i know this has been discussed before but i am thinking of lowering my 05 fatboy. about 1 inch in rear and 1 to 2 in front. i am thinking of the harley kit for this. i would like some opinions from some of you who have done this . is therea better kit.do i need any special tools to disassembe the shock.what about front fork oil. i am not replaceing the shock.just going the cheaper way.. also do i need to replace the jiffy stand with a shorter one.. thanks in advance for any advice..............kerry

 

Lower the front as well as rear and you're going to lose lean angle... ie. you'll scrap floorboards easier.
I just went with a shock lowering kit (I think it was the wild 1 kit, but there are several for OEM shocks).
Lowered it about 1" and it's great.. I may drop the rear to a 1 1/2 under stock.. Sits nice as it is though.
I'd try lowering just the rear first.. you may find that's all you need.. and it's adjustable.

 

I am yet to do this but have read that by using the progressive 422 shocks your ride will be greatly improved as well. I have always found that aftermarket suspension has been expensive but well worth it.
https://www.hdforums.com/m_1490374/tm.htm

This also gives a link of where to get them for a good price.

 

I highly reccommend going with the Progressive 422 Shocks instead of just the lowering kits(bolts). By lowering your bike even as much as 1" you change the design of the bike and affect the handling . Improving the quaility of the shocks over the stock shocks I think will help to improve the ride.

I lowered my bike using the 422s by about 1.5" and it now handels better than before, I believe because of better shocks. But the down side of lowering , no matter how you do it is you will scrape floorboards earlier (less lean angle). Lowering less than 2 " doesnt seem to be a big problem though depending how aggressive you ride.

 

I recently lowered just the rear of my 07 Fatboy and noticed almost no change in ride quality..... at least when riding solo. I just installed the Ness Slammer kit, (about $80), which is basically just a longer stud coming off the stock shock. It dropped about 1.25-1.5" and you can adjust it anywhere from stock to 2" of drop. It looks so much better and the stiffness is only noticeable when my wife is on the back with me.... Btw, I weigh about 185 and I'm sure rider weight will affect the magnitude of the change in ride quality. Good luck!

 

I went with the 422s and slammed my fatty pretty low. I also increased the preload a little for preference. Now I'm just waiting for that brutal Indiana winter to kick in so I can break the front end apart and install the progressive front end lowering kit. I can't wait to level em' out. I have no experience with the shock bolt kits, but I'll fully vouch for the 422s.

 

hi,

i just lowered the rear of my 07 fxstc by 2 inches with the chrome progressive kit , i couldnt believe how much better it handled
even coming up to a stop it didnt have any tendancy to lean either way seemed much more stable. i took it for a run through the winding roads i usually
go in the mountains an the rear lowering really hasnt made it any more scrapable than before. iam extremely happy with this mod.


cheers

 

Just by installing the rear kit on mine, I noticed it handles slightly better and I haven't really noticed it scraping sooner.. I think the slightly lower rear end and actually adjusting the pre-load appropriately makes the bike a little easier to push into the turns.. May just be my perception but it's like the bike has a noticeable lower center of gravity.. If you have a smaller profile style seat, it sits even lower, but I've been quite pleased with the stock height of the mustang with the lowered rear end. No doubt though if you have the cash, the progressive 422's are a nice upgrade though, and it's probably an easier swap rather than pulling shocks, dissassembling to install the kit (which requires press or a special tool). Easier to just swap out the shock entirely and adjust.

 

thanks all , i think i will probably use the 422 set as recommended when and if i do it. i think i will also only do the rear first to see.i amm concerned about the floorboards scraping. thanks to all for the advice... back under my rock... kerry

 

I did the bolt kit, just swaps the shock bolts for a longer set, lowered it 1.5 inches and now it rides and handles much better. I still get the floorboard scrape but that just makes everyone look at you when your carving turns. My 98 was dropped 2 inches and it was a bit much with a passenger on board and a tbag.