Fork oil

[Bernoff]

Any of you guys using a different oil in Forks? I thought there was a thread on it but can't find it.

 

[machinehead]

Any of you guys using a different oil in Forks? I thought there was a thread on it but can't find it.

Just changed my Kayaba forks with 5w oil which is the stock weight.
i use mineral based oils , synthetic, blah blah ........
I bleed it out every season anyway .
New seals and bushings as well this time .
Installed heavier springs in a couple of years ago , which helped immensely .

 

[Stg2Suby]

Any of you guys using a different oil in Forks? I thought there was a thread on it but can't find it.

Different weights or different brands?

 

[Bernoff]

I thought it was about different weights. My upgrades Fund is getting stretched so the heavier springs are on hold. Looked in manual and it needs or supposed to have SAE 4 ( KTM ) Where did you find the wheels from?

 

[machinehead]

Springs are not a game changer, but do help if you are heavier all geared up .

It it wasn’t hard to use up the full 12” , with the stock springs .

FYI - https://www.cannonracecraft.com/ if your upgrade situation changes .

Others will chime in if they had any success with different weight oil.

As stated have only used the 5w mineral based.

 

[Bernoff]

Where did you find the caster wheels for the ski. They don't look like the yeti ones I have seen.

 

[machinehead]

Where did you find the caster wheels for the ski. They don't look like the yeti ones I have seen.

i,m a machinist by trade and can be frugal at times , so built my own wheel kit .
The wheels are solid rubber (no tube or air ) from Princess Auto .
I cant recall exact price , but thinking Around $10 each on a sale.
I think the hand knobs were from there as well .

 

[machinehead]

I see those are the old wheels in the photo . They kept going flat so I replaced them with solid rubber ones same dimensions I think they’re 10 inch . No issues after that .

 

[gedakbx]

oil volume will help stiffen it up also most manuals have a min/ max oil volume. You can also adjust the compression clickers in to firm up the fork.

 

[Bernoff]

I see those are the old wheels in the photo . They kept going flat so I replaced them with solid rubber ones same dimensions I think they’re 10 inch . No issues after that .

Saw those in Princess auto but thought they would'nt take the downward pressure of transport. We suck our bikes down pretty good. Had them come loose a few times. Can you get a side view of your setup with one wheel off? Trying figure how you have it all mounted.

 

[machinehead]

Saw those in Princess auto but thought they would'nt take the downward pressure of transport. We suck our bikes down pretty good. Had them come loose a few times. Can you get a side view of your setup with one wheel off? Trying figure how you have it all mounted.

As requested !
Just used longer hardware for spindle mount .

 

[Bernoff]

Thanks for the pics Machinehead. Did you adapt a Yeti ski to another brand? My wheels are 16" It is screwed down to the wooden blocks to hold bike up straight for now.

 

[machinehead]

Thanks for the pics Machinehead. Did you adapt a Yeti ski to another brand? My wheels are 16" It is screwed down to the wooden blocks to hold bike up straight for now.

Yes I did .
Had a 2015 Timbersled ski made by Simmons .
Was fairly skidish on any icy trail , almost lost it and was was heading towards what appeared to be an endless ravine .
Changed to A Yeti ski , and haven’t back . I am sure the new Timbersled ski design has been updated, as these kits are always evolving .
So a 2015 Timbersled spindle, adapted to a 2016 Yeti ski .
if you can’t find a wheel shaft for your set-up, I could turn one for you .

 

[machinehead]

Yes , my wheels are 16” as well .
see you already have the shaft, should have looked closer at your post .

 

[Bernoff]

Thanks for the offer. Mine are not nearly as machined as yours. The Rims I use are like 1/4" to small, don't fit a !6" tire very well and cause the tire to come off rim sometimes.

 

[Bernoff]

What you guys use for cleaning inside of fork. Brake clean seem to be the clean everything stuff but maybe not the inside of fork tubes.

 

[gedakbx]

That’s what I use

 

[Bernoff]

Its not hard on the seals and o rings? Thanks for the reply though.

 

[Stg2Suby]

Lots of people use brake cleaner and get away with no issues. I used it when I did my forks this past summer and just made sure to blow everything perfectly dry with compressed air right after cleaning.

 

[Bernoff]

Thanks guys I'm not a mechanic so pretty cautious what I do. On the hill, in the cold, is a place I don't want to be if I frigg something. Being the first fork oil change I am surprised how dark the oil was and a very small amount of moisture aswell. Bike is about 98% snow riding.