Losing power after fork oil????

Darkstang65 · November 4th, 2016, 01:01 AM

Ok maybe it's just me but I just did the oil change on my forks and it feels amazing handling wise but i feel like I have lost torque!!! My rear shock is still the crappy stock one and maybe it isn't balanced??? Am I going crazy?? Maybe since my forks are stiffer the front doesn't come up when I accelerate??

Lazarus · November 4th, 2016, 03:57 AM

No expert on fork oil but I wouldn't thing changing lt would affect the torque and I don't believe the rear shock needs to be balanced? Did you move/remove anything from the engine while doing the fork oil? Maybe a vacuum line or something? Someone with more concrete knowledge of the ninja jump in. Check the rear shock and see if it needs to be adjusted up or down in terms of preload?

cbreater · November 4th, 2016, 05:23 AM

If you did a straight fork oil swap, as in drained the oil from the bottom of the forks and replenished from the top, you wouldn't need to remove anything but the handle bars. I would guess if that's all you did, it's a product of the front end possibly not responding in the way you remember giving the impression it's lost power or the throttle perhaps is amuck from reinstalling it on the fork caps? I migh check the throttle is opening all the way etc. If you did remove the tank or anything I would agree to check vacuum hoses etc. perhaps a colic was bumped creating a loose connection if you took that much bike apart.

Motofool · November 4th, 2016, 07:41 AM

Check that the front brake is not dragging.
If it does, the disc will feel very hot after some miles of using rear brake only.

Darkstang65 · November 4th, 2016, 08:28 AM

I'll check the brakes to make sure they aren't dragging. I didn't remove anything but the forks and used 15wt at 150mm level. my weight is 145lbs with gear haha. skinny dude. Throttle is fine and revs great but it just feels like it's not transferring the power to the ground now. Will update later on today. Thanks really appreciate you pointing me in the right direction

jkv45 · November 4th, 2016, 12:38 PM

I would get the front wheel up in the air and spin it, looking for excessive drag. A dragging brake (as noted) would be one possibility, but also a bearing issue or problem with the speedo drive. A disc brake will drag enough to make a scuffing sound, but the wheel should still spin without stopping for a while.

If it spins freely, I don't see any other factors involving the forks that could give you a feeling of loss of power as long as the engine is running properly.

Darkstang65 · November 5th, 2016, 12:23 PM

Ok checked the front disc for drag. I rode 10 miles and I could easily touch it and keep my hand on it, so it's not dragging right? I thought I was going crazy but I know for sure that it is revving and it is not pulling the way it's suppose to. I idle the bike and removed one of the connections for the coil and the bike dies so I thought it was running on one cylinder but just to be sure I plugged it back it and I did the same to the opposite side and the same thing happened, the bike dies. I remember I did this test before and the bike was still run.

So basically the engine spins and the bike slowly gets up to speed. I notice that when I am in fourth gear or higher and I slowly turn the throttle then it will pull normal. 1st through 3rd gear the bike somewhat pulls but once I get to mid rpm then it just revs and no pull until I shift. And again the bike right perfect until I swapped the fork oil. Pretty sure it irrelevant and just a coincidence but who knows??

94 ninja 250 naked
Air pod filter
Yosh 2:1 full exhaust (yes the rare one)
Just did oil change
Valve adjustment to the loose setting

Dave Wolfe · November 5th, 2016, 12:55 PM

Clutch could be slipping. Does clutch lever have a little play in it? Sorry for pointing out obvious stuff but I cant tell if you are a master mechanic or newbie.

Darkstang65 · November 5th, 2016, 01:57 PM

Well the carb was not tuned properly!!!!! It was turned 6 out so I backed it up three and boom!!! Power regained. I have no idea how the hell it was running perfect before??? But yes Im a newb but very handy. I did the valve clearance myself and fork oil change but there is some small obvious stuff that I will miss. For instance my brake light wasnt working and it took me an hour to realize it was screwed on wrong by the previous owner haha..

Thank you so much guys!!!

Motofool · November 5th, 2016, 03:54 PM

Darkstang65 · November 5th, 2016, 09:28 PM

Scratch that!!! I am on the bike running well for most of the day. pulls clean throughout the entire rpm range and now again it starts to grab first then around mid rpm and up it just revs with slow pull. Carb problem? Or maybe just try new spark plugs? Maybe this should have a new title

Motofool · November 6th, 2016, 10:03 AM

If one cylinder/exhaust gas is noticeably cooler than the other, you may have one cylinder that is not firing up intermittently (it may be related to high vibration/rpm).

Check the 12 v connectors to both ignition coils, just in case they have been disturbed during the oil change process.

Petrolh34d · November 20th, 2016, 08:53 PM

I was gonna say it could be that your accelerator cable is out of sync, but you've found the issue :thumbup

November 4th, 2016, 01:01 AM	#1
Darkstang65 ninjette.org member Name: Bruce Location: los angeles Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 94 ninja 250 Posts: 11	Losing power after fork oil???? Ok maybe it's just me but I just did the oil change on my forks and it feels amazing handling wise but i feel like I have lost torque!!! My rear shock is still the crappy stock one and maybe it isn't balanced??? Am I going crazy?? Maybe since my forks are stiffer the front doesn't come up when I accelerate??

November 4th, 2016, 07:41 AM	#4
Motofool Daily Ninjette rider Name: Hernan Location: Florida Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot. MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16	Check that the front brake is not dragging. If it does, the disc will feel very hot after some miles of using rear brake only. __________________________________________________ *Motofool* *.................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly* "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí
	1 out of 1 members found this post helpful.

