Well I finally got the time to swap my shocks. I got a 96 F3 rear shock from a someone online for $10.
I really had no reason to swap the shock other than the fact that I wanted to. I am an beginner biker so I probaly
wouldnt notice the performance advantage.
so here goes...
1. remove all the plastic fairing/ seat

2. place a jack under the bike-where the center stand would have been. I use one from my friends Acura. This one had an slot in it, which is perfect for placing under the underside of the bike. This allows pressure to be taken off the shock. I raised the bike till there was about 1 1/2 inch of space under the rear tire.
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/0353226430CE4B138C27F3BF2E245428.jpg[/IMG]
3. I then lossened the tank...and placed a distributor cap under it to give me some room. Dont know if you really need to do this, but it
worked for me.
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/5FDD3551D10D4CD085D9E5DAF31D3C4C.jpg[/IMG]
4. I used a 3/8 rachet with an extension with a 17mm socket and a 14 mm open end wrench. Remove the bolt on top
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/D513F0B55BC4473BAFFDD43AD237237C.jpg[/IMG]
5. do the same for the bottom.
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/9528B0DEE9BB4A0590DBEB77CB9828A0.jpg[/IMG]

 

6. Here is a comparison of the two shocks.
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/48E15CFA97FE4EF7B575D2E9EC3BCA6D.jpg[/IMG]
7. Replace new shock in reverse order of removal. The only thing is you have to raise the bike up an inch or so before the holes would line up. When doing this raise it slowly so the bike dont shift suddenly.

8. Heres what it look like bolted up and with the plastic in place.


[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/9EECA2F771CE474B81AD20555A4CA66B.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/55D929F5B5E44C708AE95555BB4DA6C3.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/5E5A2032D0A34ADB84F3496A230758B1.jpg[/IMG]

 

Here is a picture of the area I put the jack under.
[IMG]local://upfiles/1672/96E769454CC14D6FBBF9F01A65DC01D5.jpg[/IMG]

After swapping the shocks, I noticed the rear of the bike was raised and I need to tippy toe a little now.
So consider that before attempting...

 

Nice job. Is it now taller because of more preload, stiffer spring, or longer shock? How does it compare with old shock?

 

As far as I know its the length of the shock...
other than that I have no info.
I'm trying to take the chain off tomorrow, so I havent rode my bike yet.

 

I believe ( not totally certain) that the yellow springed shock is from a F4 Not a F3. Thats why it was alittle longer. F4's shockes where about 1" longer than a F3's. Also the F4's line to the compression resivoir is shorter than the F3's. Ond of course the F4's spring is yellow (all the ones ove seen) and the F3's is red.

There ya go, I may not be right but nice swap anyways!!!!!!!!