P1000m5 Dragon21's build

[JTW]

I go back and forth. I wanted to sell it, could of used the funds and hadn't used more than 2 seats 1-2 times. But since we moved its been getting more use with the 5 of us. Go so back and forth, its not what I want for the riding I do, but it does do fine for the riding. At this moment im keeping it unless i get an offer i cant refuse. This summer ill see if that changes. Some temping options out there for sure, but none will fit the family

I understand... buy a machine for the family and it’s mainly just me or me and one passenger. But the times I do use it with everybody it’s nice to have.

 

[Admin]

 

[Dragon21]

I understand... buy a machine for the family and it’s mainly just me or me and one passenger. But the times I do use it with everybody it’s nice to have.

thats exactly where I am. Also easier to justify when its for the family and not just me. The times its just me I want something else. The times family is with me im glad i have it.

 

[JTW]

thats exactly where I am. Also easier to justify when its for the family and not just me. The times its just me I want something else. The times family is with me im glad i have it.

A sport machine would be better suited for my style of riding. But I like to be prepared and pack way too much s***. I love the overland riding and now that I’ve put waaaay too much money into this thing getting it where I want. I’m keeping it!

 

[CumminsPusher]

My wife doesnt like to ride, she just around the neighborhood to neighbors houses and what not. She gets car sick and doesn't care for the bouncing around. but the kids love it. Especially my son and one of my daughters.

That explains you looking for other shocks. I assume you tried soft but do you have sway bar out? That helps

 

[Dragon21]

A sport machine would be better suited for my style of riding. But I like to be prepared and pack way too much s***. I love the overland riding and now that I’ve put waaaay too much money into this thing getting it where I want. I’m keeping it!

yep. im the one that seems to pack for the entire group and usually have my bed full. and I agree, ive put a lot of time and money into this to start over. But damn if there isnt more I still want to do

 

[Dragon21]

That explains you looking for other shocks. I assume you tried soft but do you have sway bar out? That helps

Shes ridden in other rides as well, heck she will get car sick in the mountains when i drive haha. She hasnt been trail riding in this with me. Just not her cup of tea. But yea i do have sway bar removed. Gonna probably get rear fox shocks at some point if im able. I ride with them on 1 at local parks and 2 in the mountains.

 

[dnjones161]

I'm the same way: we haven't used the 5 seat but once, the option is nice tho.

I started with the XP 1000 and decided it was more than I needed. Do I bottom out from time to time trying to keep up with a quad? Yea. Could 1600 dollars in shocks help? Prolly.

At the end of the day for me it's more about who I'm riding with than how fast I'm riding. The option to take a buddy or a buddy's dad along that doesn't have a machine was worth more than a couple extra mph for me.

Suppose it depends on where you ride though. As many have said on this forum: in the tight stuff the Pioneer keeps up pretty good with the big boys.

You can quote me in this: if you go to fast on the mountain, you'll get to the bottom quicker than you want to

 

[JTW]

yep. im the one that seems to pack for the entire group and usually have my bed full. and I agree, ive put a lot of time and money into this to start over. But damn if there isnt more I still want to do

You have Fox shocks and 30’s?

 

[Dragon21]

You have Fox shocks and 30’s?

I got 29's. I thought I could get them to fit without forward a arms since they measured small, but they rubbed. Kinda screwed myself there, should have gone smaller or larger.

Fox shocks in the front, would like the rear at some point when i can afford them

 

[dnjones161]

I got 29's. I thought I could get them to fit without forward a arms since they measured small, but they rubbed. Kinda screwed myself there, should have gone smaller or larger.

Fox shocks in the front, would like the rear at some point when i can afford them

Was doing just the fronts still a pretty significant improvement? I've thought about it, but I do like the idea of the load leveling in the rear. Also 4 Fox shocks... Whew.

My expectations of dinner go sky high after about 15 dollars a plate, so I can only imagine what kind of ride I would need to be happy with the purchase of 4 Fox shocks

 

[Dragon21]

Was doing just the fronts still a pretty significant improvement? I've thought about it, but I do like the idea of the load leveling in the rear. Also 4 Fox shocks... Whew.

My expectations of dinner go sky high after about 15 dollars a plate, so I can only imagine what kind of ride I would need to be happy with the purchase of 4 Fox shocks

Front was defiantly a significant improvement, but rear is supposed to be even better. some others went just front and after 1 ride did the rear as well. I would however just dont have the $700 free to do that. But i would if i could

 

[dnjones161]

Front was defiantly a significant improvement, but rear is supposed to be even better. some others went just front and after 1 ride did the rear as well. I would however just dont have the $700 free to do that. But i would if i could

Ill have to try to get to one of these group rides and have someone with the upgrades take me for a spin. That's a lotta coin!

