82 GS850 air fork question

[LW_Icarus]

I was bored today at work, and during lunch decided to give the G a once over, was checking the air in the forks with a progressive suspension air pump, and it didnt fit right, it bled all the air out, and wouldnt refill. one of our techs tried to help and tightened the pump up too tight.

I ended up regulating our air pressure down to ten lbs and just used an air chuck. the problems started when I screwed the cap back on, the fitting snapped, and the schraeder valve came out. I ordered replacement fittings, should have em tuesday, but what in the world am I supposed to fill em with?

I thought the PS pump was what I needed, I almost ordered one the other day, now Im confused. the oem suzuki tool is unavailable. any suggestions?

[Billy Ricks]

When I had the stock front end on my bike I never used anything but a bicycle pump.

[bwringer]

No air pressure + Progressive springs + longer preload spacers + heavier fork oil = :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

Back when I first got my bike and before the UPS truck could show up with the Progressives, I used one of those little electric air compressors that plugs into a car cigarette lighter. It's slow enough that it won't pump 'em up too much before you can stop it.

I also bought a low pressure (20psi max) tire gauge at the local farm store.

That sucks that your parts broke, though. Even with no air pressure, you still need a good air seal for proper fork action -- the air in the fork still compresses and adds an important amount of spring to the equation.

Did the '82s have the balance hose between the fork legs, or do you have to fill them individually?

[BriTXbike]

my 82 has balance hose but when I get new springs for the front I'm going your route BW. More reliable that way

[LW_Icarus]

no balance hoses unfortunately, and the suspension upgrade is in the works, but not till after christmas probably.

I guess at this point Im just gonna do what I did before and crank the regulator down to ten psi, and hit em with the air chuck. they had air in em after years of not being checked by the PO so hopefully I wont haveta mess with em till the new shocks and springs show.

I borrowed an SV650 from work so Im not too bummed that the bike is broken, and I also just got a GS1000G engine to freshen up and install over the winter, complete with everything. (including driveshaft ) so overall its been an OK day

[NickNoo]

Maybe worth checking the sag on the front and back suspension.
Mine was far too "saggy" at the forks, even with 15psi of air (about 38mm unladen and another 20mm laden). I checked the spring length against the recommendations given in the manual and they seemed fine (manual recommends 421mm to 416mm for the GN/GT).
So I fitted 20mm spacers to firm up the suspension (sag is now 23mm unladen and 10mm laden).
As a result, the bike's handling was transformed. Now it feels much more stable on the road and cornering is so much more fun !!
Using a heavier fork oil has also helped (10W/30) and I dont need to mess around with the airpump as it feels fine without any pressure.