Shock Location.

[Alaric]

Hello.

I have a question and that question is, What is the benefit of a Shocks location? I see a lot of different design's on bike's, How does the design effect riding?
Here are a couple of examples.

http://www.intensecycles.com/web/bikepics/m3_lrg0.jpg
http://www.ironhorsebikes.com/images/bikes/photos/sundayworldcup-0.jpg
http://www.specialized.com/OA_MEDIA/2008/bikes/9387-200_l.jpg
http://www.specialized.com/OA_MEDIA/2007/bikes/BH_III_Brown.jpg

Thanks.

[Geordsta]

I've always wondered that as well hope someone answers :D

[daddyrat]

now i reckon there are several criteria.
- close to BB to keep weight low and central in the frame.
both ends of the shock need to be fixed into a solid part of the frame to avoid deforming the frame under compression of the shock which i reckon becomes more important as travel increases.
therefore again bb is a good area since usually several tubes form a triangle which makes that area very rigid.
and thirdly looks

[Daver]

Obviously the lower the shock is in the bike, the lower the weight, and thus the lower the centre of gravity. But, different linkages require the shocks to be in different positions, and different designs mean that some would have to be rotated for better adjustability and tuning.

[Alaric]

Ok good answer's.

So your saying that the M3 is a better engineered bike?

[DH OZ]

I believe its more to do with Patents
when they design a frame they patent it so another builder can't use that design
so the engineers sit down and design something else
thus we have all these different styles to chose from
as for center of gravity dose it matter when you jump on the bike and most of your weight is well above the shock
some people like single pivot and some like linkages
with linkages you can get alot of wheel travel 10"+ with the same stroke shock single pivot 8"

[Grip]

Forgetting for a moment the tiny bit of difference the position of a shock would make to a bike's centre of gravity, the bottom-line is that the position of the shock itself has virtually NO impact on the suspension OR the way a bike rides.

A shock absorber is just that... a unit designed (in the case of a bicycle's suspension) to control the rate of up and down movement of the wheel. But NO bicycle shocks (rear at least) actually do that directly.

The wheel travel (the up and down) is actually connected to the shock (that unit that controls the rate of up and down movement) by a series of linkages OR, in the case of some rear designs that make it look like the shock is "directly" controlling the wheel travel, by a swingarm that is, in effect, a linkage affecting ratio and direction.

This is why a bike with 9" of rear wheel travel probably has a shock with only 2" of "direct" travel in it. i.e the shaft actually only moves in and out of the shock body 2". It's the "linkages" (regardless of what form they take) and the way they connect to the shock that actually controls the rear wheel movement and the way a bike rides... not the position of the shock itself at all.

[jamis7]

i just class them as how efficient they are at paddaling and hom much travel they have

[Grip]

i just class them as how efficient they are at paddaling and hom much travel they have

Wow... I guess I just wasted a shit-load of time writing out my answer then. You've explained it all so perfectly.;)