[Randall-in-Mpls]

however if someone can tell me in advance how much the yamaha's shock's clevis needs to be widened to work, i'd prefer to make my mods to the replacement before i pull the stock off

If this is a GL500, rather than the 650, the clevis is on the linkage, not on the shock. To mount a shock with a clevis, you'll need to find or cut appropriate-length collars to keep it centered. You may also want to sleeve it, so it doesn't wear on the bolt. The bracket on the linkage will be wider than the clevis on the shock.



And both mounts use a 10mm bolt, unless I'm mistaken.





R

 

[Randall-in-Mpls]

length wise, are the 650 and 500 the same length shock?

The GL500 shock is 11.5", I believe. Not sure about the 650.



R

 

[Randall-in-Mpls]

...i wasn't sure of the necessity of both bushings...

The double bushing allows the bolt to be properly tightened. The inner bushing is slightly longer than the outer and becomes fixed to the clevis. Using a single bushing, you'd need to leave the bolt slack to avoid binding the joint.





R