Stock vs Penske

Unloading the Shock

Shock Removed

Penske Installed

Reservoir Mounting Bracket

Reservoir Mounting Setup

Reservoir Mounting Installed

Reservoir Backside View

Reservoir Installed

Changed to Dan Kyle

Penske Mount --->

Dan Kyle Mount

Mounted w/o Plastic

Finished Look

Penske 8981 Rear Shock Installation

with Remote Reservoir Location

This installation is actually very easy to do.  The two most difficult parts are the unloading of the spring to get the dang thing off and then the fabrication of whatever you choose to mount the rear reservoir.  I used a floor jack right behind the oil pan.  There is about 4"-5" of frame and mounts there you can use to lift the bike.  If you go any farther back, then you will be pushing on the rear shock linkage and defeating the purpose.  Since I do not have a front stand, I balanced the bike while on the floor jack with two tie down straps crossed and attached to the rafters in my garage.  This worked great.  You can see the picture above and get an idea.

Next, you just undo the top bolt on the stock shock and let the swing come down.  Once it has been unloaded, now remove the bottom bolt on the shock and it should pull right out over the top of the swing arm.  Installing the Penske is just the same thing.  Slide it in over the top of the swing arm and then place the bottom bolt in.  To get the top bolt in, you will need to slowly lower the floor jack until the top eyelet of the Penske is now in its proper location to slide the top bolt back in.  Once its in the right location, slide it right in and tighten it up and you're done.

The mounting of the remote reservoir is up to your discretion.  You can see how I chose to do it in the above pictures.  I went down to my local boating supply and bought one strip of stainless stell that is used for something on a boat.  I cut it in half, ground down the edges, screwed the two together to form a T with stainless steel screws, and the result is what you see in the picture.  This seems to work fine for me, but  I have heard from a few people installing it in between the battery and undertail and other locations.  I ended up having to replace my home made mount with one that Dan Kyle sells.  While I was at Pahrump, it rubbed a few times and bent the hose clamps some.  I didn't want to risk it, so I went ahead and ordered one through him.  Works flawlessly now!

I ordered my shock from Max at Traxxion Dynamics.  I told him my weight and intended use (street/track) and he set the shock up for me.  When I went to set my sag adjustment, it was already dead on!  He is very helpful and will talk you through any problems that you are having once you install it.  These Penskes are a work of art.  Very nice looking and come with a manual and all the technical info you could want.  I have only put about 100 miles on the bike with it on, but my first impressions were very good.  I have a track day coming up soon and I will be able to provide much better feedback at that point.

If you have any questions please feel free to email me at: mark@trademarkmotorsports.com