Works Shocks

[Narb1989]

What's up fellers? Went to a vintage swap meet/show last weekend in Rhinbeck, NY. Never been to this show before. If you are ever in the area, you should check it out! Anyways, I was about to head home when I stopped through the last isle of the swap. Sitting there in a box was along pair of shocked that said $5.00 for the pair. I was looking at them closer thinking that that was a decent deal for shocks. The man said that he wanted me to just take them off his hands (free.99). Thats what I did. My buddy later informed me that they were made by a company called "Works". After some research, I think he may be right. My question to ya'll is how do I go about rebuilding these things? How would I know if something like this is worth rebuilding? I've checked youtube and cannot find my style of shock on there. Matter of fact, I cannot find this style of shock anywhere online. There are kits out there but they seem universal. I want one specific to my shocks (big $?). I've attached a pic. Let me know if you know anything about these shocks and/or have any experience mounting them. OH!, thats another thing. The ends on the shocks are clevis and my swing is also a clevis. Could I weld on some prongs to the bottom clevit, across the hole, to allow the prongs to attach to the stock clevis in my swing arm? I have a 1973 Honda 350f.

 

[Tim]

Nope sorry, those can't be used in the USA - legal reasons and all. You're obliged to ship them to Canada

Get in touch with Doug (Beatnic on the site) - DEK Performance. If anyone can fill you in and rebuild them, it's him. If they are WORKS shocks, they should be able to be rebuilt and will be well worth doing so. What makes you think they are WORKS?

Now, if you can't use them because of the clevis/eye issue, depending on the length, I would be interested in buying them in all seriousness for use on my BMW which needs fresh shocks. How long are they eye-to-eye?

 

[divot02]

Works shocks are about as good as they get. I hope thay are real for you. Google works performance for info.

 

[o1marc]

The pic does not show a clevis on either end, but eyelets.

 

[moetrout]

Kind of looks like an older version of these:

http://www.worksperformance.com/html/vintage.html

 

[Narb1989]

I did some research before posting and came across some other shocks with what I want to believe is a signature blue and white spring design. My shocks are approximately 14.75" from eye to eye. I realize now that they are eyelets and not clevis'. Just had another look and cannot find any markings anywhere on the shocks. There are two different springs. The white spring is separated from the blue spring by a built in "washer" at the base of the white spring. I guess this classifies the shock as a "dual-rate" unit. I'm learning as I go, so bare with me. The "GASSERS DRS" from the WORKS site is the model closest to mine. It appears they integrated the reservoir into the top of the shock housing instead of having a canister on the external. I imagine this was decided through R&D methodology.

 

[o1marc]

They did the 2 separate dual rate springs before they had the technology to make them as one piece. One spring gives you the softer ride until they compress and you need the stiffer rate. You would probably be surprised to see that big company (Works) is probably a 1000sf garage shop in a row of others. They are in my old neighborhood.

 

[Narb1989]

Sometimes its the smaller shops that are capable of turning out the best quality through attention to detail. I'm not surprised.. I'm going to try the spring compression trick from the 50 dollar mod thread and get these babies apart and cleaned. OR, do you think i should mount them and see how they function as is?

 

[xb33bsa]

those are not works shocks they are betor shocks that came stock on bultacos in 76 i think
they weren't very good racing shocks everybody replaced them,but you can take them apart play with oil.they are charged with nitrogen so when you take off the springs if they will vigorously return after being compressed then there still is nitrogen in there.if they stroke smoothly with no sound of hissing bubbles in the oil then they are proly usable as -is
or you can take them apart and ruin them,i should know i did just that in 77 hahhahhahahahhahah

 

[xb33bsa]

They did the 2 separate dual rate springs before they had the technology to make them as one piece. One spring gives you the softer ride until they compress and you need the stiffer rate. You would probably be surprised to see that big company (Works) is probably a 1000sf garage shop in a row of others. They are in my old neighborhood.

works used as many as 3 springs with collars inside the springs to diktate when they quit using that spring and having the next spring do work, nothing to do with technology.in fact the multiple seperate spring lashups are highly tunable unlike a progressive one peice spring

 

[beatnic]

Tried to send you a pm, but wouldnt let me??? sent you an email

 

[xb33bsa]

WHO ME ? anyway those shocks may be worth something to a bultaco restorer,check ebay completed listings for value.
also you could post them up for sale on mark's vintage swapmeet
the springrate is pretty high on those although the bike only weighed 230 or so they were forward mounted with about 1.75 to 1 leverage ratio
as far as rebuilding them in my opinion you would way be better off selling them for what they are, betor 1976 butaco pursang shocks
get some cash and go with something proper or just better suited

http://www.ebay.com/itm/REAR-SUSPENSION-SHOCKS-BETOR-1976-76-BULTACO-370-PURSANG-MK9-168-/400504946430?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5d3ff47efe&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bultaco-Betor-Gas-Shocks-OEM-1976-1978-Frontera-370cc-Mod-181-PN-181-03-011-/271193730483?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&fits=Year%3A1976%7CMake%3ABultaco&hash=item3f2467edb3&vxp=mtr

 

[Narb1989]

Thanks for the links xb! That makes more sense now. I would still have to modify the bottom eyelette to accept the stock swinger on my bike. Not sure it these would be worth all that trouble. After all, I do not have TIG welder..

Beatnic, Not sure what's up with the PM situation. Thanks for the email regardless.

What if I mounted the shocks side-by-side with the stock eyelette through a long bolt and just build out the frame mount with a spacer so that the shock functions correctly?

 

[xb33bsa]

that eye end mount should unscrew from the shaft,proly has a jam nut
it would be pretty simple to fab a clevis end,you could cut the bottom offa an old honda shock and weld or braze a nut on it to accept the shaft threads,pretty straight forward fab if you are handy that way

 

[xb33bsa]

Thanks for the links xb! That makes more sense now. I would still have to modify the bottom eyelette to accept the stock swinger on my bike. Not sure it these would be worth all that trouble. After all, I do not have TIG welder..

Beatnic, Not sure what's up with the PM situation. Thanks for the email regardless.

What if I mounted the shocks side-by-side with the stock eyelette through a long bolt and just build out the frame mount with a spacer so that the shock functions correctly?

i'm not quite seeing that the picture is not forming in me head