Honda AT shock linkage

Any rider experiences with the bottom shock linkage on the AT? A dirtbike with a similar linkage requires maintenance of that linkage, cleaning and packing the various bearings, on a frequent basis if you don't want to be replacing it all during irregular maintenance.

Any riders taking it apart on at least an annual basis for service? Any known problems with it? Are the bearings caged?

Any input would be appreciated.

I stripped mine down when new, then every 25 k km.
Nothing to write about. Clean old grease out, put new in.
Centre stand and side stand need to come off to get link rod bolt out of frame.
I use anti seize on bolts also.

That's good to hear. I am most familiar with Kawasaki's shock 'knuckle' linkage that had a lower shock bearing destined to fail by way of how it was designed. It has seals on either side, but the bearing itself is NOT sealed. Even with a 3x/year maintenance schedule, the bottom shock bearing would likely need to be replaced. A re-fit with the intention of using a double-lipped bearing resolved that problem, but I doubt most riders went to that trouble; having the OEM seals machined to fit the wider DS bearing is problematic.

The center stand/side stand notes are unfortunate.

Are the OEM bearing pins of a retained sort? Do they stay in the outer shell?

Thanks for the input!

Bearing pins all slide out. Only retained on assembly.

More that's good to know. If I know they're not caged, I'll exercise more caution on disassembly.

Thanks!

Sorry i thought you meant the main race pins/shaft.
I can't remember if the needles are held in by a cage. Pays to be careful all the same.

One of the items on my winter todo list.
I'll report back if I find anything interesting.
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