Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

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Kdxfan4130
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

:bravo: Sometimes a preview of the work to be done helps. Not the gold valves but the tear down procedure lol

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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

COOL! Thanks for posting that. Is that you?
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by '03KDX200 »

KDXGarage wrote: 08:45 pm Mar 06 2020 I could use some tape and wire to pull the rod up and a wooden dowel to push it down. It does have to be cycled a few times to bleed the cartridge.

Again, the "proper" tools make it quick and easy, but it is tough to swallow just using them for a job that is not done often. On the plus side, once you have the "proper tools", it makes it easier to go ahead and change the fork oil on a regular schedule vs. just neglect it.
I think I'll try this somewhat janky way to do it the first time, cuz it doesn't sound too bad, and see how much time I spend screwing around. I'll have a much better idea of how much screwing around I need to do after doing the job just once. Yeah you're totally right about having the right tools not only making the job faster, but also the faster and easier a job is, with less reinventing-the-wheel involved, the more the work will actually get done on schedule. I'll bet people hardly ever actually change their fork (and shock) oil on schedule.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by '03KDX200 »

Kdxfan4130 wrote: 10:48 pm Mar 06 2020 :bravo: Sometimes a preview of the work to be done helps. Not the gold valves but the tear down procedure lol
Nice that is a good video. It shows the value of the cartridge holder tool and how it's used to get the bottom fork cap off. Thanks man.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

KDXGarage wrote: 01:39 am Mar 07 2020 COOL! Thanks for posting that. Is that you?
Haha no not me, just copied that off you tube as it was a good reference.

Me a decade ago before the adelanto grand prix
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

'03KDX200 wrote: 11:20 pm Mar 07 2020
Kdxfan4130 wrote: 10:48 pm Mar 06 2020 :bravo: Sometimes a preview of the work to be done helps. Not the gold valves but the tear down procedure lol
Nice that is a good video. It shows the value of the cartridge holder tool and how it's used to get the bottom fork cap off. Thanks man.
Glad that is of value to help you out. Sometimes there’s shortcuts to avoid buying certain tools. For instance using tape all rolled up around the fork tube to install/ram home the fork seal instead of buying a fork seal installation tool. On a Sunday when the shops are all closed you have to make due.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

Man. Nice sweatshirt. I remember reading in Dirt Bike about some jackass(es) putting cross ties in a culvert to block the path during the race that particular year.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

One thing I wanted to mention on this video is:

SAFETY

To everyone out there, please wear proper PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) when either ridin' or wrenchin'. This guy could have used some safety glasses and proper footwear. Also, some sort of chemical proof glove. Flip-flops don't count. :rolleyes:
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by kdxsully »

Kdxfan4130 wrote: 02:14 am Mar 08 2020
KDXGarage wrote: 01:39 am Mar 07 2020 COOL! Thanks for posting that. Is that you?
Haha no not me, just copied that off you tube as it was a good reference.

Me a decade ago before the adelanto grand prix
You look like a guy that says “I work for the government” whenever you’re asked what you do for a living
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

KDXGarage wrote: 05:09 am Mar 08 2020 Man. Nice sweatshirt. I remember reading in Dirt Bike about some jackass(es) putting cross ties in a culvert to block the path during the race that particular year.
That was enviro nazis trying in vain to stop the event from starting, delayed the start for about 90 minutes. I had blisters on both hands afterwards both ‘88 & ‘89 B2V earning dust collectors :partyman:
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

kdxsully wrote: 08:05 am Mar 08 2020
Kdxfan4130 wrote: 02:14 am Mar 08 2020
KDXGarage wrote: 01:39 am Mar 07 2020 COOL! Thanks for posting that. Is that you?
Haha no not me, just copied that off you tube as it was a good reference.

Me a decade ago before the adelanto grand prix
You look like a guy that says “I work for the government” whenever you’re asked what you do for a living
If I told ya I’d have to keel ya! No man it’s just the haircut I swear :rolleyes:
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by '03KDX200 »

KDXGarage wrote: 06:45 pm Mar 06 2020
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Hey one more dumb question: In an earlier reply you mentioned some nut on the bottom that is "peened over", that I should be careful to undo the peening before I attempt removal of the nut, thereby avoiding a gigantic headache. In this picture, can you point to the nut that has the peening?

