Z1000SX front forks only have 2 turns of damping - not 3.5

[jedibiker]

Hey all.

noticed today the forks will only turn out 2 full turns, the book says 3.5.. do they get like that over time

 

Due to new oil and seals it needs to be set for the better oil so thought id start at the soft end, was surprised its only 2 turns, fair enough its only just too soft, but at 1.5 turns out where it was before its stiff now.

 

It is set ok, just wondered if the extra turn can be got back if needed.

 

cheers

[jedibiker]

ah well..

[Fozzie]

Only thing I can think of is your damper rod nut isn't adjusted to the right height. I had this issue when I rebuilt a friends R1 suspension, not enough clicks on one of the fork legs. Found the damper rod nut sitting about 5mm higher from where it was supposed to be.

 

Yours at least sounds symmetrical, so if you've had them rebuilt and set up, I'd be asking your last mechanic if it was deliberate. 

[Stu]

Check what @Fozzie says first 

 

Sometimes the adjusters seize too but when that happens you get 0 turns! 

[jedibiker]

On 26/07/2023 at 14:19, Fozzie said:

Only thing I can think of is your damper rod nut isn't adjusted to the right height. I had this issue when I rebuilt a friends R1 suspension, not enough clicks on one of the fork legs. Found the damper rod nut sitting about 5mm higher from where it was supposed to be.

 

Yours at least sounds symmetrical, so if you've had them rebuilt and set up, I'd be asking your last mechanic if it was deliberate. 

with this the damper rods that fix into the fork stayed in, the only thing to come out was the rod that goes down the damper rod, its possible I screwed the cap on and the nut was higher up but i feel sure I wound it down so the cap was seated.

Its also possible it was always only 2 click and I didnt notice.

as it stands it doesnt need to be softer anyway, maybe even a quarter turn in but it rides brilliant. (done about 200 miles since this post)

 

I may just have a few hours on it at some point and double check I didnt make a mistake. Done right way up forks plenty but it was first with upside down and took my time.

I didnt unwind the preload either but  noone seems to with these as there isnt any pressure when undoing the cap. unlike right way forks that take your head off haha

[RideWithStyles]

I wouldnt be worried about that count exactly.

You always count out from fully closed, most road forks work from fully closed to two turns out, after that its fully open and not controlling anything due to the valve or shims stack.

The valve control as its opened or closed is generally not liner too.

you'll be needing to keep closing the valve in stages over time to keep it within your requirements as the oil age's anyway until it gets replaced.

the only time you'll need that turn back if your forks take 10wt and its ok for it but you suddenly decide to put in 30wt or thicker in for some reason.

Without more info...guessing The reason now that fork feels stiffer now at the same turns will be down the the refresh... if the fork oil has been changed did the tech use a different oil? Even if the manual states 10wt and the tech used 10wt id doubt it the same manufacturer of oil, unlike engine oils they are not regulated they make it what they feel to them....so for example a castrol 10wt fork oil could be thinner and feel more like a 5wt than say a motuls 10wt equivalent to comparison.

Edited August 17, 2023 by RideWithStyles
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