LOL!!! If you can find me a complete (2-shock) set of aftermarket 'fully' adjustable shocks, meaning compression and rebound for $1000 or less, then that's exactly what I'm looking for.


I think that there is a huge gap in the suspension market that these companies are missing out on. If a brand like Elka or Axis could release a fully adjustable shock similar to OEM 450/700SE front shocks, but have better action and valving, and sell them for a street price around $500 to $600 a shock, then they would sell a ton of them. There are a ton more recreational riders out there than there are racers, and many of them would like a set of reasonably priced adjustables.

The prices seem to jump up $300 to $400 per shock when you add comp and rebound adjustment. That doesn't seem right to me. I'm not a shock manufacturer and I don't play one on TV, but something tells me that if Yamaha can build a decent adjustable shock for $495 at full retail, then some one like Elka should be able to do it for around that at street price. But instead, they are twice as much. I'm sure you are getting more for the money, but what about the people who fit into the huge gap in between?


All that being said, I must admit that I have only been into quads for about a year, and I do not know all of the shock manufacturers and what they offer, but I have been to a lot of online stores and looked through a lot of catalogs and I see the same ol stuff for the same ol prices, and it seems that there are really only a couple of brands that are popular. I may be missing a good deal or a particular shock model that has what I want for the right price, that's why I'm asking the question here. Maybe I'm missing something.


If a pair of adjustables from Yamaha is $1000 and a pair of adjustable Elkas are $1800, then I may need to settle for the Yamahas and save $800. That's a lot of money to me. They will perform better than what I have now, and they will be adjustable. I may be missing out on some extra plushness from the Elkas, but I can't totally justify the $800 difference at this juncture. I can always get them revalved by a good company later for around $250 and get better shock action and damping, and I'll still be $550 under the Elkas. Now, if I were intending to race competitively or if I had plans of jumping 60-80ft tables and triples, then that would be an entirely different story.

Anyway, if any of you guys find a something like this, please post it here. I greatly appreciate it.

Thanks

 

[Havn2muchfun]

I originally wanted the fully adjustable shock's, but since I'm not racing, it's just that much less to worry about. My riding is 95% GNCC type trail/woods riding, the rest is track and dune's. My Elka's(standard) 480ish price seemed good for triple rate shocks, and if I want to upgrade later, I can send them back and have those adjustments added. Allow's me to have money for upgrade's to my other hobbie, most of that money goes to your company somehow :thumbsup:.

 

[GuamRaptor700]

Find a set of elkas on ebay and then give elka a call about a rebuild. A couple of people on here had mentioned that it cost about 150 a shock to have them rebuilt into elites with comp and rebound adjust and to get resprung and revalved.

 

[Slaydaddy]

Havn, LOL!!! good point... I like to adjust setups for different conditions/environments whether I'm thrashing around or racing. I guess it stems from RC. Everything is so expensive with 4-wheelers vs. RC. I've gotten spoiled. LOL!!!

A pair of badass RC shocks only sets you back about $50. LOL!!! I love my Raptor though. I wish I had gotten into this a long time ago. It's like riding on top of a huge T-Maxx. LOL!!! I do mostly trail riding too, so I've got all of the under skids, Holeshot HD's, ProTaper bars, and an FMF pipe. I'm down to only a few more things on my list - Shocks, Steering stabilizer, and a programmer.




Guam, that's not a bad idea. I will consider that. Thanks.


------------------------------



Oh yeah, I need to find a set of hand guards without the plastic shield that will fit the Raptor. I want the aluminum guards, but not the plastic shield. I really don't need the brush/rock protection, but I do need protection against smashing my hands up against dirt walls when riding through deep narrow washouts and such. Some of the stuff I ride is so narrow that if your wheel falls in a rut the bars will hit the wall and smash the brake or clutch lever into your hand. As a matter of fact, I just fractured my left hand a couple weeks ago because I did not have the Knuckle guards when I jammed my bars into a dirt wall. It smashed my hand into the clutch lever assembly. The guards would've kept the bar from stabbing into the wall.

 

[GEARHEAD9969]

I think acerbis and moose racing still makes the aluminum bark buster with removeable sheild, I bought a set of the cycra composite probrends that where about half the price and work just as well but they have molded hand gards.

 

[BigGixxerJim]

I just put on Yfz 450 shocks and had them revalved for my weight, bike, riding style and longer a arms. WHAT a difference!!! Great investment.

They guy that revalved the shocks for me told me that the YFZ shock is a very good piece... all the valving and eternals are just as good if not better than the Elkas. Race ready. You would have to get the elka elites to get a shock that performs better than the YFZ's. Only difference is the YFZ's are not all CNC machined and anodized like aftermarkets. He says properly set up, there is no handling difference between the two. Just looks.

And this guy knows what he is talking about!!!

 

[Slaydaddy]

Can you release that guy's info? Does he offer that service to anyone? What did he charge you? etc...