Post#32 of Something Black - Links and info:
To be edited often adding links, data, Problems, Solutions, and well - what ever comes to mind. . .
FORKS & SUSPENSION:
First thanks in advance all of you folks that did the R6 fork mod!!! Here are some helpful links in one place for reference (mainly me :/). . .
301 Moved Permanently
301 Moved Permanently
301 Moved Permanently
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/7034-r6-forks-arrived-couple-questions.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/23502-hyperpro-lowering-springs.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/13665-hyperpro-springs-installed.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/33926-front-fork-mods-pita-factor-vs-payoff.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-general-discussion/34536-bolt-r6-fork-upgrade.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-general-discussion/33191-ricor-intiminator-fork-mod.html
2012-02-11 My fleebay R6 Forks:
**********************************
Oil is pretty clean for 3000 mile forks. It has a gray haze to it and blackness at the beakers bottom. Some metalic bits. . .
Spec says 490mL should have come out. I got 470mL.
Another observation is that the coil spring winding is supposed to be wound tighter at the top. Nada - equal throughout the entire coil.
As found:
Coil Dia= 4.72mm 0.186"
Coil spacing = 9.26mm .366" between coils
Free length = 252mm spec: >244 <249 (9.81" - 9.62")
Coil count: 7coils/10cm or 17 coils not counting ground ends.
REFILL: hahaha magically the 1 pint bottle is 473mL
Without the spring and spacers and washers in the way and with the tube collapsed it should measure from the top 106 mm (4.17 in).
View attachment 40352 View attachment 40353 View attachment 40354
My hi-tech tool to keep the dampening rod from dissipering. Also notice how thin the washer is that bucks the load of the spring (right under the cap).
View attachment 40359 View attachment 40360
So i have to ask; have the springs been replaced? The cap has been wrenched on (before I got them) and there is lint balls in the caps threads. Would Yamaha leave lint balls? I'm glad I looked and at least we kinda have a starting point if I do end up swapping springs later.
Oh - going back in is 10wt oil cause I think that's what we need for me plus gear + bike + style. Book calls for 05wt but our beloved FZ is nealry 100lb heavier than the R6. . .
As for cleaning; I grabbed an extra pint of oil to cycle through and rinse, shake and loosen the sediment. It seem to be working. Also, leaving the fork upright allows oil to drain from the valving and pool so it can be dumped out. Leaving it inverted traps it and nothing really drains once a bulk of the oil has been dumped. So let them sit and then dump out what pools in the bottom a couple times and then invert them to let the debris seep out.
You really want to pay attention to the measurement of the jamb nut to the dampening rod (11 mm (0.43 in)). The distance is critical so the rebound adjustment is the same between the two forks and centered for full range of use. I didn't take a picture of it, but there is an aluminum rod inside of the dampening rod that moves up and down controlling the rebound when the adjuster in the cap is turned. Once the nut is at 11mm, tighten the BLUE collar onto the jamb nut so it doesn't move in relation to the rods end.
Last little note on this topic; you must apply mild pressure on the cap to engage the caps threads when mating the two together. At least the R's have a dampening rod so it can't go flying across the room!
EDIT: 2012-02-19, installed R6 forks WORK IN PROGRESS GOTTA GO!
**********************************
Finally checked the sag on the front and rear suspension right before removing the stock forks and replacing them. Sag is a simple measurement of suspension fully extended vs the suspension at its average height after being settled from both an extended position and a compression return. You average the 2 numbers it settled at to remove stiction which is the drag of all of the components. Sag = "difference from fully extended" - "average settled height".
Anyway my 08 with 8k miles on it came in like this with me at 188lbs w/out gear:
Front sag = 43mm (compresses 1.7" from me sitting on it)
Rear sag = 29mm (compresses 1.1" from me sitting on it)
R6 forks installed:
Front sag = 31mm and adjustable +/-20mm
Rear sag 29mm
Several articles say that 25 to 35mm is good for the street while racing applications head closer to 20 to 25mm. So this is my starting point for this season and to be adjusted as needed. . .
As you can see the stock front springs are dropping a good deal just from me sitting on it and its soft progressive rates compress easily hence the higher numeric stag# in the front. Having it closer to matching (31) should make it take bumps and surface imperfections in the corners much better if both ends of the bike have closer to the same sag and spring rates.
A 2004 R6 was the doner bike with 3400 miles on it. The rates for the front are:
Spring rate K1: ___________8.3 N/mm (0.83 kg/mm, 46.49 lb/in)
vrs stock FZ6 dual rate of:
Spring rate K1: __________7.40 N/mm (42.25 lb/in) (0.75 kgf/mm)
Spring rate K2: __________11.80 N/mm (67.38 lb/in) (1.20 kgf/mm)
What does all this mean: The FZ has 5.1" of travel. The second rate comes into play near the end of those 5" when the nose is diving hard under braking (1.20 kgf/mm). Granted many are buying Race Tech Springs to firm things up and most are opting for 0.95kg/mm. But as most of you know the stock FZ springs use up a good 3.5" of travel over minor bumps and braking.
