I've have this rear shock from an unknown year Triumph Daytona 955i. An old friend of mine swapped his 955i to a single sided swingarm and gave me all the stock stuff he removed for free (swingarm, wheel, brake, rotor, cush drive and rear shock).

Since I'm upgrading my front end, I was thinking this rear shock could easily be made to fit the Superhawk. Drill two holes and make a spacer, and voila! Piece of cake.

What I need to know, is before I modify this 955i rear shock (valued around $60-$90), would this be a worthwhile upgrade?

Anybody know anything about this shock? (From left to right: 955i shock linkage, 955i shock, Superhawk shock) The shock linkage is not being used. It just happened to be in the picture.

 

I thought all 955i daytona came stock with a single sided swingarm. I have a 1997 and 1998 955i daytona and they both have single sided swingarms.

I though the early Sprint RS was the only 955i that had a conventional swing-arm besides the Tiger. I have a 2000 Sprint RS and the shock spring is yellow on it. One of mu Daytona's and the Daytona parts bike still have the stock shock on it, I will go look at it and see if the shock looks same as in our photo.

 

From what my old friend told me, later model 995i's had the single sided swingarm and that's where he got it from. I know nothing of Triumphs, so I couldn't say if it's true or not. We had a dispute, so I cut ties with him (never rent a property to friends). Otherwise, I would get some more info from him.

On a side note, if this 995i shock doesn't work out, then I'm most likely going to pop on your Wilber shock Rick.

I simply forgot that I had this 995i shock laying around. Mounting it to the Superhawk is not the issue. Seeing if the stock shock is enough for me and the bike is the issue. I weigh anywhere from 220lbs to 250lbs. without gear.

 

Just because you can make it fit doesn't mean that it will be an improvement. It's an old shock. Has the fluid ever been changed? Is the linkage identical to the VTR's? Is the damping compatible? Jamie Daugherty, who is very knowledgeable about suspension, might be able to give you some helpful advice.

 

That's why I'm asking questions first

It's not that old. Maybe '05 and up, but that's just a guess. Judging by the condition of the shock, I'd say it hasn't been touched. As for the linkage in the picture above, that was the only picture I had that showed both shocks. The 955i linkage is not being used.

As for dampening, that's some of the information I'm hoping to find. So, I don't know yet.

Contacting Jamie is a good idea. I'll let this thread ride for a few days. If I can't find the information I'm looking for, then I will contact him. I know he is very busy this time of year, so I don't want to bug the guy with questions if I don't have to.

 

The 955i daytona was sold between 1997-2006. I believe they all had single sided swingarm.

Any chance the shock is off an older Daytona 1200 or newer Daytona 675. Or possible the TT600?

Can you find any part number on it.


A 955i daytona shock may get you closer to correct spring rate and valving for your weight as I think the daytona is a heavier bike ( and the brits are probably fatter than the Japanese lol). Atleast it feels that way, when I push it in the garage.

It looks like the shock from a Daytona 955i with single sided swingarm.

Here's a picture of the shock on my parts bike, which is a 1998 (or 1999) 955i daytona with SSSA.

 

just get a fully adjustable ohlins, penske, fox, etc... and be done with it. deffinatley worth the money.

if you use the triumph shock are you gonna custom fab linkage?

 

Rick, I was able to see the bike that the swingarm came off of. It was a silver Triumph Daytona 955i. I just now took a few pictures of everything I have. Maybe this can help figure out the year of the Triumph this stuff came from.







Sorry about the last picture being blurry. The swingarm has 120401 stamped onto it. It also has 2053080 cast into it (part #?).

The shock, as far as I can tell, has S26 or 826 on it. Those are the only markings I could find. Absolutely nothing on the spring. No writing of any kind.

I'm going to see what happens when I Google these numbers. Maybe I can find the year the bike was made. Then go from there.

 

Found the answer! Well, at least to why it's not a single sided swingarm.

"Large-scale changes were made in 2002, with a complete restyling of the bodywork by designer Gareth Davies, a newly designed engine raising the horsepower to 149 with internal performance upgrades included Forged steel crankshaft, forged steel connecting rods, and forged aluminium pistons. Focused on reducing weight and better handling, the 2002 955i used a more common double-sided swing arm (DSSA) as opposed to the single-sided swing arm (SSSA) of the previous Daytonas."

I was suprised at how light this swingarm really is.

 

Yeah, I was reading that just now. I did not even know that 2002 went with new bodywork and look. I had read it made more power and had some chassis changes before. But completely missed the part about the swing-arm. Now I am thinking of finding a 2002+ engine for my Daytona. fghh. Already have too many project on hand.

 

btw that swingarm, shock and linkages might have a buyer on the Triumph rat forum. Bunch of tinkerers there too. Someone might be looking to make their older Daytona lighter.

 

From the picture with both the VTR shock and the daytona shock, it looks like the daytona shock has a much softer spring than the VTR.

If you have a good suspension shop nearby, see if they can modify the stock shock with new spring and valving. I am getting an old 900rr shock modified by my local suspension shock for $250 for my CB-1. I am getting a heavier spring, new valving and the shock body is going to be machined and modified to make it rebuild-able. But I am getting a good price because I am also getting a Fox twin clicker( for hawk gt) and a Penske( VFR) rebuilt plus re-valving two sets of forks at the same time there.

 

I just recently found out about a shop not to far away from me called Trackside Suspension. I'm going to see how much it would cost to upgrade this Triumph shock. If it's too much money, then I may as well just buy your Wilburs. It gets to a point where this little Triumph shock project is cost prohibitive.

I was going to use the Triumph stuff on another project, but have went in a different direction. So, if I don't use this shock on the Superhawk, then I'll give selling the stuff on the Triumph Rat Forum a shot. Thanks.