November 5th, 2016, 03:54 PM	#10
Motofool Daily Ninjette rider Name: Hernan Location: Florida Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot. MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16	__________________________________________________ *Motofool* *.................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly* "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí

November 6th, 2016, 10:03 AM	#12
Motofool Daily Ninjette rider Name: Hernan Location: Florida Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot. MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16	If one cylinder/exhaust gas is noticeably cooler than the other, you may have one cylinder that is not firing up intermittently (it may be related to high vibration/rpm). Check the 12 v connectors to both ignition coils, just in case they have been disturbed during the oil change process. __________________________________________________ *Motofool* *.................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly* "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí

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November 4th, 2016, 03:57 AM	#2
Lazarus ninjette.org member Name: RJ Location: PA Join Date: Dec 2015 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250 Posts: 210	No expert on fork oil but I wouldn't thing changing lt would affect the torque and I don't believe the rear shock needs to be balanced? Did you move/remove anything from the engine while doing the fork oil? Maybe a vacuum line or something? Someone with more concrete knowledge of the ninja jump in. Check the rear shock and see if it needs to be adjusted up or down in terms of preload?

November 4th, 2016, 05:23 AM	#3
cbreater ninjette.org member Name: Corey Location: Minneapolis Join Date: Oct 2015 Motorcycle(s): 16' S1000RR, 04' CB919, CRF150/230, 07' 250R Posts: 41	If you did a straight fork oil swap, as in drained the oil from the bottom of the forks and replenished from the top, you wouldn't need to remove anything but the handle bars. I would guess if that's all you did, it's a product of the front end possibly not responding in the way you remember giving the impression it's lost power or the throttle perhaps is amuck from reinstalling it on the fork caps? I migh check the throttle is opening all the way etc. If you did remove the tank or anything I would agree to check vacuum hoses etc. perhaps a colic was bumped creating a loose connection if you took that much bike apart.

November 4th, 2016, 08:28 AM	#5
Darkstang65 ninjette.org member Name: Bruce Location: los angeles Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 94 ninja 250 Posts: 11	I'll check the brakes to make sure they aren't dragging. I didn't remove anything but the forks and used 15wt at 150mm level. my weight is 145lbs with gear haha. skinny dude. Throttle is fine and revs great but it just feels like it's not transferring the power to the ground now. Will update later on today. Thanks really appreciate you pointing me in the right direction

November 4th, 2016, 12:38 PM	#6
jkv45 Rev Limiter Name: Jay Location: WI Join Date: Jul 2013 Motorcycle(s): '06 SV650n, '00 Derbi GPR, '64 CA77 Dream 305, '70 CL450 Scrambler, numerous dirt bikes Posts: A lot. MOTM - Jun '18, Oct '16	I would get the front wheel up in the air and spin it, looking for excessive drag. A dragging brake (as noted) would be one possibility, but also a bearing issue or problem with the speedo drive. A disc brake will drag enough to make a scuffing sound, but the wheel should still spin without stopping for a while. If it spins freely, I don't see any other factors involving the forks that could give you a feeling of loss of power as long as the engine is running properly.

November 5th, 2016, 12:23 PM	#7
Darkstang65 ninjette.org member Name: Bruce Location: los angeles Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 94 ninja 250 Posts: 11	Ok checked the front disc for drag. I rode 10 miles and I could easily touch it and keep my hand on it, so it's not dragging right? I thought I was going crazy but I know for sure that it is revving and it is not pulling the way it's suppose to. I idle the bike and removed one of the connections for the coil and the bike dies so I thought it was running on one cylinder but just to be sure I plugged it back it and I did the same to the opposite side and the same thing happened, the bike dies. I remember I did this test before and the bike was still run. So basically the engine spins and the bike slowly gets up to speed. I notice that when I am in fourth gear or higher and I slowly turn the throttle then it will pull normal. 1st through 3rd gear the bike somewhat pulls but once I get to mid rpm then it just revs and no pull until I shift. And again the bike right perfect until I swapped the fork oil. Pretty sure it irrelevant and just a coincidence but who knows?? 94 ninja 250 naked Air pod filter Yosh 2:1 full exhaust (yes the rare one) Just did oil change Valve adjustment to the loose setting

November 5th, 2016, 12:55 PM	#8
Dave Wolfe CCS Amateur #501 Name: Dave Location: Iowa Join Date: Jun 2015 Motorcycle(s): '09 250 SE 'Booger' Posts: 406	Clutch could be slipping. Does clutch lever have a little play in it? Sorry for pointing out obvious stuff but I cant tell if you are a master mechanic or newbie.

November 5th, 2016, 01:57 PM	#9
Darkstang65 ninjette.org member Name: Bruce Location: los angeles Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 94 ninja 250 Posts: 11	Well the carb was not tuned properly!!!!! It was turned 6 out so I backed it up three and boom!!! Power regained. I have no idea how the hell it was running perfect before??? But yes Im a newb but very handy. I did the valve clearance myself and fork oil change but there is some small obvious stuff that I will miss. For instance my brake light wasnt working and it took me an hour to realize it was screwed on wrong by the previous owner haha.. Thank you so much guys!!!

November 5th, 2016, 09:28 PM	#11
Darkstang65 ninjette.org member Name: Bruce Location: los angeles Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 94 ninja 250 Posts: 11	Scratch that!!! I am on the bike running well for most of the day. pulls clean throughout the entire rpm range and now again it starts to grab first then around mid rpm and up it just revs with slow pull. Carb problem? Or maybe just try new spark plugs? Maybe this should have a new title

November 20th, 2016, 08:53 PM	#13
Petrolh34d ninjette.org member Name: Kamil Location: Staten Island, NY Join Date: Aug 2016 Motorcycle(s): 2004 ninja ex250, 1996 Honda cbr900rr Posts: 31	I was gonna say it could be that your accelerator cable is out of sync, but you've found the issue :thumbup