Manual says you need to remove the tank to remove the top rear shock bolt but I have no problem getting to the bolt with an allen wrench. The rear bolts already out so I'm thinking about removing the shock and taking off the spring for painting or powdercoating. Any trick to getting the spring off the shock once I have the whole thing out?

the right way is to take it off and have a spring press.

the alternative is use a spring wrench and remove it slowly but make sure you measure the before location.

These or similar.

Quote from: weemonster on August 25, 2013, 04:20:42 AM

These or similar.

I've used something similar to those.  Given the option, I'd buy something else that isn't a disaster waiting to happen.  Those things are mildly scary when your face is close to them.

I'm also not sure the "teeth" will fit on a moto spring.

those spring compressors (im guessing that what they call) you can borrow from autozone with your id.

make one yourself
http://www.homemadetools.net/shock-spring-compressor

I'm not gonna lie... this spring removal seems a little intimidating.     Is it that bad? I plan on getting it powder coated if I do get it off please dont tell me there's an issue with that. I'd hate to go to the trouble of getting it off only to find I cant PC it (or get it back on sucessfully).

mine is PC'd black

Haynes manual says you gotta remove the tank to remove the spring but I see no problem to removing the top spring-shock bolt with an allen wrench just by removing the seat. Am I missing something?

I've taken the rear shock off of my bike without removing the tank. And I've taken the spring off of the shock using some cheap Harbor Freight spring compressor clamps. It was pretty shetchy, but it worked. Just be really careful. When I adusted the collars all the way out on the shock, it almost felt like the spring was going to come free without any compressing. I only needed to dial in a little using the spring compressor clamps before it came free. I wound up putting my stock spring on a 749 shock, and it works relatively well for the $45 I spent on it. Good luck.

 When I rebuilt a pair of Marzocchi shocks for my Triumph I used a few long hose clamps to compress the springs!

I apologize for my complete ignorance here but there's very little info on this process that I can find. Do you have to compress it to get it off? I would think you just unscrew the giant adjuster nuts on top and it should slide right off and you only need the spring compressor for getting it back on. Am I wrong here? Wish there was video for this somewhere. I'm hitting the PC shop tomorrow so I'm tempted to pull it off if I only need the spring compressor to get it back on.

You need a spring compressor to get the spring off, and back on.

Those automotive style spring compressors don't fit moto springs well at all, and will scratch off existing paint or your brand-new powdercoat.

Just take the shock to a good moto shop or suspension shop that has the right equipment.

Sorry to revive this but I'm actually getting round to doing this so I can PC my spring while I get a new fender PC'd. This video of a monoshock spring removal on a 90's M900 seems to say that for these models you dont need a spring compressor to remove and install the spring (specifically at 5:00 in to the video). This looks just like the one on my 2005 620 Dark. Is there any reason this approach wouldnt work for me? If this would work for me couldnt I just mark where the nuts holding the spring tight are at so I can retighten the spring to the same load? This whole video makes the process look so quick and easy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrgYos29ZXs

It's not the same shock, 90's M900 vs. '05 M620.

Can't get the stock spring off of an OEM '05 shock without a spring compressor.