I know I may end up swapping springs but these forks make it easy to dial in the sag as well as adjust both compression dampening and rebound dampening. Time will tell where we land with the springs. . . How will this impact cornering; with less initial rake from the nose being higher it will change how it feels. However, these forks are a 1/2" shorter 12.5mm. SOoooooooo, if you were to look at the sag vrs ride height -the numbers really come back to the same numbers in terms of rake or angle on the nose because the relationship of the steering head to the axle is very near the same as it was with the softer springs (@43mm) vs 31mm (& shorter forks 12.5mm). Make sense?
Edit: hey if you don't want to swap parts but want to help the bikes nose, at least add some new spacers to the front springs to fix the sag so you can ride safer. . .
**********************************
2012-10-17
Rear R1 shock came. The prices on fleebay are so low its like how could you not play around a little???
I need to swap springs and grind on the upper shock mount and plastic. In the mean time here are some things to think about.
=====================================
2008 FZ6 Rear Shock:
Eye to eye: 300 mm (11.82")
Travel: 50mm (1.97")
Setting #1 light: 175.2mm (6.90")
Setting #7 firm: 165.8mm (6.53")
Installed length MANUAL: 172.0 mm (6.77 in), doesn't say what setting tho.
Range of preload: 9.4mm (0.37")
Coil OD: 77.6mm (3.055")
Coil Dia: 11.76mm (0.463")
Spring free length 185.0 mm (7.28")
Spring rate K1: 12.99 kgf/mm (727.45 lb/in), 127.40 N/mm
=====================================
2003 R1 Rear Shock:
Eye to eye: 300 mm (11.82")
Travel: 65 mm (2.56")
Setting #1 light: 175.2mm (6.90")
Setting #9 firm: 165.8mm (6.53")
Installed length MANUAL: 162.5 mm (6.4 in), doesn't say what setting tho.
Range of preload: 9.4mm (0.37") /Min = 1, Ship @ 4, max = 9
Coil OD: 77.6mm (3.055")
Coil Dia: 11.76mm (0.463")
Free length 176.5 mm (6.95 in)
Spring rate K1: 8.83 kg/mm, (504 lb/in), 88.3 N/mm
SHOCK dampening from fully turned in:
Rebound damp min: 32
Reb Standard: 15
Rebound damp max: 1
Compression damp min: 20
Compression damp stand: 15
Compression damp max: 1
=====================================
So my FZ is set on #5. From this I will measure the installed height at the #5 position and adjust the R1 body to this distance. Looking at the info I gathered this will be a bit of a challenge and may require some adjustments to the spring seat/retainer as the area for the spring is not the same between the two bodies/adjusters. Hopefully this is obtainable.
The other issue is the R1 Shock assembly has more travel. The Shock needs to be fitted to the bike WITHOUT the spring and then exercise the entire range of travel so I know how the chain will be affected and where and what is going to hit if anything. It may be worth while to add a solid spacer under the biscuit to limit the travel so its equal to the FZ shock.
Simple math indicates the this shock would allow 6.6" of travel vs 5.1". is that a problem? IDK!
If the shock allows me to set the installed height equal to my current setting #5, I think we'll be off to a good start once the springs are swapped. Also the bushings will need some help too!
FZ #1 light: 175.2mm // R1 #1 light: 167mm
FZ #7 firm: 165.8mm // R1 #9 firm: 159mm
--------------------------------------------
- - - - - - - 9.4mm - - - - - - - 8mm
Although the range is near the same, the actual distance between the spring lands is where the issue lies. Well unless you opt for the custom wound spring! Mind you I'm using someone elses measurements for the Fiz shock as mine is still on the bike and difficult to measure. All I'm saying is be prepared to switch up the spring retainer to get the proper pre-load so the setup has a reasonable sag and stands a chance of working right.
=====================================
LIGHTING:
http://www.600riders.com/forum/garage-mechanical-help/1647-left-handlebar-switch.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/how-tos/1666-bd43s-07-headlight-mod-part-2-a.html
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/42693-electronic-flasher-relays-great-price.html
Yamaha OEM Blinker Connector, 3 Wire OEM Plug for Yamaha Turn Signal, PAIR
Yamaha OEM Blinker Connector, 3 Wire OEM Plug for Yamaha Turn Signal, PAIR | eBay
Raw OEM parts - connect LED turn indicators to OEM harness the RIGHT WAY!!!!
NT-040
Google this: LED Flasher Relay ELFR-1 *FAST BLINKER FIX* OEM Connect
SEAT MODS:
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-mods/36841-gel-seat-under-80-a.html#post393409
http://www.600riders.com/forum/how-tos/42706-how-make-gel-seat.html#post463251
PAINT:
http://www.600riders.com/forum/fz6-general-discussion/42859-metalic-black-paint-add-ons.html
Some bars came out of here too!!! FWIW, metallic paints run so easy. Heating the parts to a 150 175F makes for run free applications.
View attachment 45801
