User Comments on Progessive Suspension Shocks
	"I own a 2003 Calif. Aluminum Special Sport and being 5'-7" the seat is a bit high especially with a full gas tank (talk about high  center of gravity, sheesh).  So, I was on the hunt for shocks to lower the rear and saw another Aluminum with a set of Progressive 412-4201c shocks (11-1/2  inches) and the bike was 'in the weeds'.  After installing these my feet are now firmly on the ground at stops, however, I've lost a lot of travel in the rear suspension. I find two-up riding with the preload set to 3 sufficient (total rider & pass. weight @ 250 lbs.), however, I find solo riding  (preload set to 1) to be a bit too firm.  The 4201c has a spring rate of 115/155 lbs. per inch with a 2.30 inch travel. A 4200c  model has a milder spring (90/130 lbs. per inch, same travel) which might be a bit better for solo since I'm only 120 lbs.,  although they might be insufficient for two-up.  All in all, I think if I had it to do over again I would select a 12" (4050c) for more travel (3.0 inches) and maybe the softer  spring (4049c). Unfortunately, Progressive won't 'officially' talk to you because they haven't (and apparently aren't interested)  in testing their products with Guzzis but they have a PDF on their website complete with specs. Steve L. ssl92677>at<cox>dot<net ---------------------------------- "My 1994 California 1100 came with Bitubos on the rear. My riding varies from riding two up hard to solo touring on the highway. The stock Bitubos developed leaks a number of times and I rebuilt them. I also experimented with different oil viscosities and was never really happy. Eventually the spring started to sag. I wasn't sure what to go with, so I got the Progressive Series 12s with a 95/140 spring. I really miss not having a rebound adjustment at the very least. These shocks are 'OK' at best. The worst part though is that I had a piston pop off the end of one shock and had the other develop a bad leak. These are fine if you don't need anything beyond ordinary." Wayne Orwig wayne.orwig>at<mindspring>dot<com ------------------------------------------ "I put a set of the Progressive 412's with the heavy spring on my '96 Cal 1100 at the beginning of 2002 . The shorter length did cause some bottoming out riding 2-up. One fix I did was to remove rubber spacer, bolt and nut set up that the front of the ECU sits on. I replaced it with a flat headed bolt that went from the underside of the fender up through the fender and attached a different rubber bushing that had threaded inserts on the top side.I had a few of these bushings from one of my windshield project mounting a BMW R850R windshield to the mounts for a small Guzzi shield. This solved the problem with bottoming out the nut into the rear tire. You might want to try this. Riding solo certainly didn't have bottoming problems." Bob Winters BMotoGuzzi>at<aol>dot<com Swampscott, MA -----------------------------