A new bike: not really - just new tires and front suspension

[Joesmoe]

Big shoutout to @cr0ft for recommending the Avon Cobra front and rear with wide white walls (only got the white wall on the front), and to @barbagris who recommended the Race Tech cartridge emulator with new springs and oil in the front forks.

I had to ride 63 miles to Pasadena, MD. Kenny of MRP Motorsports had scheduled me today so I could ride in - ride out.

He is a suspension guy by trade, though he is also a tuner (I'll go back for that).

With all the talk here about lifts and brackets and so on, it was neat to see him take a standard floor jack, place a bit of wood on the pad, and lift the bike from the right side, providing a new third point, and lifting the front off the floor.

In that position, he removed the calipers, ABS sensor, front wheel.

The Touring has sleeves around the top of the forks. Kenney has little experience with Rockets, and yet he is the ideal scratch his chin and do the right thing kind of guy. He found by removing the mounts for for the quick fit windshield, there was slack in the sleeves, enough so that he was able to access the pinch bolts, and presto, both forks just slid right out. No messing with handlebars nor anything else up top.

I watched for the better part of an hour and a half disassemble the forks, and rebuild them with the Race Tech Gold Emulator. It went easily thanks to Kenney's intimate knowledge and the right tools. He took measurements before taking things apart, and during the process. He is clearly a data-driven guy.

He did both tires, and yes, turned the valve stem 180o on the rear. And yes, he removed the bevel box.

I was surprised that it looked fine inside there. He went ahead and added more molly grease.

The hardest part about all this was getting the rear wheel back on, with the spacer and rear caliper.

I'm sure there is a trick to it. He struggled and struggled, then he did something and everything just dropped into place.

In any case, I am tickled pink.

Thanks everyone !

 

[Joesmoe]

Here one can see the simple three-point method of working on the front of the bike -- no fancy mounts, and using a standard floor jack and wood spacer(s). The bike has been raised on the right side, so it rests on the three points of the rear tire, side stand, and jack under the frame on the right side. This provided enough clearance to remove the front wheel, fender, and forks. Both calipers have been moved back over the fall-over guards, out of the way, and one sees the ABS sensor hanging.

One fork is already gone, and Kenny is removing the second fork.

Here you see nicely the profile of the OEM Metzler Marathon with 7,404 miles on the left, and the two new Avon Cobras (purchased from Rocky Mountain ATV)

Disassembly of the old fork. Note the actual work on the forks was done in his fully equipped trailer, a significant part of his business being track side support during race season.

 

[Joesmoe]

Fork cylinder [Part Number: T2045415] has a small draw-down hole on this end, and Kenny is sealing it with solder. The Race Tech fork emulator is attached to the other end of that tube, and has two small holes that serve the same function, and then has a spring-loaded plunger that makes for a much larger opening when encountering a large force, such as a larger bump.

Putting the modified tube back together. The fork tube is at the bottom, with new springs on top of that, taking up about half the height of the upper outer tube, followed by a spacer taking up the rest.

Two modified forks, ready for re-installation.

OEM Metzler Marathon breaking the bead.

OEM Metzler Marathon coming off after 7,404 miles.

Static balancing. By the way, he says balancing beads are total wastes.

 

[Joesmoe]

 

[barbagris]

Did the emulators make any difference?

 

[Joesmoe]

Did the emulators make any difference?

Ah, the English language. I'm not sure you realize, that what I thought I said when I told you is not what I meant.

"A new bike . . ."

YES, is the short answer.

Night to day.

Before, the bike felt heavy, and uncertain in any kind of turn, particularly with any surface irregularities -- of which there are plenty around here.

Even though I was taking it easy with the new tires, there were plenty of bumps to be had, and the bike felt (the front at least) planted, and ready to respond to my inputs, as it should be. This is clearly better than new.

I have to be careful, that changing multiple variables makes it nigh on impossible to assign causality -- nevertheless -- I'm really happy with where I am so far.

Really appreciate that pointer back when.

 

[Nat67]

Brilliant post @Joesmoe , thanks for sharing . Enjoy those Cobras !

 

[barbagris]

Ah, the English language. I'm not sure you realize, that what I thought I said when I told you is not what I meant.

I had inferred thusly. But sometimes I think we are indeed separated by a common language here.

 

[Jag]

Good mechanics think outside the box!! Great way to remove the forks, love it!

 

[cr0ft]

Glad that turned out great. Doubt I was the first to laud the Cobras, but I do love the whitewalls.

For next time, the installer should leave the blue on until after install, and then clean. That way the white doesn't get smudged and need a second cleaning.

I suspect the better turning is at least partially the Cobras vs the Metzelers, I had the exact same experience when I first put them on. The more planted front end is no doubt the emulators - I need to do something similar to this on my shocks also, the stock ones are pretty meh.

As for putting the rear wheel back on after taking it off, I found it was worth unbolting the caliper. I managed to get mine off and on by myself fairly painlessly after that. It's just a couple of bolts.