Bent Fork

I have a 2007 SK6 - having stripped down the front fairing to get at a threaded wing mirror bolt I've noticed that the left fork is slightly (visibly) bent...

I've not yet ridden the bike over any great distance (still waiting to find a restricted ecu), although my brother rode it home for me over 40 miles and said he didn't notice any adverse affects.

How dangerous is this? Should I get it straightened / replaced? And how much is this likely to cost?

Thanks

Wip the forks out and get them checked fella,

If they are both difficult to come out, then you will need to check the bottom yoke also, unfortunatly forks and yokes on SV's are made from cheese, so bend real easy.

If you can see a kink ( i take it, it's right under the bottom yoke?) then they will be useless. Get them replaced ASAP, K-tech do aftermarket ones for around 100 per upper stanchion, genuine ones are now £254.12 per leg (part # 5111017G00)

I have ridden bent forks before (maybe 1mm-2mm) and could tell the difference, if you can see the kink it will be much worse than that.

Get them checked fella, safest bet.

Paul T

Cool cheers toadie. Yeah it is right by the bottom yoke, can't see a kink but I think there might be one hiding just in the yoke. The further I delve into this bike the more broken stuff I find!

Will take it to a shop and see what they can do. Thanks for your help.

[dizzyblonde]

had a hairline kink on one of my forks after i hit Bambi, worked fine for around 2500 miles(maybe more), it wasn't until I had a routine fork oil change and the bent fork was put back in, but not in its natural bentness, that i found it awful to ride. Whipped em out and got another set in there ASAP.

cool thanks guys. having finally fitted my restrictor and gone for a ride it definitely doesn't feel right and will be replacing it/them!

my question is - is it easy enough to fit the stanchions yourself or would you recommend getting someone to do it? Just I'm not overly well off at the moment and have spotted these on ebay.

Also, do they look OK? Says they are genuine suzuki so thats good i suppose?

Thanks again.

Originally Posted by pin64

cool thanks guys. having finally fitted my restrictor and gone for a ride it definitely doesn't feel right and will be replacing it/them!

my question is - is it easy enough to fit the stanchions yourself or would you recommend getting someone to do it? Just I'm not overly well off at the moment and have spotted these on ebay.

Also, do they look OK? Says they are genuine suzuki so thats good i suppose?

Thanks again.

Its one of the easiest things to do IMO a full strip down and oil change on my forks from start to finish took about an hours work and a pair of ruined pants

Sweet thats good news. Im pretty new to bike maintenance but have done a fair bit of work on my bike already so think i will brave this!

Only problem is I have no rafters to hang the bike off and no crash bungs to prop it up on jacks. Any ideas?

Originally Posted by pin64

Sweet thats good news. Im pretty new to bike maintenance but have done a fair bit of work on my bike already so think i will brave this!

Only problem is I have no rafters to hang the bike off and no crash bungs to prop it up on jacks. Any ideas?

I used a centre stand a a jack under the sump, do you know any one with a rear paddock stand? Where abouts are you at?

Originally Posted by pin64

Sweet thats good news. Im pretty new to bike maintenance but have done a fair bit of work on my bike already so think i will brave this!

Only problem is I have no rafters to hang the bike off and no crash bungs to prop it up on jacks. Any ideas?

Big pile of stable stuff ( Bricks or something) and then something soft to rest on top (old quilt, sponges etc . . ). Other than that a front stand lift into the headstock.

I cant say I know anyone with a paddock stand - am new to biking so haven't met many other riders yet. I'm in the tunbridge wells area - in a town called wadhurst. Might have an ask around - or even invest in one sometime soon think it might be useful?

I do have a jack though and I'm sure I can source a pile of bricks or something similar. Thanks for the words of encouragement.