| Author | Message | ||
     Beardo |
I am in the process of going through my newly acquired 96 S1. Took it for a ride on Sunday, and the right fork seal blew. Not a complete surprise as the bike has sat for years. I have a lot of experience rebuilding right side up damper rod forks, but never a set of these WPs. I have read through the service manual a few times, and it mentioned a few 'special' tools. My question for someone that's been in these forks, any real hurdles I should expect? | ||
| Arizona_buell |
You need a fork spring compressor and seal drivers. I paid a metric bike shop to do mine and the wheel bearings at the same time. Cost me just under $200.00 Well worth the money. | ||
| Jramsey |
Oldog's thread from many moons ago. Worth the read. http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/384 2/249047.html | ||
| Oldog |
Thanks James Check with Al at American Sport Bike for parts and tools it may not be on the web site but he may have it or can get it ... | ||
| Buellx1w |
Cost me $355 at the HD dealer..  | ||
| Pash |
Unlike the Showas, you can compress the springs in the WPs with your hands, then pull the two half moons out. To put it back together, you need someone to help you pull the damper rods up through the springs with a bit of string. If you haven't got any friends (much like myself) you can pull the string with your teeth as you compress the spring with one hand and push the half back in. A seal driver is needed, and here is the challenge cos they are 40mm diameter sliders. There is one guy on EBay that sells more common sizes (e.g. 41 and 43mm) that will make one to any size. | ||
| Loki |
The only thing I would add to Dogs' procedures is for the seals. A electric heat gun(aka THE shop hair dryer). Use this for warming up the upper tube. makes the seals go in easy with just a push | ||
| Bluzm2 |
What Loki said. Also, when you are removing the tupe from the slide, the seal will come out. Make sure to heat the seal area before you try to "hammer" the seal out. They stick and the heat helps free them up a bit. | ||
| Beardo |
Lots of great information. Much appreciated. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
I've got a set of the WPs from a 97 S on my 99 M2 & I blew the right fork seal yesterday too, oil all over the disc & pads too grrrr. I've already done an oilchange on the forks so there's no mystery about the spring compression for me, & yes it would be much easier to do with a friend/aquaintantance to help. Much swearing, mess & an alarming rise in blood pressure is a substitute though. I've been offered a set of Showa's off a 99 X1 as well, are they the same diam as the WPs? or would I need the yokes too? The seals for the WPs are hellishly expensive here & the only supplier I can find is Twin Motorcycles, nice people that they are. I can get a set of seals for the Showas for less than a quarter of the price of ONE seal for the WP, so the Showa conversion is looking more interesting. So if anybody knows if it's a straight swap pls let me know. | ||
| Pash |
Yes, direct swap. Only annoyance is the waisting between the yokes which makes positioning of headlight brackets a little more time consuming. You will see what I mean but don't be put off. X1 Showas are 41mm diameter and share the same seals as other bikes with 41mm Showas hence you are not limited to HD parts. Seals from a Honda RC30 are the same and in the UK are 40% of HD's price. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Ta for that, looks like the way to go. | ||
| Beardo |
I have a new set of S3 forks coming my way, so I can take my time to do my S1 forks right. My question is, do new forks from a box come shipped with fluid in them? | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Good question that, I just pulled the trigger on a set of new X1 Showas from St Paul HD, on ebay. So I called the guy to check & he says "yes they're oiled & sealed ready to fit on the bike". Smoking deal, $300 + $104 for shipping. Just seals & oil for the WPs would have been over $150 & I've no idea of the state of the bushes inside either. So it's a cheap upgrade. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Further question that I now need an answer to. Can somebody post up the owners manual fork settings & procedure for X1. I've got M2 & S1 but now this will be the bike's 3rd set of forks, lol. | ||
| Beardo |
That's who I'm getting the S3 forks from. I saw those X1 forks. Very easy seller to work with, for sure! | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Got a mail with tracking info this morning, est delivery is the week I'm away, d'oh. Never mind they'll be waiting when I get back. | ||
| Beardo |
LOL I'm in the same boat. In Florida right now and will have a bug stash of parts waiting for me when I get back. | ||
| Jolly |
I had a leaking set on my 98 s1w last summer and did the same thing, bought the x1 forks from the same seller, swapped them out and no issues! | ||
| Littlebuggles |
MY Y2K M2 owners manual has info on all three bikes, that'll give you kids somewhere to start. Full setting on both rebound and compression is turned in clockwise until the screw stops. Factory safety note: Always adjust both fork legs to the same settings. Uneven settings...blah, blah... may lead to... blah, blah, blah... death or serious injury... S3/T Rebound (top of slider) - Full damping minus .5 turns. S3/T Compression (bottom of fork leg) - Full compression minus 1.75 turns. X1 Rebound (location same as above) - Full damping minus .5 turns. X1 Compression (...see above...) - Full damping minus 1.25 turns. Difference in compression damping may be due to spring weight, or intended bike use. I don't have any info on that as there's nothing in the manual. I imagine there are minds here that contain that bit of knowledge. If I post wrong information they'll speak up for sure, but hopefully I've said enough and those that know more than me can jump in and fill in the blanks. MY manual also doesn't have the cool adjustment info posted in the XB manuals to help set up the suspension for your particular weight. It only provides some advisement on setting proper sag. -Mike (Message edited by littlebuggles on April 19, 2013) | ||
| Littlebuggles |
"LOL I'm in the same boat. In Florida right now and will have a bug stash of parts waiting for me when I get back." Sounds like you've been riding with your face shield up...  | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Ta for that, I downloaded the X1 workshop manual from carlsalter.com which is one of THE most useful resources you will ever find, I urge you to check it out & bookmark his site (if you haven't done so already). | ||
| Dutch_x1 |
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| Mr_grumpy |
New Showa fork legs arrived in the post this morning. All mounted, brakes cleaned & degreased, new pads, whoo hoo , it's like riding a new bike. Ta for tip Roy. | ||
| Beardo |
Welp, I have my NOS S3 forks bolted on. I was surprised at how soft the springs feel, even though they are heavier than the S1 springs. Anyone happen to know the weight of the S1 race springs? I got a set from a fellow member, but didn't occurr to me to figure out the weight of them. |
