Suspension/valve question/ installation question

[KDXFreestyle]

I am about to buy the FRP fork springs and rear race tech shock spring. do I need to get my suspension re valved, or my rear shock recharged with gas? do I need any special tools to do the front or rear shocks? (put the new springs in) Will i need to do anything with the fork oil? How does this get changed? also, where is FRPoffroad from, like which state? is there anything else I need ot know,l or any other tips I should know about? thanks for your help!

 

[KDXFreestyle]

do you need more info? please let me know if it is needed.

 

[JasonWho]

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[KDXFreestyle]

I believe it is on 11-6, by the way, my bik eis an 03.

 

[wibby]

So you know what page to look... that's a good start, maybe it's time to read it????;)

Most of the info you seek is in the manual...

Or here, you might wanna do a search????

And FRP's address is on his website...

 

[KDXFreestyle]

ok... I have read it, and I guess I am kind of saying that, is there a way to egt around dis assembling the forks to change the springs, wiht the needed tools? Where can I get my rear shock recharged with nitro(gen) gas? and also, do i have to have new valves? thanks

 

[JasonWho]

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[KDXFreestyle]

ok, thanks for the help!

 

[beefking]

Depending on what kind of riding you do/how much you weigh it might be a good idea to install gold valves/emulators. If you do a lot of jumping the bike would react tons better to big hits with some gold valves. They really aren't that hard to install either, as they come with pretty detailed instructions on how to install them. Switching to heavier wt oil in the forks and shock will slow down the travel through the entire stroke as well, and raising the oil level a bit (10-20mm) in the forks can help with bottoming.

You could just try installing the springs first and see how it feels. TO change the rear spring you don't have to dissassemble anything with the shock....don't see why you'd have to get the shock recharged. If you take all the preload off the spring the bottom clip is able to slip up and out of the shock, then the spring drops down. Easy.

 

[JasonWho]

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[KDXFreestyle]

ok. thankx people. I just have a couple of problems now. The front end. How can I do it? I dont have the fork oil measurer thing, OR the fork holder. is there any way I can do this myself? I dont want to spend 20$ per fork to get them changed. and advice? thanks again!

 

[JasonWho]

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[KDXFreestyle]

lol... ok. is 20$ per fork cheap?

 

[KDXFreestyle]

Stock Suspension rates

What are the stock suspension rates for a 2003 KDX200? (front and rear) I am about to buy the heaviest ones I can find, as I will be doing some jumping, and racing. The manual i have, (kawasaki) doesnt say the stock spring rate in there. thanks in advance.

 

[beefking]

You can measure fork oil height with just a ruler, although its not the easiest way to do it because you have to keep checking as you add oil. Just remember to check it with the spring out and forks compressed to the stops.

You don't really need any special tools to get the front springs out, basically it slides in and out. I think with your type of forks, (not sure though?) the cap unscrews from a rod that runs down the middle of the spring. So you have to first unscrew the cap from the fork, then slide the spring down, then hold the rod with a wrench (12mm?) and unscrew the cap from the rod. Even easier if it has damping rod style forks...then the cap just unscrews and the spring slides out. Easy-squeezy, don't waste $40! ;)

 

[KDXFreestyle]

wow... thats man! no special tools needed! ROCK ON! thankxs.. now no waste of money. but... the springs arent going to shoot like 50 feet on me when i take off the bolkt or w/e that holds them on, right? I dont wanna die this young! I GOT ME A WHOLE LIFE OF RIDING TO LIVE! ;-)

 

[KDXFreestyle]

oh, I forgot... do i need to replace any seals or anyhting like that when i change the springs?

