If that is the case, how would I get it unstuck?
A member here helped on that 4 years ago. Tried to dig out the old post but no luck.
The preloader had worked well until I tried to unload a bit after a longer trip with much luggage. Preloader started "freewheeling" after about 1/4 of the way while backing out. Bike was still very low milage at the time (< 10K)
There was a lot of dirt by the locking halves on top of the spring, below the loading piston. The member advised to clean up the area, and spray a penetrating lubricant. Which worked for me.
But first you must assess if the prelaoder is in fact stuck in the loaded position. There is not much travel to look at (maybe 3/8") so this is not easy to see. Best you look at a preloading piston (top of shock)on a ST with a working preloader with the preload cranked up all the way. If it looks the same as yours with the preload completely backed off (like mine did), than the piston is stuck. Now if the preload piston on the shock is retracted and doesn't move when you crank up the preload, then you have an oil leak in the preloader (like on mine a few years later) and Honda may replace it if you still have a warranty.
Fortunately, the preload adjusters on recent Hondas are of the same design, so a little Web trawling ought to turn up a few threads (assuming it wasn't actually here that I saw it). Not surprised that this is a "new shock moment" for Honda, as they haven't sold pre-load adjusters separate from the shock since the early 1990s, when they decided that the same shock they used to advise could be rebuilt became suddenly non-rebuildable... (1990 VFR750F--rebuildable; 1992 VFR750F--non-rebuildable!)
