Raptor rear shock review

[300EXrider02]

Well as you might all know, you can put a stock 2001 raptor rear shock on your 300ex.

This is a very good idea for all those 14, 15, 16 year olds that dont have the job or money to be dishing out 400 or more on a aftermarket shock.

o and after this everyone will flock to ebay and look for one, it takes time, and you must ask people on different boards ot what not

alright, everyone says "use the 400ex srping with the raptor shock if you way under 200lbs"
that is a bunch of BS, unless you do no jumping at all, and are only looking for more of a plush ride and make it lower in the back, there is no reason anyone should do this.

I tried both springs, and for what I do, the raptor spring was great, staying the same seat height, offering pleanty of pre-load adj, and lots of travel, and still a more plush ride!

400ex spring, bottom out like no other if you hit a jump, risk cracking your frame, 22" tires hit my fenders when i had a passenger!! and it offers close to no pre-load at all!

the fit of the raptor shock is not easy, it will fit in there, but you must work it, the rezzie can go above the frame bar or below, i have mine sliding under becasue the rezzie is out of the way of the chain and all that

i would say you can get one off ebay for a good 150 to 200$, they go quick and not cheap, people want them!

personally it was the best thing yet i did to upgrade the ol' 300
Its great for flat landings, for a landing, awesome handling, and with the compression screw it takes seconds to adj for whoops, jumps or trails

i do all the jumping I want and have yet to bottom, a great set-up

use the 400ex spring i would say if you weigh 140 or less and want to jump, but good luck and keep your eyes open for these shocks!!

I will be pasrting out all my aftermarket stuff and replacing with stock before i sell my quad, so give me a holler if you want to by the shock and spring

Here is a picture of the raptor shock with the 400ex spring
I must say i loved it for its plush ride and great handling but the raptor spring is still very comfortable, and offers good handling

tell me if ya got any questions

[bradley300]

i was the first person on this board with this mod. marty@thequadshop put it all together for me and assumed with me wieghing 130 lbs and a raptor wieghing 20 more than a 300ex, that a different spring would be needed. i have no idea where the 200 lb. rule came from.

other springs may work well, an old 400ex spring was nothing more than the first spring we tried, and i like it, so we didnt do any more experimenting.

i also have about half my pre load left too.

the easiest way to mount the shock is to fish the rezzie up and over the frame rails, then bolt it in. the raptor shock is a tiny bit narrower on the bottom bushing than a 300, so you might want to use a washer. you will probably say its no different, but you wont notice that it is any narrower until you try to put a 300ex shock back on.

[300EXrider02]

yep, the raptor shock is nice, but i dont know how you got half pre-load out of a 400ex spring, I would say the raptor spring is the best way to go

[sprtrx300ex]

My 01' raptor shock is at the quadshop getting rebuilt and a 400ex spring put on. Can't you adjust the 400ex spring to make it stiffer?

[bradley300]

no, you would adjust the preload on the shock

[300exHILLER]

From my testing the 200lb rule worked for me. I'm 180lbs and I tried it with the Craptor spring and it almost threw me over the bars in many instances during the first race of the season. When I switched to 400ex spring it much much better. Another thing I found when using the craptor spring is it's so stiff that it keeps the front tires planted on the ground which is a bad thing when you ride trails and MX good for TT. The quad was very had to wheelie and to keep the front up in the rough stuff. Landing off jumps was the worst cause the back end would bounce off the landing and smack you in the *****. Just some of my findings

[bradley300]

mine was really stiff even with the 400ex spring. i slowed the rebound and now it works great with my elka fronts.

[300EXrider02]

Originally posted by 300exHILLER
From my testing the 200lb rule worked for me. I'm 180lbs and I tried it with the Craptor spring and it almost threw me over the bars in many instances during the first race of the season. When I switched to 400ex spring it much much better. Another thing I found when using the craptor spring is it's so stiff that it keeps the front tires planted on the ground which is a bad thing when you ride trails and MX good for TT. The quad was very had to wheelie and to keep the front up in the rough stuff. Landing off jumps was the worst cause the back end would bounce off the landing and smack you in the *****. Just some of my findings

I have not had anything wrong of that type at all
the pre-load was off or rebound, possibly the compression, becasue a srping can't do it since I have the same set-up

the raptor spring is still very plush, and lots more travel than the 400ex spring


I had no preload, or at least the spring was just threaded on, which means it didnt fit with the 400ex spring

[hondapunk]

What if you were to use your stock 300ex spring instead of a 400ex one????:confused:

[bradley300]

the 300ex spring is too short

and when i said i had about half my preload left, i meant the collar is about halfway down, i can only make it stiffer, the 400ex spring is a little too short to go much softer on the pre load

I have a stock 400ex spring at home if any of you 300ex owners wanna buy it for this mod.

