I have just finished (so I thought) the rebuild of my front forks. They had never, as far as I could tell, been serviced and were "squishy". In addition, they were a bit sticky. I did not remove the stanchions from the yoke but replaced the springs and seals. The wipers appeared to be fine so I did not replace those. In the box of parts that was supplied by Max BMW, there were 2 white plastic bushings that fit nicely on top of the damper rod (piston) between the piston and the bottom of the spring (not the spacers that go on to of the springs). There was no such part in place when I took the forks apart but there was a substantial amount of sludge including a bunch of plastic chips that looked like they might have, at one time, been those bushings. Once I had the whole thing back together, I pushed the front axel through and moved the sliders up and down. They move smoothly without a lot of resistance. After that, I installed the springs, torqued down the guide support, added oil and put the front wheel back on. I didn't tighten the axel. When I took the bike off the center stand, the forks hardly move at all. They are very stiff. If I move the bike forward and apply the front brake, the forks compress and stay that way. Doing the same in reverse, they extend and stay that way. Back on the lift, springs out (wheel off) they slide up and down with pressure from a couple of fingers (up). Gravity and spring from the gators extend them. There must be something simple that I am missing. Can anyone tell me what!?
Thanks,
Chip
Thanks,
Chip