Despite the frigid temps again this morning (-21C) I threw on the layers and headed out to the garage to mount the rear shock. Since swapping out the Penske, the bike had been propped up via the old standby, the "hunk of wood". Nice to get rid of that and put the new shock on.
It went on quite smoothly -- the alloy spacers were a perfect fit into the swingarm and the frame, so the whole process was smooth as silk.
The next step was securing the remote reservoir; again, fairly straightforward as the supplied rubber bushings are a nice touch, isolating the reservoir from the frame. Even the hose clamps were stainless steel jobbies. Nice.
According to JRi, this is the first EX650 shock they have built. If mine is anything to go by, they know their stuff! Click on the link to the right to check out their site and the products they have to offer.
While I was at it, I mounted the bellypan, which was taking up some space inside. It is the final "test fit" (once the exhaust was reinstalled) before I finish it.
The plan is to use vinyl wrap... I got some pieces of "proper" automotive stuff from eBay. After watching a few videos on youtube, I think I could do a half-decent job. I decided on this route considering the beating the bellypan will take, as well as the fact that even though I use spray cans, I am out of clearcoat, and the smallest amount costs me north of $70, not including gun cleaner, etc. The bellypan shape is pretty simple, so perhaps a good first project for using wrap. The pros can do some amazing things with the stuff! The white hue is the microspheres I had applied to smooth out the fibreglass finish.
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