[tyson300ex]

does it bolt straight on or do i need the whole setup?

[bradley300]

you will need the raptor shock w/ rico's stock 400ex spring

[300EXrider02]

but if you plan on doing MX you might want to just put on the raptor spring, my pre load, rebound and compression are all set for the 300ex, I am not flung off the quad when I land, nor do I bottom out, personally I think the 400ex spring isnt needed after adjusting the shock...but whatever floats your boat....I bought the 400ex spring and then sold it soon after:rolleyes:

[xx3003xrdrxx]

wait so if i buy a raptor 2001 rear shock and put it on my 300ex i wont be able to wheelie anymore?

[CBF2]

The Raptor uses a linear rate spring since it has a linkage to make the suspension progressive. The 300EX uses a progressivley wound spring to make the suspension progressive since it has no linkage. How can the same spring work effectivley for both cases, in this case, eliminating all progression from the rear suspension? Just wondering since it seems putting suspension componets from other quads on is frowned upon here.

[300EXrider02]

well I haven't been on this site in months, but I saw this post and had to respond...

I have had the raptor spring and shock on my 300 for 2 years or so, I have hit some huge kickers, done some rough trails, and all of the above, and I will say if adjusted right, its the perfect shock to have on the 300

Screw all the hear say crap, I am telling you first hand, this shock is capable for just about any weight, any riding, and any expirence... if you find one, give it a damn shot and try it, you wont be dissapointed or regret it...

pz :p

[Hoggr9]

I just did this mod about a month ago and seems to work well.
But i would definately say that setup has alot to do with it.
I weigh 175# and thr Raptor spring seems about right.
It's definatly alot better than stock and i like it better than my buddy's Works.I'm no expert but it works well for me for the $$ invested.

[crazy300exrdr]

do you have to use a 01 shock? I can get
an 04 shock should it fit?

[Snow]

I did this mod and it worked very good. Also, i got the shock for $50 shipped :D keep your eye out and you can get a good deal.

[Snow]

Originally posted by crazy300exrdr
do you have to use a 01 shock? I can get
an 04 shock should it fit?


you need 2001, the newer years had a piggyback rezi, you need the remote.

what if you cut a hole in your air box, or dont run an air box at all, will a newer shock work then, and do you have to revalve it for the 300

[crazy300exrdr]

since the 400ex a arms are not a good idea, i am now going to get +2's from ebay store, with works shocks, a +1 to +4 dominator axle, running kenda klaws 20x11x9's on itp t-9's and i might use the raptor shock, does that sound like a good set up? the only oter things i have done are dg bumper and fat nefs, k&n filter white bros. pipe, it runs pretty good, but it just got rolled down a hill thats y i have to change the axle and bars, but everything else should be able to be fixed.

[Trevor]

Just bought an 01 raptor shock for my 300 this weekend off E-Bay.I'll let you know in a few weeks how it works when I get the shock and then get it on.

[reconmaster]

i noticed my rear shocks starting to fade only problem is 2 get it revalved by the local shock rebuild shop Protech Suspension costs $200 plus parts then I know it won't be ready for this coming weekends races
I know a 400ex, 250r, and of course the 01 raptor shocks work
J/w would a 450r or 350x work
DO the 400ex or 250r bolt right on and any1 can tell me or show me what they did for thier raptor mod would be great

[Trevor]

Hey reconmaster where in Nova Scotia do you live. When I seen you mention protech suspention it made me look to see where you were from. Also the 300ex shocks are not serviceable at all.

[reconmaster]

i live up in the vakkey i mentioned pro tech seein how they are advertozed all over amx and at the races plus the only place i thought of at the time
hows ur shock workin and what kind of shape is ur 3001 in

[Trevor]

Got mine on last week and it works awsome so far

[Trevor]

Hey reconmaster the 300ex stock shock is a non servicable shock. Thats why I got my raptor shock I paid 175.00 cdn after shipping and everything awsome deal if ta ask me.

[cdalejef]

Originally posted by 300EXrider02
yep, the raptor shock is nice, but i dont know how you got half pre-load out of a 400ex spring, I would say the raptor spring is the best way to go Its sounds like the 400ex spring you used was wore out. We've used many 400ex springs on raptor shocks for lighter riders with no problems even when jumping.

[cdalejef]

Originally posted by reconmaster
i noticed my rear shocks starting to fade only problem is 2 get it revalved by the local shock rebuild shop Protech Suspension costs $200 plus parts then I know it won't be ready for this coming weekends races
I know a 400ex, 250r, and of course the 01 raptor shocks work
J/w would a 450r or 350x work
DO the 400ex or 250r bolt right on and any1 can tell me or show me what they did for thier raptor mod would be great The 400ex, 250r and 450r shocks won't work but the 350x shock will but you must also swap the swingarm and link.