hey guys, i just started noticing that my rear suspension seems softer and isnt rebounding as much as i remember it doing. when i push down with just my weight on the rear rack it goes down pretty far and does rebound, but after it rebounds to its highest point by itself, i can lift on the back rack and it will come up another 4 or five inches till it is all the way to the top of the shock, is this normal? I just dont remember it being this way. Is it possible that its softer cause its broke in now? my wheeler has only about 500 miles on it and its not like i take big jumps with it, how do you tell if its blown? can i test to see if it has enough pressure in the resevoir with a low pressure air tester? And one last thing do you think it just needs to be adjusted up? the retainer nuts are only screwed down about a 1/4 inch from the top. by the way i weigh 195 lbs..............................thanks for the info in advance

 

If it bottoms out with a hard thump and hurts your back on bumps and jumps, then its out of gas!

 

can you check the gas in the shock with a air tester?

 

Cookerwon - don't test for nitrogen pressure with a tire pressure gauge; it's around 200psi and will blow off if you try to check it.
The nitrogen in a gas shock is there to stabilize the oil and keep it from foaming when it gets hot; it has absolutely nothing to do with ride height or how much load the shock/spring will carry. The reservoir is there to hold extra oil/nitrogen to allow for better cooling.
The shock isn't blown out. Your spring has become worn over time. Increase the spring preload to get some of the ride height back. You will find that even with the spring tightened up the machine will probably only rebound to half it's potential ride height. That's normal for this machine.

 

to adjust the spring tighter i just back off the top retainer and tighten the lower one down right? how much should i go tighter?

 

Try taking it down half-way. It's easiest to get the locking rings loose if the shock is off the machine. Or you can try taking a long screwdriver or bar to reach through the frame, and then hit the bar with a hammer.

 

thanks for the info novakaw