April 23rd, 2012, 03:01 PM | #1 |
wat
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DIY preload adjuster
ill probably get flamed for being janky, but i wanted external preload adjustment on the 250 forks but didnt want to pay $100 for some bolts. so i turned some bolts from the hardware store on the lathe, then put a hole in the OEM fork caps, threaded them, greased the bits up and viola. preload adjuster.
heres an image of the first one before the bolt was trimmed and capped: the plan is to turn some new valves then put a hole through the center preload bolt and run an adjustment rod down to the valves to make a single damping adjustment for each fork (like the new cart kits for the 250, each fork will handle a single damping function: rebound or compression. we will see how long that takes me, since i kinda suck at turning.
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April 23rd, 2012, 04:29 PM | #3 |
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April 23rd, 2012, 04:30 PM | #4 |
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Yes! Thank you! Please keep us updated on the new mods.
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April 23rd, 2012, 07:12 PM | #5 |
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This makes more sense than what you were trying to tell me on fbook a week ago. Looks good alex!
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April 23rd, 2012, 09:11 PM | #6 |
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Cool of you to tackle the idea. Machining parts just looks so easy.
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April 24th, 2012, 10:04 AM | #7 |
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Needs a chrome spike on the end of that bolt...
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April 24th, 2012, 11:29 AM | #8 |
wat
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finished the second one last night. did some hard riding and holy crap braking is soooooo much better. pretty much eliminated the vague feeling on turn in under braking and no more chatter on super hard straight line braking!
you can see in this photo i accidentally dropped it into some machinery and scratched up the side... oops! lol. its just cosmetic. unfortunately this morning i blew my transmission so... huh
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April 24th, 2012, 11:52 AM | #9 |
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I want to pop my fork caps off and add a few 1mm thick washers now.
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April 24th, 2012, 11:56 AM | #10 |
wat
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the inside tube has a taper. you need i think 29 or 28mm washers. a lot of people use pvc pipe apparently
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April 24th, 2012, 12:01 PM | #11 |
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yeah that's what I've seen. I don't like that idea because I can't be sure they're the same, and I don't like the thought of leaving plastic shavings in my forks potentially.
Washers are exact, and I already have some that are 12mm ID 18mm OD and 1mm thick from my attempt at dogbones that I botched. I might test those out. |
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April 24th, 2012, 12:06 PM | #12 |
wat
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the holes in the damping rod are actually kinda big, i dont know if small bits of plastic would really do anything to the simple 250 forks.
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April 24th, 2012, 12:07 PM | #13 |
wat
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the tube thats already in there is i think exactly 27mm, and is paper thin. so you need something bigger than that or it wont do anything, will simply slip inside the spacer tube
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April 24th, 2012, 12:10 PM | #14 |
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never thought of that. I'll look for some 28mm or 29mm washers. I have some time. I can't even ride for another 3 weeks.
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April 24th, 2012, 12:12 PM | #15 |
wat
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you know if you are going to do that i would recommend just replacing that stupid spacer thats already in there with something thicker. that thing is retarded and a pain in the ass
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April 24th, 2012, 12:18 PM | #16 |
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haha maybe pvc is just the way to go. I never did that when I swapped to ex500 springs. The result is really soft over bumps, but more feeling than stock when I brake, which is fine by me. I just don't want so much dive.
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April 24th, 2012, 12:55 PM | #17 |
wat
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are you bottoming out your forks? put a ziptie on the stanchion and find out how much you are actually using. if you arent bottoming out your forks, you dont need to add preload.
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April 24th, 2012, 01:09 PM | #18 |
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nope not bottoming out. I don't ride that hard but I also never added any length to the spacer to compensate for the ex500 springs being shorter than the ex250 springs.
I'll do the ziptie test once I am back home and riding again to see how much I'm actually using. |
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April 30th, 2012, 04:48 PM | #20 |
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/linked from main DIY thread
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July 18th, 2012, 05:42 AM | #21 | |
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Quote:
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July 18th, 2012, 06:10 AM | #22 |
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Hans if you want to keep your price low you can do this mod: www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=29141
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July 18th, 2012, 07:26 AM | #23 | |
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Quote:
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July 18th, 2012, 08:57 AM | #25 |
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Lathe, shaping machine, milling centre... Got it all
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July 18th, 2012, 09:30 AM | #26 |
wat
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take the stock fork caps- they are aluminum. put a hole through the center, take an inner scrape (forget the real name) and make an indent inside about 3-4mm deep. this will hold an o-ring in place. thread the inner wall and put a bolt through it. when you get the bolt to the o-ring area, put the oring on. i coated the inner area of the bolt with gasket maker to make sure it didnt leak air. now you have a bolt through the fork caps- replace that crappy thin metal spacer in there with something thicker and put an end on the bolt that will push on your spacer and wont come off. make sure it wont come off. then just attach an adjuster and a lock bolt on top and put the fork cap back in
thinking about it, the inner oring probably isnt really doing much without a smooth surface on the bolt. you might want to take time to fix that if you know what i mean. the thread size at say 12mm, then bring the oring slide surface area at like 8mm with the oring slot extending out to 10mm. youll obviously need more lathe work on the bolt (at this point you will be better off making your own bolt instead of starting with one). or if you dgaf just drill the hole thread it and stick the bolt in... maybe it wont leak?
