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X4 with X2 R-Spec Shocks

8K views 22 replies 8 participants last post by  jasonlewis995 
#1 ·
Well, I finally broke down and ordered a new set of X2 R-Spec shocks for my X4. Now I am doing as much reading up on them to best be prepared to get them on and set prior to my wife and daughter being with for the sometimes painful suspension set up.

Contrary to some on here, I am also trying to get a set of JBS Springs for the R-Spec shocks in an effort to make them even better. I have had good luck with the springs for the stock X4 shocks, and plan to continue that trend.

Wish me luck, that I didn't make the wrong choice in getting the X2 R-Spec Shocks vs the Walker Evans...
 
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#2 ·
If you did not know, JBS has to have a minimum order of springs to get them from Eibach cause they are not a stock item. It is a fairly big investment to get them and hold them. And sometimes the manufacturer's like Eibach do not seem to get in a hurry. Be patient if you are on the end of the cycle and you should be pleased with the Eibachs.
 
#3 ·
If JBS would be transparent and up front with their customers and state: "THIS IS A PRE-ORDER, ITEM IS NOT IN STOCK" I guarantee 99.99% of the drama would be avoided. I've done tons of pre-orders in my former drone racing business and it was VERY EASY to mark an item as a pre order. If my shipment FROM CHINA was going to be delayed, I notified my customers ON MY WEBSITE, ON FORUMS, AND ON SOCIAL MEDIA. FROM CHINA is bolded because I know what it's like to be a slave to Chinese vendors, especially during Chinese New Year.

It is not rocket science. Customers will appreciate the up-front honesty and transparency. PayPal will love you for not being bombarded with fraudulence claims against your business. Heck you may even be able to get on your local Better Business Bureau with a good rating.
 
#4 ·
I did finally receive my springs from JBS and got them installed. I gained 1 3/4" clearance on the front and 1 1/8" on the back with the same preload settings.
I had the stocks springs preload at the minimum in the rear and about 3/8" from minimum on the front as they were way too stiff.

I hope the ride is the same or better but that extra ground clearance will be nice.
 
#5 ·
Got shipping notification on my shocks. According to FedEX, I will have them on Tuesday. Not 100% sure if I am going to put them on right away or wait until I get the springs from JBS. Temptation will probably get the best of me while I wait for the springs to come and it will give me a better idea of any actual improvement from them. I am going to be out of town for a couple of weeks, but should have some time to ride while I am gone (taking my X4 with). Would be a good time to start to get the settings figured out on the shocks.
 
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#6 ·
Do you have experience with the JBS springs on the X4? I need to do something, but havent figured out what. I really want to keep the leveling rear shocks as that was a huge plus for me when I bought it. I was planning on doing the springs and seeing how it was. The next step would then be to change out the fronts to a better shock with the JBS springs. I guess the other option is to do the walker evans all around but I would like to avoid this.
 
#7 ·
I do have experience with the JBS springs on the standard X4 shocks. I am running them now and have been running them for the last 800 miles. They are a big improvement over the OEM spring and have given a better ride that is more consistent. The experience that I have gotten from the springs makes me want them for the new shocks.

The only reason that I am going to the X2 R-Spec shocks is my constant want to make improvements. I am keeping the standard shocks with the springs as a fall back.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for the info. I was hoping that the JBS springs for the x4 fronts would swap over to the Rspec shocks. That doesn't appear to be the case. I'd be interested in what you find out. Now I am torn. I've had good luck in the past with just replacing the springs on different machines. Those machines all had quality shocks with sub par springs. These shocks on the X4 just seem kind of cheap with no resi and very little adjustability. My main concern though is getting a more forgiving ride and maybe picking up a little stability in cornering.
 
#9 ·
From what I understand, the front springs swap between the different shocks, but due to the rear load leveling shocks being so big, they are not the same. But in my case, I have had a bad experience with shocks in the past and know that the OEM X4 shocks work well, so I will not part with them, and want to maintain them in a ready to use state. I can understand others wanting to save some costs along the way, and that is probably a much more wise standpoint.
 
#11 ·
Received 3 of the 4 shocks last night. The 4th is apparently on back-order for another few weeks right now. I can't believe that they sent me just the 3 vs waiting for them all to be there. Sure isn't fun having 3 shocks and not being able to move forward with the project (with or without JBS springs). I will say that I think that the shocks sure do look sweet. I guess this gives me a little time to get the right spanner wrench for them...
 
