[ChrisWNY]

Thanks Azhule - I installed the valve at the top - after searching Google it definitely looked like the left side (valve side) went up, F <---> S went down.

The Hawk sits slightly lower with the new rear shock installed (I'm about 5'10", 170 lbs...with the stock shock my toes touched, on the new one I can almost sit flat footed). The O-rings definitely slipped out on the bottom of the shock during the installation (similar to Kirk's experience), but I got everything on there with washers and spacers (greased everything up), no rubbing on the air box or bottoming out...the aftermarket shock is actually a tad narrower than the stock shock. It does feel a little bouncy though, a bit too much rebound. Will turning the knob toward F or S reduce the rebound in the rear shock? Does the small set screw above the F <-----> S adjust anything? I didn't mess around with the set screw and have no idea what it does.

It definitely sags a lot less than the stock rear shock though. Sags maybe a couple of inches at most when I sit on it. Haven't ridden on it yet but I am guessing it'll handle rough terrain substantially better than the stock rear shock, possibly without bottoming out.

Took about an hr or so to install...I initially thought I would have to remove the air box and strip more parts off the frame, but all you need to remove is the side body panels, the seat, and the battery (I also removed the battery bracket). The bottom of the shock was harder to deal with than the top because the chain gets in the way of the bolt installation. The washers were tricky but I just held them together with finger pressure and slid the bolt right through them. Thanks and kudos to Kirk for the pointers...3/8" washer size was perfect. I used 7 on the top...on the bottom I used a spare aluminum spacer (equivalent to the thickness of 5-6 washers) and 5 washers on the other side to get things just right. The bushings on my particular rear shock were the same thickness top and bottom, so the bottom bushing definitely requires more spacers/washers on both sides.