Decided to rebuild my forks.

[Kmartcivic]

No biggie, Already had all the oem parts needed for the rebuild sitting around and the left fork was leaking pretty bad. I dont believe these forks have ever been apart since it was build in 2000.

That sure was some dark fork oil! Also the sliders were worn pretty damn bad.


So, I decided "hey let me check out these steering bearing" . They did have forward and back play and definately failed the flop test. But I never had any wobble whatsoever cruising down the road with or without a windshield. Wonder if it makes a difference have the 21 wheel tire setup vs the 16 fat front tire. Either way the upper bearing looked good. Now the lower though, I couldn't even spin it. This is what it looked like when I get it off.



So, I have new ones coming in tomorrow. I must say getting those races out of the frame was one big pain in the ass! I ended up using a 1/4" socket on a long extension. The 1/4" socket worked well in those little grooves to knock the outer race out.

[Father Pobasturd]

OOOH thats ugly! How many miles on your bike. I have almost 60K and I'm reasonably sure none of this has ever been addressed on my bike. But, I don't feel any slop in the neck. The forks are mushy, but they match the rear shock.

[Kmartcivic]

Twenty something thousand. I forget. Fluid definately looked nasty but the insides once drained looked fantastic. As far as the neck bearings, this bike did sit outside for a few years after the PO fell ill with stage 4 lung cancer.

[Engineman]

I did mine at around 40 thousands miles. Complete overhaul with race tech springs and gold emulators.

[Kmartcivic]

Very nice. I was thinking of new springs, but I just never went with them. Ill see how she is after the rebuild and decide. I already have the Roadwing with the pump and two buttons on the bars so I can adjust it on the fly! I like the setup. I do have another shock with the RAP but not sure if I want the RAP or keep my current setup.

[brianmac]

kmart, are u gonna do mine for me next? just kidding man. hey when are u gonna drive across bridge to merritt island???

[Kmartcivic]

They aren't bad to do. I'll replace them. I don't charge much. I go over that way time to time when the wife and I get the roomate to watch the kids so we can take a cruise.

[Chromepony]

That job is a major pain in the shorts, but it's time well spent.
Let us know how it drives when you're done.

[Kmartcivic]

I found it to not be all that bad to be honest. I am starting to not like repairing things more and more. I'm 40 now. Im starting to realize im not 25 anymore. Things are starting to hurt. haha!! Installed the outer races in the frame this morning before work. Will get her all buttoned up this weekend and provide an update.

[Lifeguard]

Dude, you're only 40. I'm 60 and I just did both forks on 2 bikes. Mind over matter. But honestly with the first set it was a choir as I wasn't sure what I was doing (done other forks not R*s). Took a couple of hours. The second bike took half the time and was easy. When I do it again sure it will be easier still. Experience is the greatest teacher. Good job taking all that on. That's what this site is all about, getting the needed info for getting the job done and getting it right. We'll done old man.

[Kmartcivic]

Thanks haha. I'm just saying I feel pains more then I used to. And Im not as excited to fix things as much as I used to be. But I did just finish putting new Syncros in the transmission and installed that in my Integra. Plus all these house renovations. Im whooped. Haha.

[brianmac]

kmart dont u work at a bike shop?

[Kmartcivic]

Yes I do. Route 1 Motorsports in Malabar

[dna9656]

Forks aren't that bad to work on; I rebuild the forks on a 86 Venture Royal, the dark oil comes from the wear material on the sliders and aging of the oil. The spooky part for me was getting the oil level EXACTLY the same on both sides. I bought progressive springs.

[Kmartcivic]

They weren't bad to do. I ended up using the slide part that comes out the back of a pair of calipers to get them filled evenly.

[Kmartcivic]

Didn't have a spanner to mount to the torque wrench to properly torque the neck bearings. I tightened them up pretty good and moved the tree left to right a few times. Loosened it up and kept slowly tightening it till if felt good to me. Put her all back together and rode her around yesterday. Rides straight and smooth. Talk about a night and day difference after the rebuild!

[D-Fresh]

Mines got about 30k miles on it and all stock near as i can tell. I compare the ride of it to a '70s Cadillac... I'm almost 60 yo, everything hurts and i hate working on stuff anymore. I used to love tinkering but just do what is absolutely needed currently.