Elka springs and shocks are now available for the P650 and P700. Front springs and rear shocks. Progressive only offers the front springs.

I had heard that the Elka's were double the price that the Progressives are. Not true I found out. The Progressives are around $160 plus shipping.

Here is what Elka had to say to me.

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Here’s the different kind of shock we built with prices.

FRONT SUSPENSION

For the front, we have a dual rate spring combination that you install on the stock strutts, what this kit includes is 4 springs, the preload collars and preload adjustment. You are looking at $198.00US for the kit.

What this will do to your Prairie650 is a more progressive suspension with a plush ride on the very first part of the stroke and stiffer on the last part, this will take out the diving in the corners, body roll, make the quad more stable at high speed and improves traction.

REAR SUSPENSION

“Our rear shock offers more wheel travel than the stock unit”.

The rear shocks come's fully adjustable (compression and rebound) in a remote reservoir.

Double rate rear shock with self-sagging device: $775.00 US


This rear shock will prevent bottoming out and hard hitting at high speed on small to medium obstacle (6 to 10 inches) and G-outs.

All our shock are custom built for the riders weight, bike geometry, his type of riding and type
of land he usually ride.

All Elka shocks are fully rebuiltable so you can change the valving at any time, replace a seal head easily
or replace the shaft if needed.
Any new option we offer will fit on all shock.

Plus freight and any applicable taxes or custom charge if applicable

Call us at 1-800-557-0552 to pass your order or for any questions you may have.

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I am going to try the Elka's on the front of my P700. Funny, he said I will be the first to put them on a Prairie. Cool.

Once I get the Elka's on I am going to take it back to my dealer and put it head to head with his P700 and the Progressives. Then we can evaluate the two. My P700 is still up in the air and it will take two weeks to get the Elka's I was told.

 

I have read good reports on the Elka products & anything is better over the stock units. I am using the Progressive frt springs on my P650 & have found them to correct all of the problems with the stock non-adjustable struts. Do some shopping around & you can find lower prices on the Progressive springs, as I paid $128 w/shipping thru Ebay bidding. So far, I have not needed to adjust the pre-load on the progressive fronts, as they are still sitting on the lowest position. This may change once I get to Colorado in August, as the roads in the High Rocky Mountains are rougher than what I am use to here in NM.
I'll remember the Elka Brand if the day ever comes when I have to replace that expensive rear shock.
Thanks for the info on the Elka products for the Prairie 650/700's.

 

Well, I got my Elka's on on Saturday (thanks for the help WAM). My first impression was.....cool. I didn't dislike how they felt. That was a good start.

Here is a PIC

I ripped around on them some and noticed a definite improvement in cornering and bump steering.

Today, I took my machine over to my dealers and let him demo it. He has the progressives on and wanted to compare the two. It is a subjective thing, but, he said he did like how the Elka's felt over the Progressives. I agreed. I had mine set at zero preload and they felt as smooth (maybe smoother) as stock without the bad dive on corners. The progressives seem a tad bit overstiff for my liking; even at zero preload. He has different tires on (ATR's) so that may make a difference too. I didn't ask him how much air he had in his tires either.

I am glad I waited for the Elka's. If you can get a great deal on the Progressives then I doubt you will be disappointed. For me the Elka price was about $30 over what I could get the Progressives for. I think the Elka's are worth the slight extra. Hopefully, you will agree.

Installation tips.

There is a C clip on top of the strut towers. I did remove the plastic to get at it better. Also, I couldn't get my huge crescent wrench under the plastic enough with just lifting the front half of the plastic. I recall Prairiewrench stating that is how he does it though (just lifts the front half). He may have some good tips. Taking the plastic off really isn't that hard though. The hardest part is getting the new springs compressed and the retaining clip back on. We drilled a pair of holes in a 2x8 and put one end of the board under my atv trailer to lever the spring down. Pay attention to the strut shaft. Grab it and pull it all the way out. Otherwise you have to compress the spring more to get the clearance for the clip. With the shaft extended it is rather easy. Just watch that you don't push it down as you are compressing the spring. The assmbly likes to move around as you are pushing down.

Without a tool to compress the spring, you would need two people to try and compress it and one to push the clip on. I reinstalled the plastic shroud and it is hard to get a grip on it.

Ciao,

DWB

 

I recently put Elka springs on my 650 also. Haven't had much of a ride yet, but they sure felt better on the short ride I did get in, a bit squeaky though. I took all the screws out of the front plastic and just sort of propped the whole piece up on the bars, gave me lots of room. I was able to compress the springs by hand enough to get the clip out and back in. Taking it out, I left the strut nut on partway to hold up the strut shaft til the clip was out. To put it back together, I tied wire around the top of the strut, through the upper strut mounting hole, and to the bars(as per Nyroc's site). This held the strut shaft in place and I was able to compress the spring by hand from there. Biggest pain in the butt was my winch control, on the front rack with the wires run through a hole in fender(dealer install). Still, it only took appr. 1 1/2 hrs in total.