Adjust rear shocks, 1 - 5, which is stiffer? - Motorcycles

Check the rear shock absorber and spring. Some bikes have preset 'notches' to raise and lower the ride height. You will need to raise the bike on a SAFE centre lift to take the weight off the rear suspension arm to adjust it. Most bikes have it set to the middle notch as standard. If the shock assembly is still too high you might need to replace the shock And spring to a shorter, stiffer set.

Replace the spring with a heavier duty should do the job.
Have you tried adjustments in the spring load to stiffen it up.
The rear shock on your Yamaha V-Star 1100 motorcycle assures that the rear wheel is always in contact with the ground and makes your ride much more comfortable by absorbing road vibration and shock while you ride.

But your shock needs to be adjusted for different riding styles, so depending on whether you ride fast or cruise slowly and how quickly you take turns, you may want to adjust the shock to get the most out of your ride.

1

Remove the passenger seat by loosening and removing the rear passenger seat mounting bolt with a socket wrench.
With the passenger seat removed, you should see two larger rider's seat mounting bolts.
Remove these bolts and pull the rider's seat off of the bike to expose the internals of the motorcycle. 2

Detach the quick-release clips of the ignitor unit found just beneath the seat using a screwdriver. Pull the ignitor unit up and to the right of the bike to move it out of your way.

Remove the mudguard quick-release clips in the same fashion, then pull the mudguard out of the bike to expose the rear shock adjuster. 3

Look for the small numbers on the rear shock adjuster.
On most 2002 V-Stars you should see the numbers 1 to 9 printed on the shock adjuster.

These numbers give you an idea of the current setting of the shock.
The higher the number, the stiffer the adjustment. 4

Loosen the shock by turning the shock adjuster counterclockwise to a smaller number using a spanner wrench.

This makes the shock softer and more forgiving when riding over bumps and uneven pavement, but will feel slower in turns and accelerations.

Tighten the shock by turning it clockwise to a higher number.
This makes the shock stiffer, increasing road response in turns and giving you a better feel of road conditions at the expense of comfort. 5

Replace the mudguard, ignitor unit, rider's seat and mounting bolts, and the passenger seat and mounting bolts.

Take your bike for a ride to feel the difference a turn of the shock adjuster makes.

you may crank the spring but this will give you springer feeling if you do not try to reduced rebound.....there is no big solution to get sport bike run nice with passenger....but it make people on the back have smile on theyre face if your'e girl friend as a nice *** (compare to a harley view,,,lol!!!!

There are two "shocks" underneath the bike. You need to loosen a large nut on each, and turn the shocks on the threaded rod an equal distance on each. You will need a special spanner for the turning the shocks I believe.
You have to get right down flat on the ground and look under the bike between the frame rails in front of the rear tire and you'll see them.

the stand doesn't adjust,it's held up by a spring,check to see if the spring is weak and letting the stand drop down,if so replace with a new or stiffer sprig...

should have a big spring nut to tighten the spring or to loosen it.how ever you want it the tighter the stiffer the shock gets loosen it softer it gets

There is a ring above the spring that you will need to turn clockwise ( Down on the spring ) then another above it that you tighten down on top of it to lock it in place.

THIS WORKS FOR AN 05 SO IT MIGHT WORK FOR THE 08.
remove the toolkit.
remove the tool kit box by removing the 3 small bolts/ screws holding it in,
This will give access to the shock.
I altered my shock yesterday.
Because there is very little space and I value all my fingers, I removed the battery and battery box. I did not remove it but I had to undo the bolts holding it in and swing it out of the way. This gives far better access to the shock and makes changing the settings easy.
I also found that it helped if the rear wheel was suspended off the ground on a bike lift, this takes the weight off the spring.

hope this helps

the rear shock is adjustable, the ring below the spring turns and locks onto a kind of peg on the body of the shock. being that your bike is an 86 it may even be time for new shocks or an upgrade to stiffer. if you do adjust then make sure both sides are on the same setting. as far as tools needed some shocks can be done by hand with help from someone lifting the weight up on the back end. i dont know what kind of tools as i cant find a good pic online of your bike but maybe a C spanner / wrench