After trying a set of KYBs from a Kawasaki ZRX and finding them too big to fit under my Predator exhaust I started looking for a set of shocks with a lower profile. I found these Icon 7614s on the NewThruxton.com. They don’t have all of the adjustments that the KYBs do but they definitely look thin enough to fit under my exhaust and they’re a lot lighter weight.
They arrived two weeks ago but I’ve been traveling for work and just got around to putting them on today. In the photo above they look great but when I unboxed them I noticed some damage on the springs. The damage is super obvious up close. I can only speculate how they were damaged but it probably happened before they were assembled because the rest of the shock body is perfect. But the plastic coating on the springs on both shocks is scratched down to the metal in a few spots. Here’s what I’m talking about:
The damage looks like they rubbed up against something. The reflection of the lights makes it a bit difficult to see at first but I’ve rotated the shock to the left a bit to offset the reflection. I’ve marked up the place where the plastic coating was stripped down to the metal underneath and provided a good close-up. Looking further down the spring you’ll see other places where the plastic was stripped away and there are a few where it’s gone through to the metal.
What a pain. I was really excited to get these on. Even worse than having to go through returning them is that I probably won’t have them on my bike for my upcoming ride up route 100 through Vermont. Not much I can do now but try to get NewThruxton.com to take them back. Not happy.
UPDATE: Added better photo.
technomasochism 