Change the fork oil/2008 Nomad

[pooker]

Hello, I would like to stiffen up the front end by using a heaver oil. Like a 15W.
Can anyone tell me how to drain my forks and how to put the new oil in, also how much oil do you put in?
Thanks

PS. I don't have a shop and I am limited to a few tools.

[ringadingh]

I did this on my bike a year or so ago. You will need a jack to lift the bike up as the forks come right off the bike, so you can drain them.
Go to Gadgets Fixit Page and there is a good article there that explains how to do it in detail. See if its something you think you could handle.
Unless you have some good allen key's ,(17mm) and a breaker bar you may have trouble getting them apart. Even my 1/2" impact gun wasn't strong enough and I had to take it to a local garage where they had a stronger gun.
I replaced my fork oil with 15 weight oil and it still wasn't firm enough. Id use 20 weight if I do it again.

[lonewolf]

will be changing my fork oil also. since i have it apart , am considering going with progressive springs too. want to make sure it stiffens up, since taking fairing off to do it is gonna be a chore.

[pooker]

Originally Posted by Ringadingh

I did this on my bike a year or so ago. You will need a jack to lift the bike up as the forks come right off the bike, so you can drain them.
Go to Gadgets Fixit Page and there is a good article there that explains how to do it in detail. See if its something you think you could handle.
Unless you have some good allen key's ,(17mm) and a breaker bar you may have trouble getting them apart. Even my 1/2" impact gun wasn't strong enough and I had to take it to a local garage where they had a stronger gun.
I replaced my fork oil with 15 weight oil and it still wasn't firm enough. Id use 20 weight if I do it again.

I read Gadget's page and it seems a little trial and error to me. Also there is no exact amount of oil, how many times have people done this?
Every time they guess at it?
I'm looking for exact explanation on how to do the job with exact amounts of oil.
Thanks

[trosco]

pooker, with,,,, "just a few tools and limited space" ,,,,,, this is not something you can do. You have to remove the entire front fork assmeby from the bike and then do considerable dissasembly.
I'd look for a buddy with a small shop and spring for some beer and some benjamins and watch him do it!

[pooker]

Originally Posted by trosco

pooker, with,,,, "just a few tools and limited space" ,,,,,, this is not something you can do. You have to remove the entire front fork assmeby from the bike and then do considerable dissasembly.
I'd look for a buddy with a small shop and spring for some beer and some benjamins and watch him do it!

If you only lived closer,.................Thanks man.

[ringadingh]

If you drain the forks well, by turning them upside down, and compress them repeatedly until there is no oil at all left in them, you can fill them with oil, and measure from the top of the fork down to the top of the oil level. As long as both forks are equal, at the recomended measurement youll be fine.

[macmac]

be a good idea to check and grease the head bearings too. aka steering aka gooseneck.

06 1600
When changing apx 14.8 oz
after disassembly 17.3 +/- 0.1 oz (fussy ain't they?)

With the fork empty of parts, and fully compressed the measure is 132 +/- 2 mm

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Thanks Ring, Trosco and Mac for the good advice. Sounds like a real fun job. I think I will look for a local guy to help me out.

[kawgirl]

I have 34,000 on my 2002 and just had my fork oil changed and the head bearings checked and greased. I went to a local shop and it wasn't a bad bill at all. I decided it would be best for someone who does that stuff all the time to do it than for me to tear my bike down then have to take all the pieces in if I felt it was too complicated. The guy did not list what weight oil he used. He did say that my oil did not look bad at all. Said it still had some color in it.

[jeffm]

I must not understand . I had a wobble so i decided to tighten the steering nut per the dealer mech . Thought i would change the fork oil at the same time . I just took the forks off with the tire still attached . Went to the dealer to see how much oil it takes . 14.oz I turned the forks upside down & drained out 10oz's on both sides . I looked at gadgets website & that didnt look like mine . What is the allen wrench for ? My bike is an 06 . When i drained the fluid in a container all i saw was a tube a washer & the spring did i miss something ? I stopped after i filled them just for this reason . Thanks Jeff

[ringadingh]

Didn't you take the top plug out of the forks? How would you drain them properly without taking them apart.
I can see taking them off the bike with the wheel still attached, but after that it would be awkward and heavy to handle.

[redjay]

There is a difference in the design of the forks on the older models. I think the procedure for the older models is described on Gadgets page. On my 05 after you remove the top nut on the forks you can take out the spring, spacer and washer (as jeffm describes). They just slide right out when you have the forks off the bike to drain.

[jeffm]

Yes , i took the top nut off turned them upside down drained them into a measuring cup . I thought since i only got 10oz's out maybe i needed to do something else . On mine when i drained them the spring will slide out so i thought all the fluid would come out . I will call the dealer to see if it is done right . I looked in the book with him & it said 14.8 oz's but i only drained out 10 if i did it right .

[ringadingh]

Originally Posted by jeffm

Yes , i took the top nut off turned them upside down drained them into a measuring cup . I thought since i only got 10oz's out maybe i needed to do something else . On mine when i drained them the spring will slide out so i thought all the fluid would come out . I will call the dealer to see if it is done right . I looked in the book with him & it said 14.8 oz's but i only drained out 10 if i did it right .

Are you going to replace with 15 or 20 weight fork oil? the oem 10 weight seems a little light for most riders.
I used 15 and once finished wished I had of used 20.