Hitchcocks Forum

i'm looking at the rear shocks top bolts on a 2015 Desert Storm the head of the bolts is too close to the frame for removal please how do u remove these bolt....i'm a senior citizen having a senior moment

I do not know about your model, but check if the mudguard can be raised like on the earlier Bullets.

Are you using the bike's toolkit?
On my 2000, a socket with extension outside, with spanner on the inside take them out.
No need to remove the saddle.

The nuts are on the inside on my Electra X, there is also more than enough space to fit the bolts the wrong way around, so I have to admit to being puzzled.

No, you are not having a senior moment. The C5 is not the same as other models in this regard, except maybe the B5. The stupid arrangement is in fact commented upon in the current edition of RealClassic in an article by Roger Slater. The fact is that a fair bit of dismantling is needed to remove the bolt. Mr Slater changed his ones so that the nut is on the inside of the shock absorber, replacing the domed chrome nut with a more practical bolt I.e. The bolt is inserted from the outside with the nut on the inside. Basically you'll have to remove the mudguard, which is actually quite simple as long as the Allen screws holding it to the stay can be extracted. Mine came out easily because I doused them with Plus Gas and used the right Allen key. If the bike has been used untreated in winter it might be more problematic. It's possible to hinge the mudguard upwards; I removed mine because I wanted to fit pannier frames to take the Givi panniers sold by our host. It should be obvious what to remove once you realise that, yes, it is another stupid design triumph of form over function. All for a chrome domed nut....

thank u all you've all been most helpful....

You could of course use a short stud with a nut on the inside and a chrome domed nut on the outside. Then you'd have form AND function. Sort of.

Better still you could buy stainless steel domed nuts to fit on the outside of the studs.......

new bolts will be going back in 'Backwards' the way they should be! by the way i'm putting in a new set of Hagon Classic shocks with the full shrouds....just not today it's to cold -22C

The mud guard DOES flip upwards so check your RE when doing service....this is the greatest thing in motorcycles since rubber tyres