Hi Jim,
I've been observing and trying to remember comments from people for a couple
of years regarding this topic, as one of the lever shocks on my 3 seems to have
been leaking as well.
Here's what I've retained:
1. The heads of the bolts are apparently really hard to get at, unless you get
a thin-walled socket which Sears happens to have. It's a bit hard to find
because
it's a 1/4" drive 9/16" deep socket. Craftsman p/n is 43599.
2. To solve the above for the future, two recommendations are:
a) Replace with socket head bolts, or
b) Replace with 2 1/2" bolts, using a piece of 1 1/4" long tube (3/8" id, 5/8"
od) between the head of the bolt and the shock, such that the head of the bolt
is accessible with a regular socket. Or maybe that guy put the nuts to the
outside,
come to think of it, and washers between the tubes and the body of the shocks.
3. Motorcycle shock oil from Harley-Davidson, 30 wt, is supposed to be a good
starting point. I don't know why it's special, but it's at least readily
available.
4. There are adjustments that can be made to the shock, like putting a washer
under a spring, to make them stiffer (or maybe it was less stiff?). You might
also be able to source different springs, if you're into it to that extent.
I think Tony Rhodes has tried some of these latter two, as have some others;
maybe you've had other input by now.
Hope this helps,
Regards,
Jim wWllace
http://www.superaje.com/home
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