soft front forks

[nissanman]

hey guys im relativly new to these bikes ive got a problem with my front forks being a bit too soft there usd but not adjustable as far as i can see ive been told u can put different oil in them to stiffen them up if so can i do this at home and what are the materials needed ive also been told u can get inserts put in them or something like that

if any one can help me out that would be great cheers

 

[Le|Garage]

Hey yeah, if you open the forks up, i think 20c coins fit in, if they do, just put 2-3 in on each side and it should be sweet.

 

[grant878]

how much oil should you put in?

 

[geezus18]

when you empty the old oil out, empty it into a measuring jug and then put what ever the measurment was back in!!!

 

[nissanman]

ok thanks guys ive got 2 more questions what type of oil should i put in??? and about the 20cent coin thing is that a serious way of doin it haha sounds a bit dodge but ill giv it a go i guess do you need to drop the oil put in the coins then fill it bak up or wat ?? cheers

 

[Le|Garage]

haha, i use 10W oil in mine.. I use motul 10W fork oil (don't just put motor oil in) The bottle looks like the one below

about the 20c thing, it does sound dodgy. But believe me, it works..I've done it, you just put them in under the screw on cap ontop of the springs..and it will compress them abit, hense stiffer forks =]

 

[nissanman]

ok thanks alot with that oil im not the lightest guy around 95 kg will this be good enuff to hold me do you think i ride my bike pretty hard cheers for all the info though

 

[brad_d]

mmm interesting i was having the same problems. would that work for USD forks. i tried taking off the cap on top but was super hard so i didnt force it.

 

[Sidney]

Do you hold onto the knob ontop of usd forks so it doesnt move and then turn the screws out?

 

[brad_d]

wat do you meen sidney.

 

[tubes380]

get a big shifter and loosen the top nut whilst the fork is still tight in the triple clamp, otherwise you can use some rags and a vice to hold the fork. it should come eventually, sometimes the chinese hacks put loctite in the thread and since the forks is alloy it has bad effects, make sure not to strip the head as you will have a very hard time trying to do anything once the heads gone
good luck

 

[Maylands Performance]

Be sure to loosen the Top triple clamp bolts first tho as they will pinch the fork tubes in tightly making the fork cap very difficult to unscrew.I usually spray some lube down into the threads as soon as the cap is cracked loose.This lubes up the O-ring allowing up to slide up with the cap rather than just rolling up and twisting making things even more difficult to unscrew..

Cheers Brian

 

[brad_d]

ok cool. ive been told not to use a shifter but a ring spanner or a big socket. ill have a go tomorrow.

 

[tubes380]

yes use a big ring spanner or socket but usually people dont have access to these so a shifter is the next best thing

 

[DanGZ]

Just put more oil in it and that will stiffen it up. Prob worth changing the oil out for new stuff at the same time. I did mine this way and it stiffened them right up, if it's too stiff though just drop a little out each fork until you get what you're after.

 

[Sidney]

On mine it has the knobs that you turn with your hand not the bid nuts.

How do I get the knobs off?

 

[brad_d]

okay i had ago this arvo. cracked the cap and unwound the cap but when it got to the top instaed of coming out it just clicked after every revolution is something i must do.

 

[brad_d]

is there something i should do sorry.

 

[brad_d]

well ive just figured out how to get the cap off. what i did wash push the wheel up and unscrewed. when i got them out i realised that the cap is connected to a shaft that runs the whole way down to the bottom. so i cant imagine that i can put a few 20cent peices or washers in.

 

[skintag9]

I dont see how putting coins in the tube would make the spring stiffer. It would just pre-compress it, giving you less travel? Stiffness of the spring is a constant from my engineering days.
Let me know how you go because my forks are wayyy to soft too.