Progressive Springs installed / Forks Rebuilt

[Lotsokids]

I had a Hungarian mechanic rebuild my forks. I gave him Progressive springs and new OEM seals to install. He did all the work for the equivalent of $35. I had to argue with him to take that since he actually asked for less.

I just got the forks installed back into the bike, and WOW they are stiff. The weather is not good, so I haven't taken it for a ride yet. The forks seem to operate right (compression & rebound), but maybe 1 or 1.5 inches of travel is all I could get with just holding the front brakes and compressing it while sitting on it. This might not be a bad thing.

I've had the feared high-speed wobble, and maybe this is the fix. The roads here in Hungary are very rough, but we'll see how it rides another day. I've heard nothing but positive outcomes from the Progressive install.

 

[eggohead]

I wonder what air pressure is in the forks? Maybe they put something back in wrong. I did both sets of my forks last year due to them leaking. I have a 90 with race tech springs and gold emulators and a 95 with stock OEM stuff. My 90 rides twice a nice as the OEM. Neither was hard to do, I like the newer forks a little more for working on due to not having the line connecting them ( I do not want to modify either) for working purposes only. Rebuilding or replacing the seals took me longer to clean up the rust (from the Clips) than to do the work... Watch Seans Videos and maybe double check the work the guy did if he added to much air or used the wrong weight of oil. I used Yamaha lube 15w for forks. The manual says 10w fork oil... I think Sean uses syn ATF or power steering...

 

[dannymax]

They may soften up a bit with use, checking the air is a good idea, Progressive recommends no air pressure with their forks and lastly you can change to 10W fork oil. I don't know how Sean's ATF works as I never used any but that may be a good option also.

 

[Hellboy]

I Would check the air as well, it can be difficult to get it just right. And 1.5" while sitting on it sounds O.K. to me. If you could do it much more than that while sitting on it not moving then how much dive would you get under heavy braking, Yikes! I wouldn't worry about it at all until you ride it. It's all about how it handles and feels and not what it seems like it might be.

Matt

 

[Specs95t]

I replaced my springs earlier this summer. no air. Synthetic ATF per Sean.

Check and bleed out the air. I found that I had to do this 3-4 times to get it all out.


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[Lotsokids]

If you could do it much more than that while sitting on it not moving then how much dive would you get under heavy braking, Yikes!

Good point, and I thought of anti-dive properties also. My stock setup was pretty "loose" compared to now.

I haven't checked the air pressure yet, but I guess the consensus is that I bleed it out. I'll do that.

 

[Lotsokids]

RIDE REPORT

I relieved the air pressure from both forks (a little in the left, but none in the right :confused2: ) and just got back from about a 5-mile ride.

NO PROBLEM WITH THE STIFF FEEL. It rode tight and straight, but not too rigid on the bumps. It was fine, even on the bumpy Hungarian roads. I found a good (smooth) place on a main road and cranked it up hard to about 200 Km/H (almost 125 MPH) a few times.

Very slight wobble still exists on max acceleration over about 80 MPH, but it's not trying to kick me off like before.
I cranked on it about 3 times, and the wobble only appeared once.

It generally feels better. I'm glad I did it. :clapping:

 

[Specs95t]

Cool! Happy riding!


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[Fire-medic]

Why not try a bit of air pressure, and see how it feels? You might be surprised. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

 

[eggohead]

Happy its better for your riding.. or enjoyment now.. I will say I did notice a big difference on my 90 this summer when I replaced my seals and put 15 weight in, although no clue what prior owner had in them before. I am on the heavy side so I figured it would also give a little more resistance..

 

[Rollie]

If all is right with your forks , steering bearings , tires , rear shocks , swingarm bearings , you should have no wobble. Are you running a fork brace ?