Air in front Forks???

[Anonymous]

I see on the top of my forks there are air valves, I guess thats what they are. If so how much are can i put in them?

[lhanscom]

The manual says to never put more then 30psi in them. They come stock with 2.5psi I think. You should stay on the low side of this range probably. I have run as much as 20psi in mine, but I don't think it's good for the seals.

[Anonymous]

AIR IN FRONT FORKS

THANKS

[redliner1973]

On my 'GK, the manual says 11 PSI :twisted:

[focus frenzy]

Remember that the forks hold a very small volume of air when compaired with a 10 speed tire!!
It is very easy to over fill them using a normal compressor, there are several small hand pumps made specificaly for filling forks, I use one of those small cheap compressors that plug into a lighter socket.

[Anonymous]

There's a nice controlled method I 've worked out for inflating forks:

I use a small portable air tank (6 gallons?), and I fill it to whatever pressure I want in the forks (usually just about 8 to 10 p.s.i.). I measure the tank pressure using a good digital gauge. Then I use the tank to fill the forks, not worrying about how long I keep the hose connected.

In other words, just keep the chuck in place until there's no more air movement -- a few seconds is fine. Do this to both forks. The tiny amount of air the first fork takes will have almost zero impact on the tank pressure, so both forks have pretty close to exactly the same pressure.

[Anonymous]

doing it useing a tank you have to remember that it takes pressure to move the air. So if you want 8 to 10 psi in the forks you need 16 to 20 in the tank, when the air stops moving the pressure in the tank and the forks will be even.

[Anonymous]

Kyle,
That would be true if the tank volume were as small as the fork volume, but with the tank that much larger than the fork the pressures will equalize at pretty close to the orginal tank pressure.

Harrison

[argonsagas]

Kyle,
That would be true if the tank volume were as small as the fork volume, but with the tank that much larger than the fork the pressures will equalize at pretty close to the orginal tank pressure.

Harrison

Agreed.

As long as the valve is held open (chuck in place to open the valve) the pressure will balance in both directions. The tank will have many times the volume of the forks, so the pressure in the tank will match the pressure put into the fork(s).

If you happen to be relieving high pressure in the forks, it will balance at the tank pressure, as the small volume introduced into the tank from the forks will make an insignificant difference.

[Anonymous]

The Suspension pumps are cheap.

The progressive suspension pumps are cheap. Why not have and use one of them? I got mine for less than $20.00 on E-bay. It doesn't look like an impressive tool. Once you use it you realize how precise and important it is.

[Anonymous]

Kyle,
That would be true if the tank volume were as small as the fork volume, but with the tank that much larger than the fork the pressures will equalize at pretty close to the orginal tank pressure.

Harrison

you are right , it does depend on the size of the tank