Bent upper fork tubes

[first timer]

i just rebuilt my forks and i noticed that the upper fork tube (or is it called a inner fork tube, anyway the shiny part that connects tto the triple) both have slight bends to them, like when i lay them on a flat surface and roll them there is about a 1/8" rise at about where the tube would connect to the triple tree.

my question is how bad is this and can i get away with riding the bike with forks like this, every thing else was in good shape.

if these are bad does anyone have a extra set of straight upper fork tubes they would be will to part with? these forks are for a 79 gs1000e, i believe a gs850 fork work too.

-ryan

[KennyJ]

I would say an 1/8 inch is really bad. Look up "Forks by Frank" on the web, probably the cheapest alternative for new tubes and quick service from what I understand.

Kenny

[humhead]

Be careful with 850 forks. The diameter is the same, but they're 15mm longer. I found a set of 1000 forks on ebay last week. They pop up from time to time, so you should be able to get a set if you're patient. Forks by frank is the way to go if you want new ones. better than stock quality & price.

[first timer]

yeah but if i was to go with forks by frank i should just get some forks and triple tree from a early 90's gsxr 1100/1000 and just use them. they would probly cost just as much.

-ryan

[first timer]

so is the general opion that the uppers are shot? if i lay them down on a flat surface and roll then they only raise up in the middlesih are about a 1/8"

should i not even bother to fill them back up with oil and try to install them or should i just try finding sumtin else.

-ryan

[Anonymous]

so is the general opion that the uppers are shot? if i lay them down on a flat surface and roll then they only raise up in the middlesih are about a 1/8"

I have been told by a suspension tech that less than 0.003" is good, less than 0.005" is acceptable and anything over about 0.015" is scrap. So you are WAY into the scrap range. It is possible to straighten them with a hydraulic press and a good shop would likely get them inside 0.005" of runout. To put this into perspective, you normally have to chuck the tube in a lathe and use a dial gauge to check runout. It should not be possible to do with a ruler... :?

Mark