#13 ·
Still waiting on my 4th shock from Yamaha. They are supposedly backordered until 10/21/19. I am not exactly pleased with that, but with them putting the KYB shocks on the XT-R's, I am not surprised. I will update once I get the 4th, and get them on, but it is likely that I won't have a ride report for them because the trails are closing down by us soon.
 
#14 ·
Silly question, is there any color options on the springs? I like the color matched springs for my machine.
 
#17 ·
Could one get the springs powder coated?
 
#15 ·
Well I finally got my last shock. Problem is that it is now past the riding season where I live, and I do long term storage at a different place. I am also hoping to get JBS Springs for these shocks prior to installation because I am happy with the set that I have on my OEM X4 Shocks, and I also feel that the X4 weighs enough more than the X2 that it will likely make a difference in the overall ride, so I will have to follow up later with the installation and initial ride review.

As for if you could order different color springs with the X2 R-Spec shocks, the answer is yes you can. If you look for the shock part numbers on a site that has the different colors listed out, you will get the shock exactly as it is for that machine (IE Back Country Blue SE has kind of an orange spring, Base X2 has a black)
 
#16 ·
Sorry it has been a while since I updated this thread. After ordering the shocks back in July, and not getting them from Yamaha until nearly November (3.5 month wait from Yamaha apparently), I then started working with JBS to get a set of Eibach springs for the R-Spec shocks to be able to better match the weight of my X4 vs the X2. I got my springs over the winter, and got them installed on the shocks. But here is the issue, I store my X4 at my mother's house over the winter, so this Friday, I am going to be picking it back up.

On my X4 right now, I have the OEM X4 shocks with a set of JBS X4 Eibach Springs, so my measurements will not be the same as everyone else. But I am going to do my best to get the shocks installed and some measurements provided to the forum because I know that I am not the only person that is looking at this swap.

I am just hoping that we have a better experience swapping to these shocks before going on our Annual Spring Break Trip to the Mena, AR area.
 
#18 ·
Got my shocks installed and adjusted out for initial settings. Hoping that the Pandemonium doesn't cancel my annual Spring Break Trip (it is looking like it may be postponed for now). From bouncing the bumpers, it feels like it is a bit softer (with the settings to full soft). I think that this is going to be a huge improvement to be able to adjust for the conditions.

In my case, I have a set of "Prototype" springs on mine from JBS at the moment, so my front and rear springs are a different color. I really don't actually mind it myself. My machine is the Silver 2018 SE, so it originally came with red springs, the JBS springs for the OEM shocks were silver. Now I have a mix of Silver in the rear, and red in the front.
 
#19 ·
With my OEM Shocks (complete with JBS Springs), I got the following measurements (with my 28" Terrabite Tires):
Front: 14"
Rear: 14.125" (14 1/8")

With my X2 R-Spec Shocks (complete with JBS Springs), I initially set the preload to achieve ride height (with 28" Terrabite Tires):
Front: 14"
Rear: 14"

The settings are set to nearly full soft as recommended, and I will work on getting them fine tuned as I get a chance to ride.
Front High Speed Compression: 1/4 Turn IN from Full-Soft
Front Low Speed Compression: 21 Clicks OUT (22 Max soft)
Front Rebound: 14 Clicks OUT
Rear High Speed Compression: 1/4 Turn IN from Full-Soft
Rear Low Speed Compression: 21 Clicks OUT (22 Max Soft)
Rear Rebound: 11 Clicks OUT

This should give a ton of room to do adjustments to support a variety of different terrain. Will report more as I get a chance to work through it.
 
#20 ·
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I started looking at shocks back when you were waiting for these. I priced the x2 shocks and they were kinda steep, especially if they needed resprung. I ended up doing the bandits die to cost and them having great specs. More adjustability than the WE. I think the other thing that turned me off was the long wait time you had experienced. Thanks for being the guinea pig on this, I'm sure they will be much better than stock.
 
#23 ·
Keep us posted! I bought, then cancelled my Walker Evans order. Couldn't justify the price with all that's happening. Then I stumbled on the Bandits. When all settles down I'll buy the upgraded shocks but will still be on the lookout for reviews of them!
Luckily our trails are still open as are those in WV. Not telling how long though.

19 X2 SE. lots of other stuff
 
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