 

[CumminsPusher]

Was doing just the fronts still a pretty significant improvement? I've thought about it, but I do like the idea of the load leveling in the rear. Also 4 Fox shocks... Whew.

My expectations of dinner go sky high after about 15 dollars a plate, so I can only imagine what kind of ride I would need to be happy with the purchase of 4 Fox shocks

I’m same way with food lol.
We sometimes carry real heavy loads so was worried getting rid of the leveling rear shocks. Years back though we went Fox on the 700 and it was so much different that we pulled the trigger on rears for the 1000 too. We had front shocks the day Fox became available and said f*** it and went rears right after. Big difference, not quite as much as front but still a lot. We’ve had the Pioneer since loaded down probably more then most and it’s done just fine. I’ll say it doesn’t level the big loads but it handles them. Fox will handle a load, IMO if you trail ride more then 50% get them if not then don’t worry. But shocks make a HUGE DIFFERENCE on any rig especially one that comes with cheapies

 

[JTW]

I started with just the fronts and after the first ride with just fronts I ordered the reared as soon as I got home. The fronts show you how bad the rears really are.

 

[Dragon21]

Finally got the 814's on this weekend. Not as seemless as I hoped. Pioneer is sitting about 2" higher in the front, Craig from 814 said to get some miles on it before making any adjustments though. Also there was a little more space between the lower mounting tabs than i would like. But other than that, not too bad and ready to try them out. Customer Service from 814 has been awesome.

Also finally got around to adding some extra attachment points in the bed.. not sure what took so long.

 

[Dragon21]

 

[dnjones161]

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Are those attachment points just in the plastic? Or did you find a metal frame?

I've been thinking for a while several strategically-placed hooks would be nice, but I've been questioning the strength of mounting in various spots. Be interested to hear how the hold up

 

[GlockMeister]

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Those are the same rings im using...they have been holding up well. I put a small piece of 1/4 fuel line on them to keep em from jingling.

 

[Dragon21]

Are those attachment points just in the plastic? Or did you find a metal frame?

I've been thinking for a while several strategically-placed hooks would be nice, but I've been questioning the strength of mounting in various spots. Be interested to hear how the hold up

I used screws that were already installed in the bed. unscrewed them, put the ring in, and screwed the, back. Literally 30 seconds to do one if that.

 

[Dragon21]

Copied this from the 814 thread. But figured it was worth adding in here as well:

So i got to spend the last few days in WV testing out the 814's. Keep in mind I came from fox shocks in the front only and had the Highlifter lift.

I started with the recommended setting on the front an rear for compression and rebound. Right off the bat it was weird. The first trail we were on was smooth as butter. I found my self clenching for bumps that I never felt. It was a lot of small pothole size bumps and the ride just glided across them. Took some getting use to but loved it!

Next thing that happened was a little disappointing but I want to keep this 100% honest and up front.

One of the trails we were riding had lots of dips and humps. The front handled it beautiful. The rear.. not so much.. Now i was concerned from the start with the way the rear was sitting. But knew i needed to ride it first so everything could settle. When the shocks compressed It would rub my fenders pretty bad, note this was going 25-35 mph over these sections, not enough to jump, but enough for it to be an issue. I messed with the setting in the rear by raising the compression and lowering rebound but just couldnt make it stop. Im 90% sure i just needed more preload. Im also running 29" tires which I needed Aarms on the front, so might be looking to do those on the rear too.

I also had one instance on a straight stretch with the whoops type depressions that I was going too fast over (I was over confident after what the shocks were doing with most bumps). Rear end started bouncing bad and almost got sideways. I was holding on waiting for it to flip but never did.

I talked to Craig that night and explained where I was at. He is thinking defiantly preload to keep from rubbing, but maybe need heavier springs for my riding style. Also the 5 seat pioneers have more weight in the back (of course) so might need a little more adjusting because of that. He recommended some settings to try the next day, and they helped with the bigger stuff but the smaller stuff got works.. which I knew was going to be the case but this is only temporary for the weekend.


Overall:

I absolutely love them and its the best thing ive done to the Honda. Ride quality is wayyy better. I understood going into this that It was going to be trial and error for them to get setup right, but its teaching me about suspension which is what I wanted as well as being able to tailor it for my riding.

I feel very confident that with adjusting preload I will be able to bring the compression back down and get where the whole thing rides smooth. I also will probably quit trying to be cheap and get the rear SATV a arms if i can find them at their old price. The customer support from Craig is awesome. Really a stand up guy. Dont regret even the slightest going this route over the fox shocks