+2 American Star Pro Star A-Arm Kits, Good or Bad?

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blue06raptor

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I want to get a set of +2 American Star Pro Star A-Arm Kits (the first kit shown on the website) for my Raptor 350, here is the link...
http://www.quadpartsguy.com/A-Arms.html
now my question is this, will I need to replace my stock shocks and brake lines, because I was told I didnt need to change this.
I just want to be sure. Also in the picture on the website (i do know it clearly says "Raptor 660 Pictured" but I didnt notice any grease fittings!! my stock A-Arms have grease fittings, why dont these?
are they a good buy or no????
please help.
 
About the shocks if you dont change them, if the a-arms break in any way they will not be coverd by the warranty, so just get some kind of aftermarket shocks and you can break them all you want with no worries. Also about the brake lines, you should change them you dont have to. The lines will strech and work but not as well and could eventualy break or rip.
 
First thing, you will have to replace your shocks if you want to gain anything out of this upgrade. Your cornering will suck just as bad, maybe worse, with the extra leverage on the stock shocks. Sure, it'll be ridable with the stock shocks if you needed to wait a while to save up some extra money for the shocks, but to actually get decent performance you need to upgrade to some aftermarket shocks set up for extended arms.

I'd plan on replacing those brake lines too. Everybody claims the stock lines work with +2's. They do technically WORK, they just don't work worth a ****. The lever will come all the way to the handlebars and you'll be lucky if you can lock your front tires up on wet grass or pavement.

Don't worry about the grease fittings, they're not a big deal. None of the aftermarket arms I ever saw used grease fittings, and I think yamaha is the only company that even puts them on from the factory. If your bushings would wear out, they're just nylon bushings so they're cheap as dirt to replace.
 
so i can ride around , i just wont feel the full benefit of the a-arms, correct?
now are the stock shocks a piece of ****?will I need to upgrade my springs as well, or can I re-use the stock springs?
what's a good set of shocks to buy?? do i have to swap the rear shock too?
 
Trash the stock shocks. At the very least get a set of Works off the shelf shocks, still a huge improvement. Or, see if Griff on this boards buddy can build you a set out of your stockers, they looked pretty sweet. For the rear a Banshee shock will do wonders for cheap.
 
so i can ride around , i just wont feel the full benefit of the a-arms, correct?
now are the stock shocks a piece of ****?will I need to upgrade my springs as well, or can I re-use the stock springs?
what's a good set of shocks to buy?? do i have to swap the rear shock too?

What that additional leverage does is make those stock shocks real soft. You'll bottom out easier on jumps, and it'll really dive and roll in the corners. It may actually be worse than the stock width. At the least, order a set of shocks from Works or Superior Suspension, both run less than $350 and are a good improvement over stock. When you order aftermarket shocks you have to get them set up for your rider weight and extended a-arms, so you can't really go onto ebay and grab up the first cheap set of aftermarket shocks you see.

You won't have to replace the rear shock, the a-arms won't affect it's performance. That doesn't mean it can't be improved on though, a banshee or 01 raptor shock has more adjustability and a smoother ride. You could also go aftermarket on the rear, but the cheapest one is the works at about $500.
 
wait i love soft shocks, because i ride woods. So your telling me that soft socks are bad, i know they bottem out easy but they are bad for turning and stuff? So when i get new shocks for my a-arms and i order them for woods and my wieght then the extended arms they will be really hard like stiffer then stock on stock a-arms because i hate riding trails on stock arms? O i would be getting works by the way.
Please help

P.S. sorry for thrashing your thread i just thought this might consern you too. because you will be in the market too.
 
Lonestars have zerk fittings on their lower a-arms, but everyone uses delrin fittings anymore. Definitely new shocks and brakelines.
 
wait i love soft shocks, because i ride woods. So your telling me that soft socks are bad, i know they bottem out easy but they are bad for turning and stuff? So when i get new shocks for my a-arms and i order them for woods and my wieght then the extended arms they will be really hard like stiffer then stock on stock a-arms because i hate riding trails on stock arms? O i would be getting works by the way.
Please help

P.S. sorry for thrashing your thread i just thought this might consern you too. because you will be in the market too.

Can anyone help me on this one?
 
There's more than just how soft or hard a shock is. When you order aftermarket shocks they'll be set up for your type of riding. I ordered my works set up for xc, which is a good setup if you ride in the woods. You get good articulation and a fairly smooth ride for the slower riding and rougher stuff, actually smoother and more articulation than stock ones on extended arms. The big difference is in the valving, and the double rate springs. You can easily outride the stock shocks, but the way the Works perform the damping effect increases as you ride harder, so you can still pound whoops and jump it without bottoming out or getting the crap kicked out of yourself.

But yeah, to your original question, a stock shock, which is going to be overly soft with extended arms, will definitely hurt your cornering because the quad will have a tendency to really dive and roll into the corner, kinda how most big utility quads ride.
 
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