fork spring questions

[Deleted]

gday again,i have some questions relating to my fork springs,according to the haynes manuel the free length should be no shorter than 497.8mm, mine are 5mm shorter than this, so i know i need new ones, the ones that were in it when i got it are progressive springs so is the free length the same (497.8mm) or did they originally come out with progressive springs?im fairly heavy at around 125kg so apart from getting heavier springs like hagon etc ,and putting in some heavier oil is there anything else i can do apart from loosing weight to make the suspension ok , thanks in advance, regards ken

[Deleted]

thanks ravedaddy, but my main problem is that all of this is new to me , so if you can could you tell me were the spacers have to go? and one more thing ,what were the origanal springs for these machines, were they progressive? why would the manuel say that once over a period of time that the springs will shorten and need replacing? lets face it , the springs work pretty hard and at the moment these ones are 30 years old so , any help appreciated, thanks.

[billy]

Spacers should be placed on top of the springs, then you put the end plug over the spacers.

I don't know if the original springs were progressive, but I think it's very likely. Mine were progressive and I doubt any previous owner ever replaced them.

[Norbo]

Like rave says spacers often help on the top of the springs . people put coins on untill they get it how they like . Its worth a try and costs you allmost nothing .

[Deleted]

ok, thanks everybody, i will give the coins ago to make up the slack, as a hobbyist coin buyer and seller i should find ones that are a good fit, i have to be honest though and ask this,is it a cheap temperery fix or would it be a permanent fix? most things mechanical have a service life and then need to be replaced. am i only buying some extra riding time and will have to replace them anyway, thanks again to all who have replied, ken

[Deleted]

thanks ravedaddy, i think i will look into renewing the inside workings of these forks,unless somebody can convince me otherwise. ps you are right about the coins,most of them are worthless, a friend of mine has purchased over 2 ton of pennies/half pennies over here in the last 2 years and its rare to find anything of value. ive looked at both sides of every coin.

[rdorvfr]

Hi Ken007,
How did you go with the front springs?
Did you add some coins to increase the pre-load? Just askin...

[Deleted]

gday mate,ended up getting some new progressive springs,because im 130kg the local expert recommended a 15mm spacer and 15 w fork oil, springs havent turned up yet so am still waiting,i get the feeling that it will be awhile before i can test them out,lol

[rdorvfr]

Im just about to do the same.