I have been looking for a set of quality shock absorbers for my XS2 for some time now. That bike rides like a buckboard wagon. The original shocks, while being quite nice in appearance , are simply horrible. If I were riding on a rough bumpy road I would have to slow down to keep my teeth from chattering and a sharp dip or bump could literally make me go “
OOF! “ and it would knock the breath out of me.
I was considering Progressive 14 series and Hagons. I was having difficulty finding some hard data regarding some critical dimensions, primarily diameter of the coil springs and shock body. The reason these dimensions are important for me is clearance with the factory chain guard ( it’s tight ) and the factory shocks are pretty skinny. I also didn’t want to buy shocks with a “ one size fits all spring” , a lot of shocks come with a spring that is aimed at heavier riders and I’d be right back to having a hard ride.
I wound up buying a set of Ikon 76 series basic shocks. No damping adjustments, not gas charged, just well made hydraulic shocks, that are rebuildable and can be revalved. The only upgrade here is chrome springs, the standard springs are black. It also just worked out that they were fitted with a lighter weight spring that is suited to my weight. I bought these used from an Icon dealer on EBay , a customer had returned them for an upgraded model and I was able to get them at a significant savings.
In the box are the two shocks, a set of 10mm reducers and a pre load adjuster wrench. I did use the 10mm reducers.
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Here is a side by side with the Ikon on the left with the factory shock on the right. The coil spring is larger around and the shock body is about 6mm larger in diameter, it is also 5/8” longer center to center of the mounting bolts, than stock. The important thing is the amount of exposed shock body at the bottom, this will give me the clearance I need.
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When I mounted the drive side shock, it just touched the chain guard, no pressure, just touched. But I didn’t want them to rub against each other so I used a dead blow hammer and massaged a gentle curve into the bottom of the guard. It cannot be seen when mounted and it now totally clears.
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Time for a test ride!
I took it out to to an area near me that has little two lane roads with some good curves and the road is rather rough.
I could tell right away that the ride had improved, the suspension still felt firm, but now much more controlled. I was deliberately aiming for bumps and dips and that spine jarring kick is GONE! It also just generally feels more comfortable riding on rough roads. But here was the surprise for me, the bike now also
handles better! Before, it didn’t really like to be pressed hard going through corners, it felt kinda squirmy, I was blaming the retro tires for that, but now it suddenly feels much more stable and confidence inspiring when I carried speed through a corner. I hit some pretty tight curves today on some roads with rough pavement and I intentionally pressed a higher speed than I would’ve before and it now tracks like it’s on rails!
Color me impressed!
I have to admit, I wasn’t entirely confident I would see any noticeable difference and the cost for good shocks is not cheap, I always told myself, I’m not racing this bike, what’s the difference? But I now have to say, I’m very happy I popped for them. For me they are totally worth the cost.
-Bob
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What a pain! 
