K tech springs

ive just spoke to UK Suspension in keighley about sorting out my front end, they recomended K tech springs over Ohlins as the Ktechs come in different rates so you can get the right one for your wheight, i assume this means Ohlins only come in one rate? ,

im 20 stone , and the prob i have with the front is that with the preload set quite high, the front is harsh and skips,jumps on rough surfaces.

they said £60 for the springs and £10 for the oil, and theyd work out the right oil and springs for my wheight,

or if i took the bike to them £140 for them to fit them and put new seals in.,

is it worth me doing it myself? or for the sake of £70 take the bike in?
oh they said that the springs are single rate, apparently one of the probs with the sv is that they have progressive springs as stock which resemble the spring out of a biro..

any thoughts?

hellloooooo?

is there anyone here?

[Balky001]

For £70 I'd take it in - piece of mind if you haven't done it before and most mechanics I've spoken to say it can be a frustrating/messy job at times. And you wont know what weight oil to use or buy in the first place - it might be anything from 5 to 20 depending on the springs and valving on the forks. For instance, when I had my SV forks done they used 17.5 weight oil (I was 13 stone)- but on my GSXR they used 7.5 weight as it's not just dependent on your weight but the valves spring etc as well.

I'm surprised Ohlins only do a single rate, I know standard is around 15% - 20% stiffer but I thought you could order diofferent rates through people like Harris etc.

Originally Posted by Captain Nemo

ive just spoke to UK Suspension in keighley about sorting out my front end, they recomended K tech springs over Ohlins as the Ktechs come in different rates so you can get the right one for your wheight, i assume this means Ohlins only come in one rate?

That's a load of old c*ck! If they are that stupid then I would suggest you don't take your bike anywhere near them!

Ohlins do springs in just about every spring rate you can imagine. Last year I tried 8.5, 9.0 and 9.5 kg Ohlins spring in a variety of SV650s!

I reckon you need (using Elmerfud's table,) 0.934Kg/mm springs & 15w/20w oil... Maxton do springs for £55 + VAT - You can pick the oil up just about anywhere

Originally Posted by Richard Adams at Maxton Engineering (via e-mail)

Maxton Engineering,
Chapel Works,
Kingswood,
Frodsham,
Warrington,
Cheshire,
WA6 6HX.
U.K.
TEL : +44 01928 740531

Thanks for your enquiry, We can just supply forks springs, they cost £55.00 + V.A.T.

If you need anymore information about the modifications we carry out
you can ring me on the telephone number above, if you can not get
through fax me your number and I'll ring you back as our phone can be
very busy.

Regards

Richard
Maxton Engineering

Originally Posted by Cloggsy's copy of Elmer's table - Elmerfud

• <table width="800" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="2"> <tr> <td bgcolor="#000000" width="200"> <font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2" color="#FFFFFF">Rider weight (St)</font></td> <td bgcolor="#000000" width="200"> <font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2" color="#FFFFFF">Rider weight (Kg)</font></td> <td bgcolor="#000000" width="200"> <font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2" color="#FFFFFF">Spring rate (Kg/mm)</font></td> <td bgcolor="#000000" width="200"> <font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2" color="#FFFFFF">Fork oil</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">9 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">58 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.705</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">64 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.725</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">11 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">70 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.745</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">12 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">76 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.766</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">13 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">82 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.787</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">14 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">89 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.808</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">15 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">95 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.829</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w/15w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">16 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">101 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.850</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">10w/15w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">17 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">108 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.871</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">15w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">18 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">114 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.892</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">15w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">19 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">121 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">0.913</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">15w/20w</td> </tr> <tr> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">20 stones</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200">127 Kg</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="199">0.934</td> <td bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="269">15w/20w</td> </tr>

take at least 2 hours to do this job, iv done this sort of jobs on bikes and took me well over 3 hours, no matter how gd u are, its very time consuming and stressful (esspecialy if u have a lady winging every 2 min)

Originally Posted by Bikerz

take at least 2 hours to do this job, iv done this sort of jobs on bikes and took me well over 3 hours, no matter how gd u are, its very time consuming and stressful (esspecialy if u have a lady winging every 2 min)

yes i have an assistant that can be like that sometimes.....

I've been eying up JHS...

http://www.jhsracing.co.uk

"For just £199.00 we will strip out your front forks, drain the oil, fit uprated springs and refill with the correct grade of oil."

I'm assuming that they'll do it exactly for your weight. They're in Bristol but they sound like they're pretty clued up... and I'd rather get it done by someone who knows what they're doing than trust any old mechanic, who'd want almost as much for doing the job and might well use any old springs or oil they have... will probably get it done within the next 3 months...

£199 seems a bit steep,

well ive ordered my springs (arriving sat) in 0.9, cos im hoping to lose some weight, and got 15wt oil.

so monday nights a fork stripping party at my house nr wakefield, anyone want to come?

I'll be along to watch/ drink your tea.

Once we've bodged it on your bike I'll order my springs as I'll have an idea of what not to do then