Fork Removal on GS1150es, sorta stuck....

[asbjones]

So I have some new progressive springs seals and oil ready to go in , I have everything off and all clamp bolts loosened or out , do I remove the air valve on both sides at the top of the fork tube ? or am I missing a something cause the fork tube is not loose . any info would be greatly appreciated !! Aaron in San Jose -

[denydog]

On my bike, I had to remove the air screws lock bolts because their pointed little tips seated into holes in the fork tubes. I found that working some silicone protectorant/lube into the rubber parts of the fork tube clamps helped the tubes slip out (and in when it came to that)..

[asbjones]

OK got it ! it was that air valve thing , had to loosen each side and then tap the fork down , I hope its easy going back in ! thanks-

[Plasterdog]

Take pictures and post. That'll make it easier for me when I attempt mine :-D

[asbjones]

OK , so now I got the forks back in , it was a lot on the tricky side! when I dissasembled the fork leg I went slow on the second one so when all the little parts come out I know where they go, they kinda went flying on the first leg , my Haynes book doesnt show the exact fork for my bike so I had to look up the parts blowup online when reassembling, even for the wheel axle parts, the sealed air coupler was a little tricky cause I didnt know how it came off but it just slides off and dangles till the leg goes back in , the Progressive springs for my bike are shorter than stock , they supply a pvc tube and 2 washers with the springs , there is a chart for each bike that tells you to cut the pvc pipe a specific length for a spacer , different lengths for different bikes , that was tricky till I looked at the chart , the 2 washers they supply I used in between the pvc and the spring, I ended up taking my handle bar bracket/clamp off at the top so the fork went all the way in easier , the fork tube seemed to stop when it got there as I slid them back in , I would have added the springs ,spacer,oil and washers after I had the forks back in the triple tree, oil kept coming out the little hole for the air till the air couple when around it and sealed it with its o-rings. Well now I have to put my calipers on and go back and make sure nothing is loose , then test ride it(raining now) , should be way better , I have to figure out that rear mono shock next -:-D

[Dink]

Geez I am glad I am in Australia, my "1150" GAS1100EFF does not have air on the front forks!! Australia was the only market in the world that got an 18" rear wheel, that alone make tyre choice so much easier.
The rear shock is supposed to be "non-rebuildable", it can be done, but must be by a shock specialist; that have to cut it open & weld it back together again, the easiest way to get at it is to remove the swingarm, and then disassemble the the shock from the linkages. Clean & re-grease all the bearings in the linkages; and the swingarm bearings whilst you are there. Be careful with adjustment of the shock as there is a small nylon gear at the base of the shock that can break due to seizing, this gear is no longer available, I have not been able to find an alternative either.

Dink

[asbjones]

a guy at Zoom cycle here in Santa Clara said I could send mine to somebody (I forgot) and have it rebuilt, I also saw a Works shock on ebay for 300 something , it had the gs1150 listed , would that one work?

[Dink]

Yup!! I found an Ohlins for mine.

Dink

[asbjones]

just tested the bike , complete 180 switch from what it was , seemed pretty stiff , but I did have the lower fork settings on medium , so I set it to "softest" and will test it tommarow , I think I just got used to "mush" front shocks for to long-