front fork rebuild

[Jock]

I am planning to rebuild my forks over the winter. (84 GS1150EFE )can anyone recommend where i can get a good set of replacement springs.
Also what about arebuild kit for the anti dive / damping units situated at the fork leg bottoms.

[Jeff Tate]

Fork springs can be had from Progressive suspension. Alot of folks on this forum plus myself have them and they made a world of difference for me. I'm not sure what you want to know about concerning the second part of your question.

[Anonymous]

I didn't replace my stock springs even though they are 79 vintage but I did make longer spacers out of plastic pipe . That was what the progressive spring web site tells you to do after installing new springs. A piece of ABS pipe is cheap and add 1/2 inch to your stock spacers and see what happens, unless you are wes cooley going racing this may be a CHEAP alternative. I cut my air pressure way down to about 6 LBS to save wear and tear on the fork seals and with the longer than stock spacers I am a happy camper, no wobble and great handling for about 4$ and I still have 7 ft of pipe to play with for other sizing if I want!

[G man]

I recently picked up a pair of Progressive Suspension fork springs form these guys:

http://www.motodepot.com/index.html

Best overall cost (price plus shipping) I could find and they came pretty quick.

[SqDancerLynn1]

I just finished putting a set of NEW progressive springs in my GS850 today, haven't ridden it yet. I got them on Ebay 8) $15 winning bid +$15 shipping The prog. springs are longer than the stock springs and require a cut down spacer depending on app. You can see that they are wound different. Use schedule 40 pvc pipe

[mcycle-nut]

Re: front fork rebuild

I am planning to rebuild my forks over the winter. (84 GS1150EFE )can anyone recommend where i can get a good set of replacement springs.
Also what about arebuild kit for the anti dive / damping units situated at the fork leg bottoms.

I have been told you cannot get pieces for the anti dive, you must buy the whole units. I'm not even sure if they are still available. :?

[rek]

i have a parts bike with the anti-dive stuff on it intact. i don't plan to use it
so if you want buy or trade for it let me know.
i have read of others just diabling it and driving on.

[Anonymous]

http://houseofmotorcycles.bikebandit.com/partsbandit/oem_schematic_view.asp?mscssid=N5G7D8BLQ5L19LN5FVVW95RWWNGJE3F4&schem_dept_id=1028294&section_dept_id=1&section_dept_name=OEM+%28Stock+Parts%29&dept_type_id=2&model_dept_year=1984&model_dept_mfr=Suzuki&model_dept_id=987660&model_dept_name=GS1150ESE

Bike bandit list the anti dive unit...#36 on the schematic at 143.00 dollars each

I have not seen any rebuild kits anywhere...

[KGB]

I did the front forks on my E model a couple of months back, actually a local mechanic did them for me. No time for me to do them....


Anyway I had him install a set of Progressive springs, new seals and 15 weight fork oil. I do not use any air in the forks. Hugh difference.
I had him install "never leak" seals.

he did not touch the anti dive units. I have them on the lowest settings.
I've only had the bike since May, and have only tried 2 settings, hardest and softest. Not a big difference in my mind.

One part of the forks that needs to be replaced is the internal bushings.
I'll do those over the winter. I can see where the fork tube is rubbing, almost looks polished, on the tube. This is causing the seal to weep a little.
If you do the forks, do it all, including the bushings.

[Anonymous]

I am planning to rebuild my forks over the winter. (84 GS1150EFE )can anyone recommend where i can get a good set of replacement springs.
Also what about arebuild kit for the anti dive / damping units situated at the fork leg bottoms.

Since no one else mentioned it, Race Tech also sells springs for your 1150. They are straight rate instead of progressive and are easier to tune because of that. You can order from several spring rates depending on your bike/rider weight and intended useage. They are more money ($110USD vs. ~$80USD for Progressives), but they are a better performance option and are what I am putting in my 1100E forks this winter.

If you don't care about really fine tuning the suspension for the best handling and performance, then the Progressive springs are the best choice. They offer a great ride, much improved performance over the OEM stuff, are easier to tune into the correct ballpark, are good quality and significantly cheaper. Hard to beat that for most useage.

As for the anti-dive, most people that do anything to it deactivate it. I certainly plan to during my fork rebuild this winter. With the Progressive springs and heavier oil, you really don't need any anti-dive and usually it is detrimental to performance as the the fork gets harsh during braking, which is the opposite of what you really need.

Mark