r1 triple tree and forks

[karkid]

What's a good price for r1 forks? There are some for sale locally here for $150. I wanted to wait until I have this bike running, but if they are a good price I'll go for them. If not I'll wait until I can find some for $100 or less.

On another note, are good forks available for under $100? If they are I'll skip the r1's and wait until I can find something else for my xs750.

 

[mynameismudd]

yes thats a good price for the complete front end er uh legs and trees, they run anywhere from 300-500 for the complete front end
bars wheel yada yada yada

 

[VonYinzer]

As I believe was just stated... Haha... The $150 is cheap (if theyre in good condition). But, youre going to spend a ton of cash making them work. You'll need an R1 wheel which cannot be used with the stock rear wheel, so now you need a custom swingarm and R1 rear wheel. Now, your engine and drive wheel sprockets wont line up. And so on... Or you could use the stock front wheel with the R1 forks, but now you need a custom axle machined, as well as custom spacers, and most likely, custom caliper mounts. Now youll need clip ons, which for an R1 will run you at least $50 for a beat up pair of stock ones. And so on... Also, the R1 forks, though snazzy as hell, were under no circumstances designed for an XS750. The length, trail, rake, and loads are all different between an R1 and your Yamaha. So, you have probobly negated any real performance the R1 forks might have brought to the table. Your call, and your money, but be aware of all of the details. If I were you, Id look for a nice set of 80s sport bike forks.

 

[VonYinzer]

Oh, and is there a reason you need/want new forks? With progressive springs, gold emulators, etc. late 70s Yamaha forks can be made to perform really well. I know guys that race vintage bikes and although they could get away with more modern suspension, theyre quite happy with the upgraded stock front ends.

 

[hurley209]

i agree with everything mike says.
i run stock forks on my honda with upgraded internals and i am very happy with them, so might want to consider that.

 

[karkid]

Thanks VonYinzer. Great reply! I'll throw some money at making the stockers work well first. I had seen other's do it and talk about it making a world of difference, but sometimes that just comes with a lighter wallet.

 

[VonYinzer]

Well... I will not speak for those you have heard speak of the world of difference in using modern USD forks, but I can say that in my time amongst the moto world; many folks arent actually aware of "the difference" that they speak of. The modern forks sure wont feel the same as stockers, but thats not always a good thing. Different can mean bad (heard it on TV, this is my first bike ever) as easily as it can mean good(well informed and experienced).

 

[Tripler]

The modern forks sure wont feel the same as stockers


Especially as the rear end has not been mentioned yet. Remember it's a shafty.

 

[1969Honda]

I picked up my '98 R1 forks with trees, stem and axle for $100 shipped 4 years ago. It's a lot of work to get a different front wheel mounted as Yinzer said. I've got a lot of spacers and so forth that I've made a few more that I need to make to get the axle and wheel to all line up and clamp/thread properly. The right hand lower has like a 28mm ID for the axle and the left hand lower runs a 20mm fine thread if I recall correctly, now try and throw a well in there that originally used a 15-17mm front axle and you've gotta change bearings/make axle sleeves, etc....

Bottom line, unless you want the "look", spend the money on your stock suspension, in the end it'll be tuned to your needs and run just as good if not better than the inverted 50mm USD forks.