forks

i deceided i need new forks so wrote off my standard ones. i understand gixxer forks can fit a k5 s, but which ones, how much swearing is involved and rough costs....? also curious abour bar fitting, levers, calipers etc if i do get gixxer forks.

Hi there,
its best if you can get the complete whole front end from a gsxr if you can, then you have every thing you will need that is what I did, if you use a pre srad front end or forks it is a straight swap but if you use a srad front end or forks then you need to change the steerer in the yokes for a pre srad or sv 650 0ne.
If you are buying the forks on there own then make sure they come with the yokes.
You will then need a front wheel to suit the forks you have,as the pre srad and the srad models have different spindle sizes, then you will require callipers, front fender and any other little bits and pieces that you may want.
Dont forget you will need to paint front fender and probably powder coat the front wheel.
I paid £450 for the complete front end pluss new head bearings so that gives you some indication of costs
Regards ****.

[21QUEST]

For the K3 onwards it's a straight swap as the bearings are the same. You need the complete frontend. The only things you can use from the SV is the clutch bits and grips.

I'll say go for 750/1000K1 or GSXR600K4 onwards.

Cheers
Ben

[northwind]

The 750 Showas are generally held to be better stock than the 1000 Kayabas... I think it cost me about £500 all in including a Brembo master cylinder, including coating both wheels and a new front tyre... but then again, I had to buy all the parts seperate as I'd specced a Frankenstein's monster Also, since I used older bits they were a little cheaper than the new radial-equipped bits will be.

But then, you can recover a lot of the cost if you sell your SV bits.

Hey guys, i have a 2001 model SV, will the pre SRAD gixxer front end from say a 750 bolt straight on like on the newer SV's? if not does anyone know what will?
Thanks

[northwind]

There's supposedly something from the pre-SRAD days that uses the same steering stem and bearings... Never really looked into that since it means getting older parts designed for heavier bikes.

The swap for a carbed model's not hard. If I can do it, you can too SRAD 750 yokes are a very close match for our model, steering lock stops work and the ignition lock can be made to fairly easily as well (I ground my frame just a little, couple of mm, you could mod the lock but it'd take longer). You either swap the stems over, or go with a different top bearing- Twin Works Factory in the states do a roller race top bearing for $60 shipped to the UK. Result...

I used a SRAD wheel as well (well, a TL wheel but they're the same) as it's a perfect cosmetic match for the SV's one. Also a SRAD axle as I used the SRAD yoke. The SRAD axle fits into more recent forks no problem, I used K2 forks- but it seems the SRAD and K2 750 forks are nearly identical anyway. I just chose K2 to get newer, fresher parts.

The front end's about 12-15mm shorterthan stock, so I compensated with a 120/70 tyre. I used K2 calipers, mudguard, and clipons. The mudguard's not a perfect fit and stretches a little, but not enough to worry me, and the calipers get spaced in slightly.

The clipons are the only thing I'm still not happy with- the throttle cables foul the fairing because the GSXR clipons are lower than the SV ones. A pair of TLS or 00-04 Fireblade clipons should sort that, I've just not got any yet.

You can use the stock SV controls, etc- you can even keep the SV master cylinder but it's a bit cack. I ended up putting on a Brembo radial that I got cheap but there's a load of options- Blade, SP2, newer GSXRs, loads of others.

And here's the clever bit... The speedo drive runs off our front wheels, so if you change forks you lose your speedo. But you can mount the speedo drive onto your rear axle instead. This is a bit more complicated, but I've got a writeup that'll take you through it, drop me a PM with an email address if you want it.