 

[skipro3]

At $20 per fork leg, and if you just have to drop off the bike and not remove the forks, that is cheap. Especially if it includes changing to new valves too. Most shops get at least $70 per hour with a one hour minimum.
In my case, I know how to do this, but I'm too lazy to take the time to do the labor if someone else will do it for $40.
If I were new to motorcycle maintenace, I would attempt it myself and learn how things work. Even if I had to take it in to a shop to finish the job, I would want to know how it works in case of a failure out on the trails.
As far as oil level goes, If you completely disassemble and clean everything, add the volume of oil the manual calls for. If you just drain and refill, (do they still have the drain screw on the bottom of the forks?) Measure what you take out and put the same volume back in. Then when you measure, it should be within 1/2 oz. or so.
As far as changeing the seals goes, if they are leaking, then yes. If you disassemble the forks far enough to have to remove the seals, then yes. If you are just dumping out the old oil, puting in new springs, and topping off with fresh oil, then no. Aftermarket seals are about $15 with shipping so it isn't a big expense but if you don't have the tools or are not imagineitive enough to improvize or fabricate your own tools, it can get pricey. Good luck and have fun learning about your bike as you wrench on it. If you get stuck, write back. The guys here will walk you through it if you are brave enough to try learning a new skill like fork mainenance.

P.S. Support the bike with a stand to keep the front end off the ground. When you pull the fork cap off, there will be a slight preload but it isn't enough to take your head off. basicly, the spring with the preload spacer will be a few inchs longer than the top of the fork leg when you have the cap off. You can easily control this minor amount of spring tension with your hands. But if you take the caps off without supporting the bike on a stand, the front end will come down quickly as if you have bottomed your suspension. The springs will come fully out of the tops of the forks and this could hurt you, either with the fork springs rising out of the forks or as the bike trys a new wrestleing hold on you and attempts to pin you to the garage floor.

 

[KDXFreestyle]

ok thanks for that reply, it helps. I have a manual, and i do my own maintence, as much as possible because I like to work on things like bikes. I think I want to open my own repair shop when I get older. I can do everything up to where you take the spring out. Im not sure, becaus ei have never done it before, but if you dont have the holder, I assume the spring will shoot off the rod. so, my guess is that there is something that is usable which is not the exact "fork spring holder". tafter this question. I can be on my way and getting ready to order my springs. any ideas?

 

[skipro3]

One more thing, don't try and remove the fork cap without first loosening the pinch bolts on the top tripleclamp. I say try because the tension of the pinch bolts will hold the cap on tight enough that you will damage the cap attempting to loosen it. If you are taking the forks completely off the bike, then of course, you have already loosened the pinch bolts.

 

[KDXFreestyle]

ok so... will I need something to hole the spring? liekl is there a substitute for a "fork spring holder" I assume when I take off that nut or w/e holds the spring on, it will shoot off.

 

[skipro3]

As long as the bike is supported so it won't collapse when both caps are off, you won't have enough spring preload to worry about using anything other than your hands to keep things from flying apart as you disassemble the forks.
Think about it: If you had one of the forks off and held it in one hand resting with it's bottom on the garage floor and pressed down on the top of the fork with just enough pressure to cause the fork to compress slightly, you would be exerting about maybe 15 pounds or so. That means that you are overcomming the force of the spring preload and that the preload is about 15 pounds. Now if you removed the cap on top of the fork, you would need to exert about 15 pounds to neutralize this preload as you unscrew the cap. Keeping this pressure on the cap when the threads are finally unscrewed and slowly releaseing your pressure bearing down, the cap will come off the fork tube and the sping behind it will relax it's tension. That's it, as someone else here likes to say: easy peasy.
When you go to put the cap back on, the spring or it's preload spacer will be sticking out of the top of the fork tube and you will need to place the cap on top of this and press down until the cap reaches the threads, then start threading the cap back on. Be careful here, because of the tension, it is sometimes difficult to feel the threads lining up correctly and you could cross thread. Just be aware of how it feels as you thread it on, it should feel smooth.
Good luck and have fun!

 

[KDXFreestyle]

thanx a bunch! that is the info I am looking for! WE HAVE A WINNER! I guess I am done wiht my questions in this thread! thanks everyone!