Date: 19-03-24  Time: 10:48 am

Author Topic: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?  (Read 1147 times)

beuleux

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Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« on: 28 December 2021, 08:01:34 pm »
Hi all, just had a fork seal go so I'm replacing it, I'm just wondering what the general consensus is on which grade to use, I'm assuming the bog standard is 5w just wondering if 7.5 will make a noticeable difference, I'm not sure which grade was in there before but its very clean so probably has been changed recently, had a search on the forum but really tricky finding relevant results 🙈
Thanks 👍
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robbo

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #1 on: 28 December 2021, 09:05:11 pm »
If you've got springs to suit your weight, then 7.5 would be a good choice if your all up rider weight is around the 15 stone mark. Speaking from personal experience. :)
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beuleux

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #2 on: 28 December 2021, 11:05:46 pm »
If you've got springs to suit your weight, then 7.5 would be a good choice if your all up rider weight is around the 15 stone mark. Speaking from personal experience. :)
I was thinking about springs also, i was wondering is there a weight to spring rule of thumb? Possibly 15 stone kitted up and I often have a pillion. I'll give it a go and if it's wrong it's no biggie to change it, plus 5w was out of stock at the bike shop 😄
« Last Edit: 28 December 2021, 11:08:29 pm by beuleux »
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robbo

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #3 on: 28 December 2021, 11:36:33 pm »
If you give Darren, on 01449777161, at MCT, he’ll put you right on what springs you’ll need for what you want to do, and what is the most suitable fork oil weight.
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beuleux

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #4 on: 28 December 2021, 11:38:23 pm »
If you give Darren, on 01449777161, at MCT, he’ll put you right on what springs you’ll need for what you want to do, and what is the most suitable fork oil weight.
Thanks 👍
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Nothing I say should in any way be taken as a good idea 😄

Grahamm

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #5 on: 29 December 2021, 01:54:13 am »
A heavier weight fork oil will increase the damping, make them slower to compress and slower to recover.

This does mean that you could end up with a harsher ride because there won't be so much "give" in the system so the suspension won't absorb bumps as easily and could remain compressed if you hit two bumps in a row.

The first thing I'd do if I were you would be to look at videos explaining how to check the sag and rebound and see how the bike is reacting with the current oil setup, then you'd have a better idea as to whether to change the oil weight or not.

beuleux

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Re: Fork oil upgrade FZ1?
« Reply #6 on: 29 December 2021, 09:48:04 am »
A heavier weight fork oil will increase the damping, make them slower to compress and slower to recover.

This does mean that you could end up with a harsher ride because there won't be so much "give" in the system so the suspension won't absorb bumps as easily and could remain compressed if you hit two bumps in a row.

The first thing I'd do if I were you would be to look at videos explaining how to check the sag and rebound and see how the bike is reacting with the current oil setup, then you'd have a better idea as to whether to change the oil weight or not.
Thanks, I will do that, tbh I haven't had the bike long so hadn't noticed any real issues except maybe a little too much travel hard braking at low speeds, I will put it back together as stock and tweak it from there, once I've had it all off a couple of times it won't take long 👍
« Last Edit: 29 December 2021, 09:58:07 am by beuleux »
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Nothing I say should in any way be taken as a good idea 😄