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July 18th, 2012, 08:09 PM | #27 |
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why don't you take the oem washer no. 92022 (orderno. 92022-1879) for the top of the collar?
this fits perfect, please take a look here: http://www.cheapcycleparts.com/model...740-front-fork |
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July 19th, 2012, 03:45 AM | #28 | |
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Quote:
Just ordered two of each, for my endeavor to make my own preload adjusters. If I'm successful, I might consider producing them. Thanks for the help alex. I'm sure I'll be hitting you up with more questions soon enough. Could you please post pics of both the adjusters you made? And how will each adjuster control rebound and compression respectively? Is there a specific way to make it so? Total cost till now : - 48$ Machining for me will be free, as I have my own tool shop. The only additional expenditure I see are the bolts. |
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July 19th, 2012, 10:48 AM | #29 |
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Wouldn't this also be a solution? I could try it out... Worst case scenerio I'll fab my own bolt with a smooth area for the O ring. I'll get my parts in 2 weeks, so I'll get on it then. I didn't want to use my existing fork caps, as I might mess them up... I'm sure I could even fab my own fork caps if I were fussed, but I want to avoid that right now...
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July 19th, 2012, 11:19 AM | #30 |
wat
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preload adjusters dont do anything to rebound or compression damping. they are for adding preload to the spring only.
mine dont leak air so it might work? you can test to see if its leaking air by spraying it with water and compressing the forks. if you see bubbles, its leaking air. also, if you have a machinist who knows how to use a lathe, he can turn a new cap in about 2 minutes. its a simple plug with a 1mm lip to hold the retaining clip, and a 5mm trench for the main exterior oring
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July 19th, 2012, 11:26 AM | #31 |
wat
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if you have access to a mill and lathe and a good machinist however, you can make some really fancy things like emulators or even fully adjustable valves with adjuster lines running to the fork caps.
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August 31st, 2012, 07:37 AM | #32 |
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Hey @alex.s, lookie what I got...
Now to get them anodized or plated... I might go in for black pacification for the fork cap and get the bolts chrome plated. Just got to wait for my clip ons to get them installed now... |
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August 31st, 2012, 09:38 AM | #33 |
wat
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i like that bolt. shape is perfect but it looks like it might be a few mm too big on the inside? just make sure it doesnt leak air. the top section of the forks is filled with air as another type of damping control... something about how much the gas compresses before it has to force the oil through the damping rod. anyway if it leaks air it wont work right and can leak fluid out too so just make sure to seal the bolt. edit: it looks like you may have already... hard to tell
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August 31st, 2012, 09:59 AM | #34 | |
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Quote:
P.s. the fork caps are definitely ms... Too dense to be aluminium, and I don't think aluminium threads would last too long... :P P.p.s. @alex.s and all along I was wishing I could be cool like you, don't forget, you were my inspiration :thumbup Last futzed with by psych0hans; August 31st, 2012 at 11:18 PM. |
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August 31st, 2012, 10:26 AM | #35 | |
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For the most part, the spring is linear. Lets say it take 10kg to compress your spring 1cm, then it would take 20kg for 2cm, 30kg for 3cm, etc. The air gap at top isn't linear, its progress. So lets say it takes 10kg to compress your air gap 1cm, then it would take 25kg to compress 2cm, 75kg for 3cm. etc A bigger the airgap makes the fork feel softer but more likely to bottom out. A smaller airgap makes less likely to bottom out but feel harder.
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August 31st, 2012, 11:06 AM | #36 |
wat
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very interesting stuff. definitely an important thing to consider. i kept the stock oil height but now i think im going to try raising it and see how it works out
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August 31st, 2012, 11:21 AM | #37 |
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About a year ago, my fork seals were leaking and I had Sean at Trackoholics fix them for me. I went to 20wt fork oil and I asked Sean what oil height did he use. I forgot what he said but he didn't use stock. I wish I could remember which way and how much but those forks worked well for me. Its only now I feel my skill has caught up with the mostly stock fork's limitation.
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August 31st, 2012, 11:01 PM | #38 |
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Wow Hans, great job they really look very good.
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September 1st, 2012, 01:42 AM | #39 |
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Thanks Roland. Honestly though, the real credit goes to Alex and the guy who works lathe in my shop. He really is fantastic at what he does, makes a lot of different parts for our machines and such. Here is a final picture after plating. Not chrome, but good enough.
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September 1st, 2012, 11:12 AM | #40 |
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Hahahaha thank you alex!!!
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