Fork spring replacement

[ian]

Ok, I'm going progressive. I'm wondering if there are any tricks/shortcuts on replacing the springs. I was thinking raise the front wheel, drain the oil, take off the end caps at the top, pulling the old ones out and putting the new ones in. Will this work? any other suggestions?

[fropleyquark]

Yes, in a nutshell. You'll probably have a hard time just draining the oil. Some model forks dont have drains other with tend to be stuck. However, before you do anything, I would HIGHLY recommend you take a good look at the how to stickied at the top of this page. I used it and had no problems. I would also HIGHLY recommend you replace your oil seals as long as youre at it. Even if theyre not leaking. Preventative maintenance goes a long way and will save you from having to rip the forks out a second time.

[Dr Rockso]

if you want to change the oil you might as well remove the forks and clean everything out since you're already opening them up , but you can do it on the bike as well . basically once you remove the caps at the top of your forks the springs and the pre load spacers will come out . it's important to have the bike propped up on jack stands or the exhaust removed so you can use a motorcycle jack , don't try it without holding it up , if you remove those caps with weight on the front end those springs will fire out and the bike will drop and fall over . also be careful re-installing the fork caps because it's easy to mess up the threads . if you look in the how to replace fork seals thread you'll see exactly what's involved .

[tommyj27]

I was wondering if it made sense to replace seals while you're in there (I was just too chicken to ask). I think new springs are going to be my next project as well.

[Dr Rockso]

i actually kept the stockers in mine , i just added more pre load (washers) and set the sag to my weight . it'd probably be a bit nicer of a ride with some nice springs in there but it's not in the budget , the extra pre load has worked out very well for me tho and it only cost me 78 cents at home depot .

[tommyj27]

The dude I bought my 600 from said he had concocted some goofy weight oil (like 23 or 27 or something) to stiffen up the suspension, but if the current state is an improvement I'd hate to see how soft they were off the showroom floor.

[ian]

well, got it all finished up yesterday. Getting the fender and wheel back on were a bitch because apparently I bent one or both of my forks in my accident in Feb. anyways, progressive springs give you a chart to determine how far to cut down your preload spacers. Well, It lowered my bike by quite a bit (I like it a lot) but I'm worried about how close the top of the outer tube is to the bottom fork clamp. Only 2 inches from the top of the dust cover. Do I need to swap out the spacers and make them longer? Or is this clearance alright? I barely have any dive, 'cause they are progressive springs, but I'm afraid of unforeseen potholes or obstacles and what not.

[yamaha_george]

well, got it all finished up yesterday. Getting the fender and wheel back on were a bitch because apparently I bent one or both of my forks in my accident in Feb. anyways, progressive springs give you a chart to determine how far to cut down your preload spacers. Well, It lowered my bike by quite a bit (I like it a lot) but I'm worried about how close the top of the outer tube is to the bottom fork clamp. Only 2 inches from the top of the dust cover. Do I need to swap out the spacers and make them longer? Or is this clearance alright? I barely have any dive, 'cause they are progressive springs, but I'm afraid of unforeseen potholes or obstacles and what not.

Ian,
If you are worried about what is right and wrong with your front shocks take a look at:-

Http://www.saltmine.org.uk/kgb/faqindx.html

About half way down is a front forks how to by Jim Stewart Nerd explains how to set up the front end properly and has a jargon buster included.
HTH

[megaloxana]

hey ian, what size spacers did u go with?

[ian]

I went with 3.75"