Help me on my CRF250..

[Slow TT]

Ok guys I just bought a 2004 CRF250R. I should have done the smart thing and researched first about some stuff on it before I bought it. I also should have checked it out more but since he lived in a decent neighbor hood I didn't want to tear the streets up and beat on it real hard. Anyways here's my problems/ questions about the bike, any advice on what to do, what parts to use and etc will be greatly appreciated.

Problem #1: Front forks are extremely hard to compress. When riding I got lock up the front brake and lean foward and they won't compress. When at a stop I can hold the front brake and shove the bars foward and they will compress but rebound very slowly. do you think they just need rebuilt or are they bent of somesort? I seen online about realigning the front wheel but it appears to be perfect.

I will list other problems or questions later. Thanks guys. and take it easy on me lol.

 

[Slow TT]

opps. can a mod move this to the suspension section, or is it fine here?

 

[2strokesrock]

I'm not a moderator but... i think its fine where its at.
unfortunetly I can't help you with your problem though..sorry

 

[deanR]

do you have a manual? if you dont, get one. they are very handy, and the one for that bike is very thorough. There are compression and rebound screws on the top and bottom of the forks, you can try maybe changing them a little to see if it helps. If not you can have them rebuilt with lighter fluid and/or different springs for your weight.

 

[Rich Rohrich]

Problem #1: Front forks are extremely hard to compress. When riding I got lock up the front brake and lean foward and they won't compress. When at a stop I can hold the front brake and shove the bars foward and they will compress but rebound very slowly. do you think they just need rebuilt or are they bent of somesort? I seen online about realigning the front wheel but it appears to be perfect.

It sounds like the fork tubes aren't parallel. It happens all the time when people pull the front wheel.

With both wheels on the ground loosen the front axle nut a bit, loosen the front axle pinch bolts roll the bike forward a bit, lock the front brake and push the front end down a couple of times.

Now tighten just the axle nut to spec, and do the same thing with the suspension and the brakes on. Now tighten the front axle pinch bolts to spec. This should get the fork tubes parallel and keep the suspension from binding up.

Once you are sure the tubes are parallel take it for a ride and see if it feels different, then you can start playing with clickers. Starting with the factory defaults (or the middle position) on the clickers is usually a decent jumping off point.

 

[Slow TT]

thanks guys.. The forks need rebuilt for sure because they are leaking. So I took them off the other night and once I had the off I pressed down on them against the ground and they compressed easy. So i searched around and seen where some people had problems with their triple clamps being bent. Luckily a friend had his stock one he removed from his bike when he first bought it. i switched it out and did a different method when aligning the front wheel. Now it feels way better but is still a little stiff. I have yet to ride it though since swithcing clamps. My friends method when aligning the wheel was install the front axle, tighten the axle nut while the pincher bolts are lose, tighten the pincher bolts then check the axle nut again.. I will try your method though Rich.. thanks again guys