Progressive Spring Slow Ride ???

[GolfVenture]

Got it all back together.

 

 

As I took the VR off the center stand the front forks did not seem to collapse a bit.

 

 

Sat on the VR and tried to rock the VR with the front break held.

 

 

Forks still did not collapse.

 

 

Took it for a slow spin on my private street with a speed bump.

 

 

Did some quick stops.

 

 

Still did not seem to collapse.

 

 

The ride also seemed a but bumpy.

 

 

I'm 5 ft 8 inch about 173lb.

 

 

Is this how Progressive Springs are supposed to act at really slow speeds.

 

 

I will be taking it out for a lenghy spin today.

 

 

Would appreciate some input just incase I should not take it for a spin yet.

[darthandy]

Sounds a little more stiff than they should be. Just a guess, but are you sure you have the fork oil at the right level? If memory serves, it would be 5 inches from the top with the springs removed and the forks fully collapsed. I have progressives on my '87 Royale, and there is suspension movement even at walking speeds.

 

Andy

[Yamamike]

What oil did you use? Is it maybe way too heavy?

[utadventure]

How much preload did you have?

[Venturous Randy]

How much preload did you have?

 

I did not put any spacer preload on my 83 with Progressives and it worked the best for me. Any preload would have been too much for me.

RandyA

[friesman]

the preload spacer was left out of mine also, as Rocket though it might make the ride harsh and raise the front of the bike a bit high.

 

Brian

[KIC]

I used 3/4-inch preload at 190# - 6'1". It is a little stiff....I might try 1/2-inch preload.

[dingy]

The weight of the oil will primarily affect the rebound rate.

 

My 83 with my 270# on it compresses very little. I used 3/4" spacer on top.

 

I would be somewhat wary of not putting any spacer in. I wouldn't want the forks to be able to extend without any spring tension against them.

 

1/2" would probably be minimum suggestion I would offer.

 

You still won't get much compression from it, this is what progressives are good at. A speed bump is not going to do much at low speeds.

 

You don't have to have exactly 5 1/2" of oil in them either. That is the MAXIMUM recommended by spring manufacturer. The oil level must be equal in both forks. You will get a smoother ride if oil is at a lower level, even as far as 7 1/2" down. This allows a larger air pocket above the oil level. The larger this air pocket, the slower the rise in PSI is as the springs start to collapse. The oil is used in the rebound damping valves at the bottom of the tubes.

 

Gary

[GolfVenture]

Wow, just got back from a good days ride to the Mt Rainier area and back. Yep the springs were stiff. Even when I breaked really hard the springs hardly collapsed.

 

I used 15 wt oil. At 5.5 inches.

 

I think I know what I did that casused the forks to be so hard. I followed the procedure and the pictures.

 

See I did not use any of the ABS spacer for it would have been really to hard to get the 17 mm cap back on, with what I did below.

 

I threw away the 4 inch metal spacer.

 

So after I had the forkes complete collapsed I put 15 oz of oil and with a turkey baster marked at 5.5 inches, I sucked out everything above the 5.5 inched.

 

I extended the forks with the wheel off the ground,

 

I installed the tight coils end first into the forks.

 

Then I put the metal washer with the collar that came out of the forks I installed upside down so the extended collar prt of the washer went into the opening of the metal cap with the oil ring.

 

Then I put the 17mm cap on. The instruction did not say to discard he cap with the o-ring. The cap with the O-ring seemed to important to leave out so I installed it. It is just over an inch in length.

 

So what I need to do is to remove the cap with the O-ring and replace it with a 1/2 inch ABS spacer.

 

With all that said the Venture handled just beautifully in the corners. I'm sure that I was going at least 10 mph faster thru the corners faster than I 've comfortable done before for I know this route for it is a favorite route of mine.

 

There's this one spot where the drop off is pretty sheer, and the road was twisty and windy. The Venture just breezed thru the corners.

 

Soon on the straight aways I was going much faster for my confidence of the Venture increased, allowing me to attack the corners much more aggressively. I began to think that I should slow down before I get a ticket.

[friesman]

you just found out why I think the progressives are probably your best 100 bucks spent on a G1 Venture. The just change the whole character of the bike. Am glad youre happy with the results.

 

Brian