Progressive front springs installed.. WOW

[Seaking]

I took my bike to the local shop to get some work gone and got the bike back yesterday.

 

What a grocery list of work to be done.. I might have been able to get some if not most of it done myself but didn't have the confidence of tackling it alone..

 

(A) Early this summer when I had my front tire replaced by an out of town company, they managed to munge up the axle threads in the fork. When my local shop saw this they expressed concerns that it should beefed up with a heli-coil kit. The kits are expensive around here, I never saw one but would imagine gold plating and diamond studs for the price they were asking. A subsequent road trip into the USA showed me where to get them for $50 or so.. So new wheel bearings, covers, axle etc and heli-coil insert got that all done proper and more secure / safer..

 

(B) Neck bearings.. When visiting Goose in June, he gave the neck bearings a much needed 'tightening', and indicated that there was still some front to back play in the bearings.. They should be OK for a while but that they really do need to be repacked / replaced.. If someone is going through all that trouble to gain access to the bearings to repack them, might as well spend the additional $20 on new bearings eh? So now, wow, what a HUGE difference that makes.. the front end is tighter feeling, more confidence in turns, tracks much better. Doesn't feel sloppy anymore. Though the bike was safe to ride before the change, it wasn't as sure footed as my buddy's bike.. but now? wow.

 

© Front forks servicing and progressive Spring installation. New seals and syn oil put in the front forks.. New progressive springs do wonders for a bike.. I have them in my VStar and loved them, and decided to put them in the Venture and oh my gosh.. what a gorgeous feel to this bike NOW.. Coupled with the new neck bearings, the bike tracks well in turns and straight line but eats up the sharp bumps and cracked and obstacles.. And when you apply your front brakes, the bike doesn't dive to the pavement anymore. At an intersection you could pump the front brakes and watch your headlight beam fly up and down.. not anymore.. yes, it's a stiffer ride but a more confident feeling ride.. WOW. I like it a lot. Got a week of rain unfortunately so i can't take it out to test it properly until this weekend. But the ride home yesterday really impressed me a lot.. wow. zero air pressure in the shocks is recommended unless you notice you need air in them.. In the oem set up I used to pump them up to 5 or 7 psi.. and they were still floppy.. now, wow,, nice!!

 

Now, I'm just waiting for the new rear shock to come in.. They had a production problem this fall that caused a delay in shipping.. but I'm patient.. Once the Werks shock comes in I'll be installing it and testing the bike out, putting her through the paces..

 

A good wad of coins spent but worth every penny thus far..

 

Progressive springs, I am confident they will be all that they lived up to be in my VStar..

[RandyR]

A good handling bike you have confidence in is worth a lot.

 

Sounds like you made some worthwhile mods.

 

[Guest tx2sturgis]

All I can say is ...'wow'!!

 

 

 

So what bike do you ride? And how many miles ( or kilometers) did it have on it?

 

[dunsonaventure]

if I was to have progressive springs and syn oil installed, how much could I expect to pay. Or with alittle coaching, could I do it myself.

[Hulign]

I did Racetech springs and gold valve emulators on my Vmax. Was an AMAZING change. Not hard to do springs at all. Time and patience will get it done.

 

Frank

[twigg]

if I was to have progressive springs and syn oil installed, how much could I expect to pay. Or with alittle coaching, could I do it myself.

 

Expect to pay around $80 for the springs, plus the oil.

 

The job can be done almost in minutes rather than hours.

 

I exaggerate, but not much.

[flb_78]

Expect to pay around $80 for the springs, plus the oil.

 

The job can be done almost in minutes rather than hours.

 

I exaggerate, but not much.

 

Not on a 2nd Gen, the fairing has to come off or at least loose and suspended from the ceiling.

[straycatt]

Not on a 2nd Gen, the fairing has to come off or at least loose and suspended from the ceiling.

 

Exactly so.

 

I had done Springs (Sonic), seals, bushings, oil, neck bearings, a few weeks ago. That required removal of fairing/fender/wheel/brakes/forks/etc and took several days to accomplish. However I did also change the coolant, make some crack repairs to the fairing, and a few other maintenance chores while I had it apart.

 

After riding it with the new springs, I decided to add a little more pre-load on the springs. The dis-assembly for this is pretty much the same procedure for changing the springs except I didn't change the oil again.

 

This was done yesterday. Counting a few breaks and the hunt for a dropped washer that fell into the engine/radiator area (I found it after taking apart all of the lower cowl area), it took in the range of 7 hours start to finish. None of this is overly difficult for even a modestly experienced wrench, but it is time consuming.