A bit ago my VFR 400 decided to blow out its rear shock and leak its shock oil all over the place. Unfortunately, these shocks are non rebuildable. The bike is from 1986, so any used units are already questionable just from age alone. New parts are non-existant. One company makes a shock that will fit the bike, the UK division of Hagon.
So, more than $400 later:
The thing is an absolute beauty, and as you will see later on it is actually smaller(and lighter!) than the original shock. There is no remote preload adjuster like in the original, but I don't see myself adjusting the preload to begin with, let alone adjusting it frequently enough to justify a remote adjuster.
Getting the original shock out SHOULD have been not so bad, but it turned out to be a PITA. To take the shock out, you have to unbolt the dogbone and get it out of the way. Well it just so turned out the one bolt holding the dogbone in place had rusted/pitted itself into place and didn't want to come out! The thing would spin, but it wouldn't come out. Lots of PB blaster and some pounding a day later eventually freed up the bolt.
Here is a side by side comparison of the shock that came out vs the new shiny one going in. The old one weighs 6.5 pounds, the new one is 4.65 pounds. Since the new shock is also smaller in diameter, installation was easier too! The rear feels squishier now from what I remember, probably better suited to my weight. Other than that, it feels pretty normal. My test route didn't have any speedbumps or other bumps to test suspension over.