air forks

Greetings, have recently bought a Honda which takes a max
of 6 PSI air in front forks. What's the best way of putting
such a low pressure/small volume of air in them ?
Ysidro.

 

bicycle pump?

 

I think you'll nee to get a lo-pressure "syringe" type pump with a gauge
included like this:
http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/produ...d=418&productId=p28236&leafCatId=41807&mmyId=
Serco in Brisane used to stock them; I don't know who else has them.

Bummers

 

Tried that but the act of checking the pressure with my (probably
innacurate) gauge lets all the air out :-(
Y.

 

I would think that you fill the compressed forks with oil then extend the
forks and install the end caps.

Once it's on the bike the weight of the bike on the suspension will compress
the suspension and any air in there.

It may give you the 6 psi you're after.

 

Mine came with a gauge and it doesn't let the air out.

I think it is made for ATV tires.

 

nup. get a bike pump and a good gauge..or one dedicated for air forks.

 

6 PSI is 167 " water gauge if you can be bothered to make a "Manometer"

 

It's about one and a half bicycle pumps on my bike.

 

You buy a Progressive Suspension air pump (0-100 PSI) specifically
designed for motorcycle suspension (ie, it doesn't let the air out!!)

See http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2483504349


Kathy

 

you can buy special pumps with gauges from $50~$100... but for my
money a bicycle pump works pretty good. you dont need to know the exact
pressure unless you also iron your socks and underwear. Start by
completely emptying the forks (should be linked ones with only one
valve right?). this gives you zero pressure. attach pump, put one
pump of air in. go for a ride. not enough? empty air again, put two
pumps in. go for a ride.

remember you can always add some preload to the springs as well... use
spacers

also, you might find there is a valve for the rear shock inide the left
side cover. look at the shock and there will be a bit of hose comin
out of it. Air here works *much* better than air in forks which only
stays there a while anyway and blows out your fork seals early. If you
want better suspension up front forget the air and replace your springs
with some from progressive or whoever.

 

How do you stop the tranny fluid blowing back out?

I find it best to adjust after a fork oil change. Put oil in and end caps on
then give it 5 or 6 pumps or whatever 'til the front end stops rising
noting how many pumps it takes. Empty air then add a pump, or how ever
many, as necessary. Usually lasts until the next oil change or when you
check the pressure again! Add a pump or two to extend service intervals if
you feel it getting soft!

Two bob bits.

Agreed. Treat the air as a fine tunable adjustment not a compensator for
fuckedness.

 

I find i dont have any trouble with the oil coming back out on
forks.... on all the bikes ive seen the valve is usually contained in
the fork cap, or its on a bridging piece that runs between the two
forks. either way it doesnt dip down into the oil so nothing (or
perhaps a very small trace) comes out of it when releasing air. Rear
shocks with air (and lots have this! check *behind* the units on twin
shock models, look for hoses going somewhere on monos) are a different
beast... they tend to hose it every which way if they dont have the
more modern style of internals with a membrane that separates the oil
from the air. On the newer ones you're really better off getting it
done in a suspension shop with whatever inert gas they use there at
stupid high pressures that would soon embedd one of those fiddly little
damn circlips well into my forehead...

Shaun

 

Eh?

Theo

 

Viagra gives me a stiff neck?

 

I cant notice ANY difference with no air or 6 PSI air in the forks :-(
Y.

 

It's supposed to give an additional, progressive bump stop.
It won't help "foaming" - air is air!

Bummers

 

Perhaps, I dunno.

Provides a small amount of preload adjustment, and was kind of trendy
for a while as a way of claiming adjustable preload with no extra cost.

Also helps hold the fork seals shut, believe it or not. And thus
keeps the rain out of your fork oil. Too much pressure can justk
blow them right out, mind you.

If you can get the preload right by shimming the springs, do that
instead. Or replace them with progressive or other aftermarket ones.
Lots of people have good things to say about RaceTech Gold Valves, too.

-----sharks

 

Y.

I thought the only reason the air was in the forks was to place a small
amount of pressure on the fork oil to stop foaming ,nothing to do with
damping directly,or preload.

I'm often wrong though, unless I'm mistaken.
Capt A.L.

 

If the forks rise when your adding air, be careful as you are increasing the
steering rake which will make the bike turn slower through corners with the
bike wanting to go wide (extreme cases).
My 1994 FLHS Hardly Dangerous has the air valve in the end of the handle bar
so it effectively had a air reservoir which helped. The twin rear upside
down shocks (Showa) also took air and for a tourer weighing in at around 340
kilograms, the air was a bonus when loaded up touring Aus.

For a sports tourer I would focus on trying different weight oil starting at
between 5 weight up to a max of 15 w (depending on how heavy the bike is).As
someone said in a earlier post, don't rule out spacers placed on top of the
springs of around 10-25 mm each that are a firm fit.If you can, you may need
to slip the forks through the yokes a bit (5 to 20mm )to compensate for the
increased rake you'll get by fitting spacers. Of corse if bucks aren't a
issue by some quality stiffer Ohlin replacement springs which will transform
the bikes handling no end !
A basic rule of thumb is, the less rake (steeper) the sharper the turning
will be but the bike will be less stable at high speed. The longer the rake
the better the bike will handle at high speed but as said, will handle like
a wet sponge through corners.You don't have to be a speed demon to
appreciate a well handling bike especially after a long ride.

When I raced my GSX-R-600 in the then SuperSport class at Wanneroo around
97, the Ohlins front replacement springs and rear fully adjustable Ohlins
shock helped shave off around 3 seconds a lap and encouraged confidence in
the bike as the feedback through the front end was positive.


Good luck and Iron side up

Tads