The exact quote from before was, "The tops of the base valves have the nut on top. It is peened over. One MUST file down the top a little before loosening the nuts. Feel free to read through some old threads where people snapped them off. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! :naughty:"

Thanks for your help on this!
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by '03KDX200 »

Kdxfan4130 wrote: 03:06 pm Mar 08 2020
KDXGarage wrote: 05:09 am Mar 08 2020 Man. Nice sweatshirt. I remember reading in Dirt Bike about some jackass(es) putting cross ties in a culvert to block the path during the race that particular year.
That was enviro nazis trying in vain to stop the event from starting, delayed the start for about 90 minutes. I had blisters on both hands afterwards both ‘88 & ‘89 B2V earning dust collectors :partyman:
What??? LAME! What were the enviro-Nazis concerned about exactly? Some motorcycle race? LOL yeah because those are so harmful to the environment. Also, what are cross ties and what are culverts?
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

bottom left, then one to the right

railroad tie / drain pipe

nut on top of left base valve assembly
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

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Thank you for participating on kdxrider.net. :bravo:
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by Kdxfan4130 »

'03KDX200 wrote: 02:28 pm Mar 10 2020
Kdxfan4130 wrote: 03:06 pm Mar 08 2020
KDXGarage wrote: 05:09 am Mar 08 2020 Man. Nice sweatshirt. I remember reading in Dirt Bike about some jackass(es) putting cross ties in a culvert to block the path during the race that particular year.
That was enviro nazis trying in vain to stop the event from starting, delayed the start for about 90 minutes. I had blisters on both hands afterwards both ‘88 & ‘89 B2V earning dust collectors :partyman:
What??? LAME! What were the enviro-Nazis concerned about exactly? Some motorcycle race? LOL yeah because those are so harmful to the environment. Also, what are cross ties and what are culverts?
The enviro nuts were dead set on closing this race since it drew so many racers. Atvs were held to 200 entrants, not sure how many bikes were allowed. The enviro ppl closed this race before and it was allowed to return iirc in the early 80’s. Cross ties are like rail road rail wooden supports, culverts is like a drainage ditch it was a part of the race course everyone had to traverse through. Race was discontinued after ‘89 since no race course permit was approved after that. Now to piss off the enviros they put on a street legal off road 2day ride through that same area every year in November ‘LA2B2V’ you tube has a bunch of vids, folks riding adv bikes in areas you really shouldnt lots of crashing going on in the tougher spots. The real race was much tougher to finish in 5-6 hrs
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

kdxfn4130, thanks for spurring me to do some research and reading on it. I always wondered about that.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by '03KDX200 »

KDXGarage wrote: 08:45 pm Mar 06 2020 Call FRP Offroad and see how much shipping is. The website says $25, but that is way too high. The tool is $30. I have one. It is great. He did a fine job on it. One side is for 1995+ and one side is for 1986 - 1992 KDX200 (have not tried it in older forks).

It will not work on 1991 - 1994 KDX250 or 1993 - 1994 KDX200.

If I could only buy one of those two tools, I would buy the FRP Offroad tool, assuming shipping is not sky high.

I could use some tape and wire to pull the rod up and a wooden dowel to push it down. It does have to be cycled a few times to bleed the cartridge.

Again, the "proper" tools make it quick and easy, but it is tough to swallow just using them for a job that is not done often. On the plus side, once you have the "proper tools", it makes it easier to go ahead and change the fork oil on a regular schedule vs. just neglect it.

Hey I have one more question on all this fork maintenance stuff. The Seal Driver. I broke down and bought another special tool after all: the Tusk Fork Seal Driver tool shown here: https://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/part ... l-driver-p And you know what I'm really glad I did because trying to use lightweight pieces of PVC pipe to ram the seals down sounds really horrible. This thing works perfectly, and still requires decent force to drive the seals so I'm really glad I broke down and spent another $35 on this handy, specialized tool.

Anyways, my question for you is about the copper bushing. I might have reassembled my forks wrong. When you put the fork slider back together with the fork tube, do you need to ram the copper bushing/seal into place first, and then ram the rubber oil seal down on top of that in two stages? Or, is it ok to be an idiot like me and just put all the seals and rings onto the fork slider in the correct order, and then just ram the rubber oil seal down into it's groove until you've gone far enough to reseat the oil seal circlip? I think I may have accidentally taken a shortcut. When you drive the rubber oil seal down into place, does the copper seal need to already be seated fully, or is it enough to do it the lazy way and just ram everything together from the top of the rubber oil seal?
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by KDXGarage »

Wow.

I do them one at a time. I never even thought to just whack them all at once. I don't know how that will work out.
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Re: Do I really need all these special suspension tools for the forks?

Post by kdxsully »

I do them separately. The seal may have been damaged.
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