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Post by Dandy Dan on Mar 10, 2010 23:45:07 GMT -5
Tonight I installed a stock shock from a Honda NH80 (aka Aero 80, Lead 80 and Mascot) in my Ruckus. It confirmed my long held suspicions that this shock would be a primo rear shock solution for the Ruckus. I've used several aftermarket rear shocks in the past costing considerably more, yet all of the ones I tried were just shiny shocks that were hardly better than stock.  The NH80 rear shock (above) is great because it gives you 27% more travel and the travel is stiffer yet progressive due to the beefier and progressive spring. As per my measurements, the stock shock is 252mm in length (eye to eye) and the NH80 shock is 266mm. This means it jacks up the rear end of your scooter only 1/2". The real difference in the stroke of these shocks. The stock shock has 2.2" of stroke and the NH80 shock has 2.8" of stroke....27% more. When you combine that with a stiffer coil, you get rear suspension that gives you lots of usable travel, yet it's almost impossible to bottom. I went blasting around my block over speed bumps that easily bottom the stock shock and I wasn't able to bottom this one out. Even hitting these bumps faster than I ever had before resulted in using a lot of rear travel yet still not reaching the bottom. Rear wheel clearance seems to be a non issue. I have 5-6mm of clearance. What makes this shock even more appealing is that there is lots of them on eBay for cheap. Here's the search you'll want to do on eBay so that you get results regardless of whether the seller has listed this shock under NH80, Aero 80 or Mascot. There's one on there now for just $4.99 and three others for $22-$35. shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=honda+%28nh80%2C+lead+80%2C+aero+80%2C+mascot%29+shock&_sacat=See-All-Categories |
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Post by Dandy Dan on Mar 12, 2010 21:11:14 GMT -5
Here's a couple pictures to show how it looks installed. It really does look OEM. It's just like the stock shock but appropriately beefier:   |
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Post by loki76 on Mar 13, 2010 3:12:16 GMT -5
Do you think it would be possible to mount the offset bracket from the old shock?
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Post by Dandy Dan on Mar 13, 2010 18:03:48 GMT -5
Umm....it's hard to say for sure but it looks like you could disassemble these shocks with some hassle/effort. It's hard to see the bottom of the Aero 80 shock since it's mounted but it appears you could use the bottom plate of the stock shock instead.
With that said, I don't think it's worth it. I have at least 5-6mm of clearance right now which should be plenty for everything but full on mud riding. I've had aftermarket shocks much closer than this in the past without issue. The stock shock is offset at the bottom by about 4mm and it's not offset at the top at all. Since the closest point of contact with the tire is about 3/4 of the way up the shock, moving the bottom of the shock out 4mm would only move this part out about 1mm....so you'd hardly be increasing your tire clearance.
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Post by chanito on Mar 14, 2010 18:08:21 GMT -5
 That is a good find DD ;D With that said, i thing swapping the lower mounting perch will do wonders for the geometry of the rear suspension, with the rear being a single shock set up, any angle in the shock will put extra stress on the top bushing of the shock during the up and down movement of the rear tire. but i never heard of any rear shock failure, so maybe is not a problem, but i rather be extra cautious
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Post by Dandy Dan on Mar 14, 2010 20:11:37 GMT -5
Hmm....that makes sense but wouldn't most aftermarket shocks be like this? I've never noticed an offset on the aftermarket shocks I've used.
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Post by waldo9254 on Mar 16, 2010 15:46:58 GMT -5
What do you weigh? Is that the reason for better beefier shocks?
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Post by Dandy Dan on Mar 16, 2010 18:20:56 GMT -5
I weigh 165lbs. The stock shock is just pretty weak overall because it was designed for the Japanese market where the average person is significantly lighter. You might not notice it, but you're likely bottoming out now over speed bumps, off curbs etc.
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Post by waldo9254 on Apr 19, 2010 13:41:41 GMT -5
You are 100% right. I bottom out all the time. It seems that my fork takes the brunt of the hit most of the time. Small bumps feel like I'm running over a child when I hit them at high speeds. I like enjoying my stock scooter at this point and haven't made single mod. Though better suspension is tempting. Let me know if you have any thoughts for the front end of the bike...aside from slow down.
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Post by Dandy Dan on Apr 20, 2010 6:26:07 GMT -5
The front end of the scooter is a bit tougher to address. You can scoop up some aftermarket forks that are designed to work with a drum brake. These tend to have a little more travel and be a little stiffer. They also don't sound so horrible when they bottom out. Overall, they are in improvement but the ones I've tried still weren't awesome. You can get some here on sale for $149: www.jiangwayne.com/scooter/p_i.php?i=179I went for a ride with my wife today on the Ruckus. It was a long 65 mile ride (broken up into sections of course). She was loving the Aero 80 shock. There's just way more travel and it feels so much smoother. She kept bouncing on the scooter while we were riding to get the back end bopping up and down. It rides like a caddy back there. |
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Post by cheese on May 29, 2010 1:55:33 GMT -5
i have to agree. I installed the aero 80 shock and its awesome. i still bottom out often, but im also 250lbs. but the ride is a million times better nad the stiffer ride helps out a ton.
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Post by animalseventysix on Jun 19, 2010 12:25:21 GMT -5
thanks for posting such a great find. as one of the larger riders here, i'm looking for a stiffer rear end so i don't bottom out. (6'2" 265#) i have a 2009 ruckus with 250 miles on it now  i'm considering the showa 285mm shock, but for the increased cost i wonder if it'd be any better than the NH80 shock you're describing. :/ (i tried searching the forums, but it doesn't work) weird. |
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Post by animalseventysix on Jun 19, 2010 12:25:49 GMT -5
does the NH80 shock just bolt right in?
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ramm
n00b Ruckster
Posts: 2
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Post by ramm on Jun 23, 2010 15:14:05 GMT -5
I just joined today and I'm elated. For the past months I been wondering about where to go to find answers to all my ruckus questions without having to depend on some companies advertising hype. My rear shock was on the top of the rest. Thanks.
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Post by animalseventysix on Jun 24, 2010 8:43:52 GMT -5
 welcome and yes, this is a great forum isn't it!
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Post by animalseventysix on Jul 21, 2010 19:49:55 GMT -5
just got my ch80 rear shock and came up with two things: 1) awesome idea dandydan! ;D i don't bottom out anymore except on the biggest bumps, and i'm on the tall/heavy side of the rider scale, so GREAT improvement in the ride. bolted in in less than 10 minutes. had to trim a little 3/4" thing off the fender to keep it from rubbing. 2) this was a 26 year old shock, so most of the oil i'm figuring has been gone for a while  , so there's minimal shock dampening. oh well! for less than $20 i'm not complaining. |
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Post by brixtonsaint on Jul 22, 2010 11:01:53 GMT -5
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Post by AweShucks on Jul 22, 2010 14:39:53 GMT -5
You can get a Kitaco or Daytona shock for cheaper and it is basically the same thing.
Battlescooter has the Daytona shock fro $45 or mx-performance.com has the Kitaco for $67
Both are pretty high rated by users. I run the Kitaco and I'm 210 and happy with it. The Daytona is hard to find sometimes it sells out fast.......
both bolt up without issues also...........
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Post by brixtonsaint on Jul 22, 2010 15:03:59 GMT -5
Thanks bro, I'm ordering it now then I really have to stop buying "edit profanity" for this thing. New mirrors, seat extender, windshield, shocks, helmet. I should have bought a Ural!
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Post by Dandy Dan on Aug 9, 2010 14:23:08 GMT -5
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