TiN coated fork sliders

Hi all,
I am wondering how many of you are familiar with TiN (titanium Nitrite) coating on fork sliders and other wear and tear parts. If you are unfamiliar with this coating, it is the gold coating you see on higher end motorcycle fork sliders used predominantly in racing and dirt track racing. The coating is applied using a vacuum process (its all very technical stuff). The end result is a fork slider very resistant to corrosion and in a way, permanantly lubricated. Your fork seals will last alot longer (this is nice for guys who ride dirt). Also, it looks pretty cool. I was just posting this out of curiosity to see how many of you would be interested in having parts coated in TiN. It isn't very cheap. In fact, a set of forks (supplied by you) could run about 400+ dollars coated. Go do a little research on the net and please reply with your level of interest in coating parts for your bike.

here are some links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TiN

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Suzuk...QQcmdZViewItem just as an example to look at,, not trying to help this guy sell his forks

theres a few more sites online, but not many... also, what would you be willing to spend to have your forks done?

[northwind]

On the SV? Precisely nothing, it's about the last thing in a list of suspension mods that's worth doing... You'd have to be wrong in the head to TiN or DLC an SV fork unless you'd had it completely rebuilt, and I don't just mean emulators or springs. Maybe if you've done AK-20s or a similiar full cartridge install, it'd make sense...

I think JHS used to offer TiN fork lowers for the SV, if anyone's interested.

AKA Teflon

EDIT: I'm totally wrong, they're just often used together. Apologies

Eric, I am a chemistry student very interested in surface modification of materials (it is the basis for my final year project). Would you be so kind as to post the technical details of the TiN process? Is it by any chance Chemical Vapour Deposition that is used?

I'm quite aware of the low surface energy this material provides, my only concern is that if it isnt applied properly then the coating has a tendancy to wear away (like on early GSXR1000 forks). How thick is the coating that you do?

Matt

I do not currently do the coating but I am looking to get into doing it with my dad. The coating is very thin,, around 30 microns if i remember correctly.As you stated, it can flake off very easily if it isnt applied correctly. By correctly I mean you must clean parts thoroughly with acetone. If there is even the slightest trace of oil deposit on the product, the finish is worth crap. From what I've read, you have to coat certain metals with another coating before applying the TiN coating so it adheres correctly. I believe the first coating contains nickel. Read the link to wikipedia under titanium nitirde. They use the coating for drill bits (the gold ones) as well. I found several sites that do this process but all are very careful not to disclose the entire process. If you send me your email, I'll send you a little more information. The process is done by placing the product in a vacuum chamber and drawing a strong vacuum on it. Then you introduce the TiN in the form of a gas, and by admitting an eletric current, you get the TiN to bond to the product. After cooling, it it tough stuff; will not come off. They have done abrasion resistance testing on it with nice results. Send me your email, I'd be glad to send some info your way.