Author Topic: Front Forks  (Read 3156 times)

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Tom 60 Chief

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on: April 02, 2012, 01:34:03 am
The front fork seals have been leaking on my Chief  for the last ten or fifteen years, so I decided to repair them ( you  shouldn't rush into things).  I disassembled and assessed the condition of everything and e-mailed an order to Hitchcocks for the necessary parts.  The pieces arrived yesterday morning and I assembled it this afternoon.  All was pretty straight forward with only a couple caveats.  The replacement fork tubes have a smsller I.D. than the originals and the original bronze, bottom fork spring guides (pg 30 #15 in my parts book) don't fit the new tubes.  Fortunately, Hitchcocks sends the correct size (in steel) when you buy the tube set.  They also include new springs and fork spring guide nuts.  The new springs were also shorter so I used my original springs. Pictures (1) Old parts with new pieces assembled into bottom tube. (2) The gap between the two original tubes is because one is bent. (3) Old seals and un-needed fork spring guides. (4) Special tools, left- spanner used to remove and replace the valve port (came with a barrel I ordered for my 1911 Colt)  middle- 1/2" hex welded to an old socket, to remove and replace fork tubes from the steering tree. right- big freaking wrench ground thin to fit the oil seal assembly.  (4)All done, with 8 oz ATF per side. Dry, smooth and sweet.  Regards Tom
 










Ice

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Reply #1 on: April 02, 2012, 07:52:01 am
           SWEET !!!
No matter where you go, there, you are.


GreenMachine

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Reply #2 on: April 02, 2012, 03:18:20 pm
Thanks for the pics of the disassembled parts...I bet you were happy to see you had that bottom steel guide from Hitchcocks to complete the job and fix those leaky forks...15 years is a long time for a small leak...Guess you kept adding a wee bit of atf ..At least you knew t was fresh ;D..  Funny how you can find odd n end  tools to accomadate a fix ..
Oh Magoo you done it again


Ratty-matty

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Reply #3 on: June 22, 2012, 08:55:10 pm
i can work out why you dont want to use the forks hitchcocks sent if they messed up with other bits , but i know they changed the fork springs to duel rate for all classic models ( i fitted them it runs beautifully ) did you measure the spring length to see if it was ok or nackered & id suggest if you get a chance next fork rebuild stick the new springs in the may be shorter but the ride is smoother


Tom 60 Chief

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Reply #4 on: June 23, 2012, 02:18:19 am
Ratty-matty,  thanks for your reply.  All the pieces Hitchcocks sent were exemplary.  I could have turned about .020" off the original bronze spring guides and they would have worked fine, but as Hitchcocks sent the correct size replacements it was un-necessary.  I was unaware about the new dual rate springs, but I opted to use my originals as they are about two inches longer and have been suitable for the thirty plus years I have owned this machine (no sagging).  Having said that, this bike has always been a bit rough in the front and it is difficult to keep the middle fender stays from cracking (see the pictures of j95rs Chief in this section for an example of that). So perhaps this next winter I will swap them out and see how it works.  Good information, thanks.  Tom