I just finished replacing the rear shocks of my '92 CB400 Super Four and thought I would share my experience in case it benefits anyone in future.
Without further ado, here are a couple of pictures of the bike with the new suspension on:
When I bought the bike a couple of months ago, the rear suspension was rock hard, making the bike uncomfortable, fidgety & generally reducing confidence in most situations. I'm only light (10.5 stone) so the spring may have been too stiff, and even on the lowest preload setting I was only seeing 20mm of rider sag, when it should be more like 30-40mm.
Rather than try and refurb the shocks then, I wanted to replace them. I'm aiming for a more modern japanese streetfighter look, rather than more traditional so wanted to fit something like those fitted to later models with a piggy back nitrogen canister.
I didn't have much money to spend, as the bike only cost a grand in the first place, so a set of Ohlins was out! (quoted £1100).
Saw these on eBay - direct from China, no brand name, but had the bling looks I was aiming for.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/131421823760? ... EBIDX%3AIT
Most importantly, really cheap. However they might not fit, and then returning them to China would be a massive hassle. They just might also be rubbish, or worse unsafe.
I gambled, and two weeks later they arrived. I got hit for 30 odd quid customs charges of course, so probably cost about £180/185 in total.
They come preinstalled with new rubber bushes, so they just mount right onto the metal spindle on the bike. Fitting was straightforward on one side, but they touched the exhaust on the other so some fettling was required. Judicious bending of my exhaust bracket and a few extra washers on the mounting points bought me the extra couple of mm I was looking for. This bit was a pain in the ass though.
The good news is once on, they have transformed the bike. It soaks up pot holes 3000% better than ever before, and the tyres feel sucked down onto the road when cornering. Under acceleration, the bike seems to hunker down a little, which is the right behaviour I believe as you want more weight on that back tyre for grip. I haven't adjusted the preload yet, but I might not bother as they feel good as they are.
So on balance, I can recommend these. I like how they look and they work well. I mean you can see they are not top quality items - the finish is painted metal rather than polished, and the moulding on the canister arm isn't exactly sharp, but for the ridiculously low price they are good, and they do provide a direct replacement for the old shocks. (assuming you are happy to accept some 'customising' around the exhaust if they do touch).
