929/954 Fork Question
 

Hey all, question to those who have done the 929/954 swap or have knowledge of it. I have the entire setup and have put it on my bike, but when I rode it the front fork was incredibly stiff so I swapped it back out so I could relook at the forks and figure out what the deal was. I got the forks off e-bay so I don't know squat about them. My question is, in all the reading I've done about this fork swap, nobody has mentioned revalving, needing different springs, or changing fork levels. Is any of that typically needed or do I have a set of forks that is likely not stock?

Thanks.

The 929/954 forks have a lot of adjustability in them, so I would investigate those adjustments before coming to any conclusions. I would, however, change the fork oil and back off the spring preload and rebound and compression damping adjustments before reinstalling them.
I didn't like my 954 forks when I first installed them, but after I backed off the spring preload and fine tuned the damping adjusters I like them much better. Now that I have them somewhat sorted out I find them much more confidence inspiring than the stock VTR forks--and, of course, the brakes are much, much better.

I'm running that setup. The 929 is actually much lighter so they are softer unless the compression is cranked all the way down. It sounds like they are tweaked and binding up.

Two questions then. What settings did you end up using and is there a PDF file on these forks as for the life of me, I couldn't figure out the preload adjustment.

Thanks!

What couldn't you figure out about the preload adjustment? The stock springs are fairly soft, so you can actually go pretty far with the preload and still not be too stiff unless you're under 150 pounds or so. I cut off two of the progressive coils on the stock springs to make mine stiffer and initially had problems because of too much preload. Backing off helped tremendously. Fully clockwise on the adjuster is maximum preload.
The damping settings will vary depending on your weight, fork oil weight and riding style, so I don't know if my settings would be of any help to you. With these forks and the fork oil I'm using it's difficult to get too much rebound damping, but compression can be made pretty harsh. Having said that, I would still recommend starting with the rebound adjusters backed off because a bike with too much rebound can be dangerous to ride.
The bottom line is this: if you back off the settings of preload, rebound and compression damping and the fork is still too stiff it's either binding or has stiffer aftermarket springs. Suspension setup is still not a science, in spite of all the advances in technology. Different riders will prefer different settings, but it will get you in the ballpark quicker to understand the effects of all the adjustments.

Here are a few links about suspension setup.

http://www.peterverdonedesigns.com/suspension.htm
http://www.gostar-racing.com/club/mo...ion_set-up.htm

I have some q's along these lines, so I figured I wouldn't open a new thread. I am going through the 929/954 fork swap at the moment, and want to make sure I am ready to go before tearing in to it. What I have been looking for is a service manual for the 954 so I can have the Fork Section only. Any body have a PDF of that? I need to know the fork oil capacity or recommended fill level, stock spring rate (what weight rider it it good for), and an assembly diagram would be nice. I will worry about set-up when it is ridable, but I want to make sure I don't skip any important stuff while I have it all apart.

Send an email to

coziner at bellsouth dot net

and I'll send you the pdf

I too, have the 954 pdf manual for my front swap. Email me if you need it.
I went ahead and bought .85 RT springs before install. I also got all new seals and bushings..now installed. I had also just put RT gold valves in my stockers. I spoke to a tech person at RT and it turns out that the same GV kit is indicated for both bikes AND.....the same shim stack 34c if I recall. I swapped the GVs right over. I'm all ready to install the fairings today and so haven't ridden yet but the fork action and stiffness feels about the same as before with stockers and .85s and GVs. Rained out of work today but hopefully I'll get the fairings on without too much cutting and the I wait for the first sunny day. I don't ride in the rain...too many idiots out there.