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Buell Forum » Knowledge Vault (tech, parts, apparel, & accessories topics) » Chassis » Suspension - Forks, Isolators, Shocks, and Swingarm » Archive through October 31, 2009 » Ok to cut down fork spring spacer for longer springs? (X1) « Previous Next »

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Lemonchili_x1
Posted on Wednesday, December 10, 2008 - 10:32 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I got some Racetech fork springs at the beginning of the year and have only just got around to installing them.

The springs I was sent are 270mm long, my stock springs are about 245mm long. While I have no issues with cutting the spacer down to get the right preload for the right sag, there is a plastic/nylon "bush" at the end of the spacer that looks like it would be completely inside the inner tube at the stock length, but I'm worried it won't be right inside the inner tube once I cut the spacer down, and could catch on the inner tube at full extension.

Anybody had experience with this before? Did you modify the plastic bush at all?

I did find this thread http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/406 2/130515.html so it's not uncommon.

I've emailed Al at AmericanSportBike who supplied the springs and he has seen this before and said Racetech now supply 250mm springs for the X1 and he is happy to exchange them for me. This would mean I'd have to send the springs back and wait for the new ones... but I'm impatient now that the bike is apart (despite the fact the springs have been sitting in a box for almost a year! Lol!), so I'm considering cutting down the spacers...

Is there an advantage to longer springs?
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Lemonchili_x1
Posted on Thursday, December 11, 2008 - 04:58 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I should have measured everything properly before I posted!

It should all be fine. The spacer and bush are 120mm long and there is 84-85mm between the top of the inner fork tube and the spring/spacer retainer with the damper rod at full extension, so I can take up to 25mm off the spacer and still have at least 10mm of the bush inside the inner fork tube.

I'm still wondering if there is an advantage to longer springs though...
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