Fork Spring Advice Requested

[Mike Millsap]

My front forks are very harsh and hard if I encounter any rough surface, so harsh that I am concerned about vibration damage to my Bird.

I ran "fork springs" in the forum search and it yeilded seven pages of very conflicting information. Try "Hyperpro Springs" for example. Hopefully, a consensus has developed that might address this inquiry.

I need some expert advice from a knowledgeable source about fork spring replacement.

Here are factors that might be considered:

1. I am 6'1" and 230 lbs. I have no trouble reaching the ground and I do compress my suspension.

2. I am interested in a comfortable ride much more than race track performance, but do not want to negatively affect my present handling.

3. If appropriate, I could also change out the rear suspension at the same time.

Considering these criteria, I would very much appreciate some informed advice on:

1. make and model of springs (or other required parts) to be used,

2. make and weight of oil to be used, and

3. any special directtions for replacing both.

I'm sure this has been covered before on this list, but damned if I can find it. So thanks for your patience and information.

[HERBXX]

I weight more then you and have racetech springs 1.0 and goldvalves. The gold valves have a lot less compression damping and that removes the harshness. The front end has too soft of springs and too much compression damping. I beleive the damping is what gives the harh feel not the springs. You could try stiffer springs and lighter oil .

Herb

Ps if you search for posts by me , you will find my notes about forks and suspension ... most then are either about suspension stuff or HID

[2equis]

Hey man your timing stinks!!! :roll:

http://www.superblackbird.com/Wilbers/

[Mike Millsap]

Yeah, it looks like the deal that Dale Wilson put together would have been perfect for upgrading my whole suspension system. I suppose I can always pay full retail like I usually do on aftermarket expensive mods. This or a Race Tech kit seems to be the solution. I'm still researching, and informed advice is still appreciated.

[X1rider]

I went with Race Tech straight weight springs they recommended using the chart on the Race Tech site. I am 6'3' 235 lbs., ride aggressively and I basically wanted the same type of ride/handling that a BMW E36 M3 gives for cars.

After experimenting with oil weights, I settled on Honda 5 weight oil and shortened the preload spacers about 1/8'' from the stock length overall. The Race Tech springs are WAY longer than the stock springs; I just started out with the overall spring/spacer combo the same as the factory length and monkeyed around with it till it was right for me.

I also did the CBR900RR shock mod recommended on Carlos' old web page and that also worked for me. I understand that Race Tech no longer offers the super heavy duty (1.6kg) spring for the stock 900RR shock anymore, so I would suggest a Works Performance steel shock with adjustable compression and rebound damping features. They will custom build it for you.

You won't believe how much quicker the bike steers and how much more compliant the ride is for sport touring when you do these mods.

I also had the forks revalved when they were apart the first time. This was done by adding a few more shims to the stack to increase oil flow. Couldn't tell you how many though, as I wasn't at the shop when it was done.

[bartonmd]

I too was experiencing what you are talking about... 1.0 Racetech springs and 5W oil... done.

Mike