My Forks Are All Weepy..

[spookytooth]

Crying tears of oil.. I was going to try to put this off until next winter but I don't think it's going to make it. I was thinking about going to a set of progressive springs while I had it apart but I REALLY don't want to change the ride height. Will the how-to thread for the 1100 work for the 1000? What says you about ride height? Well progressive springs make a noticeable difference?

[Fred Camper]

I weight 168 lbs and progressive springs stiffened up the ride. Did not notice a difference in ride height but they have more preload than my old springs. Been thinking about reducing the preloaded to soften the ride a touch as small bumps are more pronounced. I added a fork brace and that improved handling more than progressive springs IMO.

The how to will work, but GL1000 forks do not have replace able wear surfaces so do not look to remove them. A seal removal tool is very helpful

[Placerville]

Absolutely agree with Fred. Progressives will not alter the ride height in any way. I'll also add that for me, Progressives made little to no difference in my bikes handling characteristics. Progressives original purpose was to help dampen the dive that occurred when additional weight was placed on the front of the bike e.g., a fairing. For some, they helped. After replacing my originals with Progressives, I can say that I couldn't notice any difference in the 'dive' or handling in general. I left them installed as there was no reason to take them out (and I figured that my 36 year-old originals were getting a little tired). BTW, I'm 6'4", weigh in at 230 and I always ride solo. By the way, for your leaking seal(s), have you considered trying a seal cleaning tool first? Seals usually are leaking because they have a small bit of crud lodged in between themselves and the fork. Look for them on the Web (Motion Pro makes one). Inexpensive and, if it works, you've saved yourself a lot of work.

[spookytooth]

Great info as usual! I ordered the seal cleaning tool from Amazon. Hopefully I can make these seals last until after riding season....

[spookytooth]

Man... I can't believe Amazon charged me $5 for that! And $5 shipping! Took it for a short ride afterwards... So far so good. Keep your fingers crossed!

[Fred Camper]

How about an update, did the fork cleaning do the trick? I never knew that was an option, so thank you Placerville for that information. If the age of the seals is reasonable, then cleaning should be the first step.

[spookytooth]

So far so good!!!!!!

[Fred Camper]

Appreciate the update. Sounds like success to me.