Thanks Chris, as always!

I'll see what I can come up with tomorrow, and will let you know. I actually thought Motion Pro made a steering race tool like yours, but now I'm not seeing it on their site.

Don't forget, my tool lending offer still stands anytime you decide to get inside your cam chest!

 

The neck race tool I have isn't Mo Pro. I think it's Pit Posse but not 100% sure. I believe I just did a sorta generic eBay/Amazon search and turned up multiple options.

I would love a drawer full of Jim's tools but I can't justify the cost for such infrequent use. I probably will end up getting their wheel bearing puller tho. I've already worn out my Pit Posse.

 

If and When you get to this ... Here's a "Heads Up" (because I was thinking about it)

Be prepared to drill out the dimples ... (Not my pic, but is my arrow )

 

Ha, this is exactly where I'm at right now... I was just sitting down to write an "update!" Stay tuned for a half hour or so!

 

I had time to make some progress last night. Both forks are basically disassembled now, although I haven't yet gotten inside the cartridges themselves.

Opening a cartridge fork is pretty much drama-free, as there isn't significant spring pressure on the cap (with preload unloaded and the bottom fully extended).



Removing the spring requires a spring compressor, as you need access to a nut located under the collar. Once accessed, a clip can be inserted to keep the spring out of the way while removing the cap/rebound adjuster. The "good" tools for doing this are in the $300 range, which I didn't think was in the cards for me. Howard suggested I take the assemblies to a sportbike shop at this point, just to allow them to compress the spring and remove upper assembly. I thought about it, but decided to try doing it myself first. I ordered this $29 compressor/clip tool from Traxxion Dynamics. It requires two people to use properly, one to press down on the compressor, and the other to insert the retainer clip while the spring is compressed. The two threaded rods fit into the holes in the collar, visible in the above picture. I figured it would either work, and I would save a trip to a shop and whatever they charged me, or it wouldn't, and I would be out thirty bucks. Neither outcome would be a disaster.



The main problem I encountered was that I didn't have a second person last night (or a third hand), so I improvised a bit... Instead of pushing the spring down, I used a floor jack to push the slider up. Same difference! I positioned the spring compressor so the handles were wedged underneath the wood jaws, which were open enough to allow the clip to be inserted. My homemade tube holder was secure enough to do this, so it worked pretty well.



Once compressed, inserting the clip was easy. Once the top was off and the clip removed, the jack allowed tension to come off the spring in a controlled manner, so nothing went flying anywhere.



After removing the rebound adjuster and spring, I pulled the slider caps and dust covers. It ended up being helpful that my tube holder worked well for the lowers too, not just the fork tubes.


Moving the tubes back down into the jaws, I was able to pull the sliders off the bottom. Each one took about three good up and down strokes. I had poured oil out the top after removing the springs, but keeping a bucket underneath caught anything still left.



Compression adjusters removed from sliders...



And, here's the cartridge itself. I'm pretty sure all the black magic is inside here somewhere...



Now it's all sitting on my bench, more organized than it looks!

 

At this point, I think I can place my order with Howard. He wanted me to measure the springs before ordering, as well as the rear shocks eye-to-eye with the back wheel hanging off the ground. I got all the measurements last night... Howard, if you're listening, I'll call you on Monday to discuss details!

The main thing I've discovered so far is that even if I didn't "upgrade' anything, a straight forward rebuild would probably yield a huge difference! My forks were a mess inside! Both springs were below the minimum length spec listed in the FSM (and they weren't even the same length exactly), a different amount of oil came out of each side, and the oil was basically a thick milky-black sludge that probably wasn't really moving through the valves at all. I can't believe I've been able to hustle this bike on back roads they way I have... I can't wait to ride it in the spring!

Measurements:

Left spring length: 16.81"
Right spring length: 16.9"
(FSM minimum length: 17")
Both springs diameter: 1.86"
Spring wire diameter: .17"

Rear shock length, eye-to-eye, installed on bike, bike off the ground: 13.6"
(OEM FXDX shocks)

 

Btw, I didn't see them in your pile, so your Oil Lock Piece (lower stop) is still down in the sliders

.

 

Yes, correct... I've read that it's rare that it needs to be changed, but I also assume it needs to come out for powder coating. And I certainly don't want to put the old ones back in once removed, so I guess I should order them. I think that's the only piece I missed in my original order:




Speaking of my "original order," here's a tip: Don't ignore your local dealer! I was planning on ordering from Ronnie's as I often do, but sometimes their shipping is slow. I brought the above printout to my local dealer. The Parts Manager glanced at it and said "Looks aggressive!" I told him I wasn't asking (or expecting) a full price match, as convenience/speed has value to me. He rang up the above list at $124 total, had half of it in stock, and the rest five days later. Great service, thanks Hannum's HD!

 

No, it's re-usable, but for cleaning / PC purposes, I thought you might want to R&R it.

It does have an O-ring on it ...

 

I kinda got a chuckle out of seeing the pics of the rusty neck bearings . I bought a 2008 VRSCDX new , about a year or so into ownership , the steering started to get quite heavy , the bike was under warranty still . I worked at a dealership back then and I have a fully equipped shop at home where all kinds of projects happen so I pulled the forks off at home and to my surprise , found that the neck bearings had zero grease on them , right from the factory. I had the dealership process it as a warranty claim , received a credit at the dealership even though the repair was done by me at my home shop. A happy ending .

Your fork service is overdue !


The fork tube holder you built is creative , a little bulky but it will work.


I've done a ton of fork rebuilds , repairs , gold valve kits and such , I used to be a Buell nut and supported a few racers with engine builds and suspension work.



I have one of the Jim's fork leg tools , it's cool but it needed a block of aluminum bolted on to grip it in the vise to hold forks both horizontally and vertically



there's a couple of fork tube holders I made in this drawer


Sometimes I make tools , sometimes I buy them , it depends on how much **** costs or what is going on and how quick I need it .

When it comes to tools , I have lots and ……. I generally don't dick around , I make my living with it . I'm 63 and have been a mechanic since high school so it stands to reason , I'm gonna have a bunch of tools.
I don't call a plumber , I am the plumber ,I am the electrician , the carpenter , the tile guy ….. and so on .


I appreciate people that can think things through and make good repairs