Help deciding on doing fork cartridges or not

[fpsoftballcoach]

Well, I have my bike at Computrac for the past couple months getting the front forks redone and we are having a problem getting cartridges from GP suspension and the weather is getting warmer in the NE. What other brands do you recommend for a rider who likes the twisties and will do some long rides too. Just put the Olins YA707 last fall so looking for a top notch suspension. Or do i just respring for my weight (260lbs) and heavier fork oil....

 

[HotRodZilla]

If you respring, you'll need to upgrade your valves also.

 

[bluesdog]

What other brands do you recommend for a rider who likes the twisties and will do some long rides too

I'm happy with the AK-20 cartridges from Traxxion

 

[Mr_Canoehead]

I'd recommend Racetech gold valves - get the kit with compression and rebound valves. They make a great kit and work well with a spring upgrade. It's an easy and cheap upgrade compared with a whole Traxxion or GP cartridge kit.

The FJR already has a cartridge fork, so upgrading the valves inside the cartridge gets you ~80% of what you would get with an new cartridge.

 

[Powerman]

AK-20 cartridges

 

[900gc]

I'd recommend Racetech gold valves - get the kit with compression and rebound valves. They make a great kit and work well with a spring upgrade. It's an easy and cheap upgrade compared with a whole Traxxion or GP cartridge kit.
The FJR already has a cartridge fork, so upgrading the valves inside the cartridge gets you ~80% of what you would get with an new cartridge.

+1. That's the route I took and am very pleased with the result (Peter Kates @ GMD Computrack did the work). Like you said, probably 80% of a cartridge upgrade for less $$.

 

[JamesK]

I did the GMD Computrack valve upgrade and new springs on my FJR at around 40k miles, along with a Penske 8983 rear shock. It made a huge difference vs. OEM crap. Now, at 214,000 miles my OEM fork cartridges are totally worn out and instead of buying new OEM cartridge which are not cheap either then rev-alving them I've taken the plunge and purchased the AK20 kit from Traxxion. I hope it's as good as the folks who've done this say it is, it certainly looks impressive.

Now I have to figure out how to install it, as the two page instructions are pretty basic and very general

 

[bluesdog]

I did the GMD Computrack valve upgrade and new springs on my FJR at around 40k miles, along with a Penske 8983 rear shock. It made a huge difference vs. OEM crap. Now, at 214,000 miles my OEM fork cartridges are totally worn out and instead of buying new OEM cartridge which are not cheap either then rev-alving them I've taken the plunge and purchased the AK20 kit from Traxxion. I hope it's as good as the folks who've done this say it is, it certainly looks impressive.
Now I have to figure out how to install it, as the two page instructions are pretty basic and very general

I did my AK-20 install a couple of years ago. PM if you like, and I'll see if I can recall each step. iirc, mostly it's straightforward, but I was a bit confused about where all those washers were to be placed.

I had a machinist friend modify the oil locks aka bottom out cups, as suggested in the instructions.

Lee Spitler at Traxxion emailed some tips I could pass on to you. He's also very helpful if you have any questions.

You're gonna love the result.

 

[fpsoftballcoach]

Just ordered the Traxion ak20, can't wait to take it for a spin. Thanks for your input