I am going to try to recreate the post that I had started when the forum was switching around last year, so bear with me as this is going to be a long post with lots of details. I am hoping that this post will help someone else that is struggling to set up their BanditUTV or any other suspension for that matter.

After a lot of research and questions I decided to buy a set of BanditUTV Trail Series Shocks for my 2015 Viking VI. These shocks came shipped with the minimal amount of pre-load on the springs to just keep them in place, so everything needed to be adjusted and set for my machine. BanditUTV's Trail Series don't have any additional settings other than spring pre-load. I wanted to go with the Trail Series because I wasn't thinking that the extra headache of trying to constantly chance settings, and BanditUTV wasn't recommending the more expensive piggy back style shock because they didn't think that I would need the extra oil capacity and cooling because of the nature of the big Viking VI.

Before installation I took measurements of my OEM Shocks, with my 27" ITP Blackwater Evolution Tires:
7/28/17 - 1060 miles
Homemade PVC Spacers Front and Rear: 5/8" (0.625")
Front Clearance (Measured at the Forward A-Arm Lower Bolts and Skid Plate): 10 3/4" (10.75")
Rear Clearance (Measured at the Frame Boxes and Skid Plate): 12 1/4" (12.25")
Front to Rear Difference: 1 1/2" (1.5") Rear Higher

The installation paperwork mentioned the included eyelet spacers as being included, but not required and no placement specified (*IE Front Side, Back Side, Combo of the bolts). I made a call to BanditUTV to get clarification and they were very pleasant and said that it didn't matter, but most put them on one side or the other but not to put one on a side and the other on the other.

The springs supplied with the shocks are:
-Front 11" Free Length / 320lb Progressive
-Rear 12" Free Length / 380lb Progressive

I installed the shocks and measured the weight off clearance (droop):
-Front 12 1/4" (12.25")
-Rear 15 1/2" (15.50")

I initially attempted to set the ride height/ground clearance/pre-load to something near what I initially had with the PVC Spacers.
Front Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 2 1/8" (2.125")
Front Spring Length: 8 3/4" (8.75") (*Pre-load of 2 1/4" (2.25"))
Front Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 10"
Rear Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 2"
Rear Spring Length: 11" (*Pre-load of 1")
Rear Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 12"

These settings rode ok for the first 4-5 miles of the trails we ride. Then after that, it was rough. I was able to send BanditUTV a message on FB pleading for help with the settings because we were 2.5 hours from home on a 2 day trip to ride the trails. To my surprise, they got back to me late on a Saturday night and again on Sunday morning. They advised that I needed to add more pre-load to the front and try to get the front to 1/2" (0.5") higher than the rear. No matter what I did, it didn't seem that I could get to their recommended settings, but I was a little closer. We rode some on Sunday and the ride was not desirable at all, better than the first day, but still not good.

When I got back home, I took everything back apart, and cleaned/lubed/retorqued everything relative to the suspension. I had a couple more conversations with the folks at BanditUTV, but I was also doing a bunch of reading about how you needed to have 20% of your stroke in down travel available after setting pre-load. I couldn't understand how to have the down travel available and still try to set the ride height be be lower in the rear. I went through and remeasured every setting and just tried to make things closer. Made another call to BanditUTV and got Ted (the owner) on the phone. He talked me through trying to get the suspension working better, and told me that I needed to at least get the machine level front to rear and not worry about the available down travel.

So I went through and reset everything to:
Front Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 2 1/4" (2.25")
Front Spring Length: 8 1/2" (8.5") (*Pre-load of 2 1/2" (2.5"))
Front Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 10 1/2" (10.5")
Rear Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 1 3/8" (1.375")
Rear Spring Length: 11 3/4" (11.75") (*Pre-load of 1/4" (0.25"))
Rear Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 11"

With these settings I wasn't able to ride a lot, just a small trip hunting. The ride was greatly improved because the machine was a lot closer to being level, thus allowing the suspension to travel up when encountering a bump on the trail vs being pushed back. I still thought that there was a lot more improvement to be had, so when I was getting ready for an out of state trip, I went through everything again. But at this time, I also was switching to 28" Tusk Terrabite Tires, so the ground clearance changed marginally due to the size difference from the ITP Blackwater Evolutions.

My settings were:
Front Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 2 3/4" (2.75") *MAXED
Front Spring Length: 8 1/4" (8.25") (*Pre-load of 2 3/4" (2.75"))
Front Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 11 3/4" (11.75")
Rear Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 1 3/8" (1.375")
Rear Spring Length: 11 1/2" (11.5") (*Pre-load of 1/2" (0.5"))
Rear Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 12"

We rode 363 miles in the Ouachita Mountain area of South Western Arkansas and these settings were fantastic. I finally felt like these shocks were living up to their potential. My wife finally said that she was finally okay with me having purchased these shocks, which was a big win for me. I did note after the first day of riding that one of the plastic sleeves that protects the body of the shock had become damaged, so I went on to BanditUTV's website to order a new sleeve and the small spring clip. While I was looking up the parts, I noticed that there was a plastic collar that went under the adjustment collar. It looked like this piece would help hold the spring in place and allow for easier adjustment of the adjustment collar, so I ordered a set.

The next morning, my cell phone rang with a number from Michigan. I answered, and it was Ted from BanditUTV inquiring about the plastic collars. He told me that they wouldn't work for my shocks because the adjustment collar was different and that I wouldn't be able to change them out unless I completely disassembled the shock (which wasn't going to happen). He then went on to ask about how my set-up issues were going because he had remembered all of my calls and e-mails. I told him that I thought that the shocks were finally getting dialed in and living up to my expectations. At this point, he asked me about my settings and I told him that I had the front pre-load maxed out and they they seemed to be preforming very well. He then said that he was going to cancel the order that I had place and was going to send me out a new set of springs and include the part that I needed...for NO CHARGE!!! He said that he had a few people that due to machine differences would benefit from a heavier 350lb Progressive spring, and said I would be the first Viking in the nation to get them and try them out.

Once I got home from our vacation, there was my package sitting at the door with my free parts and free replacement 350lb Springs for the front. I replaced the part on my rear shock without any issue. I then pulled my fronts and went to changing the front springs. The old 320lb springs came off without issue, but the new springs were about 1/2" (0.5") longer than the old. So a little bit of careful spring compressing and I had them on. So now the tricky part of making sure that everything was set for the pre-load.

The most recent settings with the new 350lb Progressive Front Springs are:
Front Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 1 7/16" (1.4375")
Front Spring Length: 9 9/16" (9.5625") (*Pre-load of 1 7/16" (1.4375"))
Front Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 12 1/4" (12.25")
Rear Pre-load (Thread Above the Adjustment Collar): 1 5/8" (1.625")
Rear Spring Length: 11 1/8" (11.125") (*Pre-load of 7/8" (0.875"))
Rear Ground Clearance (Measured the same as above): 12 1/8"

So now I have to wait to get a chance to ride it to check these settings, but I am willing to think that I am going to continue to see great improvements. I can't say enough for the customer service at BanditUTV. From answering e-mails and FB Messages on the weekend, to calling after an order was placed.

And looking back, I was being way too cautious with the pre-load settings on the front and too aggressive with the settings for the rear. I was very concerned with gaining maximum clearance and keeping the front and rear settings near equal. Key information that I gained from conversation with BanditUTV were trying to have the machine level (front 1/2" higher if possible), and that the most important starting point was going to be measured ground clearance front and rear (verses trying to calculate a percentage of droop vs travel).