Maxton

[willjanuk]

Hi Guys,
Anyone out there upgrade Z1 front forks from Maxton, ?
Just wondered if the cost would be worth it, These are the costs depending on how deep your pockets are.

The Maxton GP20 cartridge costs between £330.00 and £630.00 + V.A.T.
Depending on how adjustable you want the cartridge to be.

- For £330.00 + V.A.T the cartridge is adjustable for rebound damping.

- For £430.00 + V.A.T the cartridge is adjustable for rebound damping and
preload.

- For £530.00 + V.A.T the cartridge is adjustable for rebound and
compression damping.

- For £630.00 + V.A.T the cartridge is adjustable for rebound and
compression damping and preload.

To service the forks with new seals and install the cartridges costs an
extra £135.00 + V.A.T on top of the cartridge.

All adjustments can be made without having to strip the forks down.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Thanks Will.

[steve bowdler]

It depends a bit on what you doing with the rest of the bike , progresive springs make a big differance

[Z.O.A]

Looks a nice set up, but I think if you're going to be just using it on the road even for fast riding, a rebuild with good oil and progressive springs and a solid fork brace (micron if you can find one or Tarozzi) would be your best bet, just in my opinion the cost outweighs the benefit, (unless there's money burning a hole in your pocket)

[Z1parR]

Having used Maxton suspension and steering damper there is no doubting the quality of Ron's work , but ,
£££££££££££££££££££££££££££££ and on a flexy framed Z there are more issues than front forks .

[JohnC]

I wouldn't want to go any faster on the road than I can with the near standard setup, with decent springs (Hagon progressive springs are good as said), good fork oil and everything else being in tip top condition (rear shocks, all bearings being fine etc.). As said, It's a case of - frame (unless really well braced) - "she canny take any more captain" IMO.....

I chased a guy on a ZXR750 on my 77 A1 once and he nearly ended up in a field trying to get away from a 35 year old. (bike that is, not owner, lol)!! He eventually pulled over and asked what the f**k I was riding

I'm sure £600 - £700 flung at the standard forks would improve them and keep the looks, but if I wanted this sort of performance then I'd be looking at a set of modern upside downers unless I had a fetish for the standard butchers pencil look

Z1000A1 - 1075, progressive springs, Kawa damper, Koni Dial-a-wobbles, JMC braced swinging arm, Micron brace, (and the life saver - 360mm spondon fully floating discs and Nissin 4 pots). Oh and some input from Debben

[willjanuk]

Thanks Guys,
I did'nt mention the frame for obvious reasons, and it's not braced either.

It's just I'm not happy with the way the front forks feel, after trying different weight oils over the years, but not having replaced springs as they were within spec's and may have already been replaced at some time.

I just wondered if the internals were f####d as it 40 next year, front end feels quite stiff especially at low speeds.

Are the internals serviceable or do they have to be replaced, how can I tell if they are working properly or not,?

I am trying to keep it looking relatively standard and have not fitted a fork brace for that reason, it has got a steering damper but that should have been fitted as standard not an optionally extra.



I

[Bill Newman]

Will,

having looked into this quite carefully before starting my A4 restoration because I was unhappy with the suspension set up, I would repeat the advice given to me:-

1 - by comparison to my weight in the 70s, I am twice the guy I used to be! This has an impact because the suspension was not designed to deal with it.

2 - sort the frame first. I had mine braced for this reason, having ridden a bike with a braced frame,it transforms it;

3 - you will improve suspension matters considerably by reducing unsprung weight - fit alloys;

4 - 1970s forks were never that good in the first place. technology was aimed at performance and not handling back in the day;

5 - there are some improvements which can be carried out which are cost effective: new springs are good. It does not matter if they are progressive - most riders couldn't tell the difference. Of more importance is renew the oil - it supposed to be changed regularly: most are never done...

6 - get the oil level and the air gap correct and the same on both legs. The spring takes care of compression whilst the combination of oil/air gap takes care of the rebound.

7 - you can vary the preload to suit you using spacers/different length springs

All of which will be a lot cheaper than £700


Bill

[willjanuk]

Thanks Bill,
Unlike you, I have managed to keep my weight within limits and am not much heavier than I was way back when.

As for alloys, not for my Z1 and the Ronals I have on my Rickman are'nt exactly light weight.

I have decided to give the Forks a complete stip down and see whats going on inside and am ordering Progessive Springs etc.

If that does'nt sort it then I will splash the cash, in the meantime we need a new stair carpet (so the misses says)


Will.

[oldzed]

I fitted cartridge emulators to my 1000ST front end.

Changed the handling beyond belief

I can set them up with soft or stiff compression using the emulators.

not quite modern suspension but much more complient and less prone to dive

[Pigford]

I fitted cartridge emulators to my 1000ST front end.

Changed the handling beyond belief

I can set them up with soft or stiff compression using the emulators.

not quite modern suspension but much more complient and less prone to dive

More details needed

[PJ]

Is this what you mean Oldzed?

http://www.racetech.com/HTML_FILES/EMULATORGV.HTML

[Z1parR]

later

[oldzed]

Thats the very thing.

Mine were actually for something else (KLR650)but they fit fine.

I fitted them to a spare set of fork legs to see if they were
ok.

they are much better than the standard legs were.
you can set them up from soooft to ouch on compression

rebound is adjusted by changing oil weight

[rickman CRR]

Will

Instead of spending all that money on internal damping upgrades why dont you first try fitting flatter bars as this will offer more immediate weight/control over the front end at a fraction of the cost?

[ADRIAN H]

Will

Instead of spending all that money on internal damping upgrades why dont you first try fitting flatter bars as this will offer more immediate weight/control over the front end at a fraction of the cost?

Totally agree. My Z1000A2, has flat bars. Also progressive springs to front forks. Totally changed the feel of the bike.