When I decided (the first ride) that I needed new shocks for the RZR, I did what I always do; research. The long and short of it brought me to Bandits…great reviews, good price point, perceived quality, and accessible owner. I bought them and I am very happy with them and the service I received. Being in a hurry to get them on and ride; I just put them on at the delivered preload, put the compression clickers in the middle of the range, 11 clicks, and rode. Very pleased, huge and noticeable difference over stock. Better handling, more clearance, smoothed out ride, etc. The build quality is excellent and I can’t imagine a better product at the price point. My only issue (known issue, told its a Polaris quality control issue), like others, I had to grind/file some on the A arm and shock bottom up front to get bolt through.
I should add, before I added the Bandits, I swapped the factory rubber for 27 9×12 Kanati Mongrels all the way around. I highly recommend a quality radial to suit your riding as a first mod. It’s a cost effective mod with great benefits. Better ride, cornering, and over all handling.
All that said, several weeks later, it was time to fine tune my shocks. So, once again, I did what I do; research. I was looking for someone who rode like me, already did the work, and was happy with their settings. No luck. The bottom line is that there is no standard, just a wide range of adjustments. No way around it, it would be trial and error. What I wanted to accomplish was a plush ride, good cornering, and minimal bottoming. What follows is what I tried and what I wound up liking.
I removed the front sway bar…initially, felt strange. Not tippy, more leany…That went away quickly. After several hot laps on my woods trail, I knew it was gone for good. Now, it feels great, solid cornering, and I know both front wheels are making contact even in aggressive cornering. Definitely recommend! (make yourself spend some time with it off).
As for preload, I was anywhere from 0-2.5” up front and 0-3.0” in the rear (I measured with a caliper from the inside top of threads to the top side of spring). I didn’t worry about sag measurements, as I was within common acceptable preload ranges. I let the riding dictate my final settings. Like the stock shocks, 0” (just enough pressure to keep the springs from rattling) provided the plushest ride and stability, but at the expense of bottoming. If all I rode were fire roads and pavement, I would have kept it there, with 3 clicks on compression. However, I needed more bottoming resistance for the woods. I kept making adjustments until I topped out at 2.5” front and 3.0” rear. A little too stiff and car a little to high for me. I wound up at 2.0” front and 2.5” in the rear. That gives me 12” of clearance up front measured at the back of the A arm and 11.25” in the rear measured at the front of the A arm. I currently have 5 clicks on the compression all the way around. Good clearance, great handling, good ride, and good bottoming resistance. I may go a few more clicks on compression. I am currently running 15 PSI in the Mongrels (started at 10). I ride fast, tight, rocky, rooted, rutted, NE PA trails. We are around 430 lbs in the cab and 50 lbs in bed. I love my current setup and couldn’t be happier with my results.
I know this was a long read, I tried to provide the info I was searching for, but couldn’t find. Hopefully, this saves someone some time and trial and error (even though that is half the fun).
