I finished doing the 47mm Showa fork swap on my '92 Steelie. I got a set of '96-"01 triple clamps on eBay that had an Applied Racing top clamp on it, got it cheap too. I used the '92 brake hose, but I got everything else from an '04 CRF450 that way I didnt have to worry about spacers and calipers fitting. The fork tubes fit the top clamp perfectly without having to pry it apart. The idea of using an aluminum can (I actually used a Monster can) as a shim/spacer for the bottom also worked great. Its a snug fit, but still slides in easily enough and it takes up the space in the bottom clamp perfectly. I used the CRF axle, spacers, wheel and caliper I just took out the fitting from my '92 caliper and bolted it on the '04 so I didnt have to mess with getting the calipers apart from the brackets, sometimes those are a pain.
As has also been noted, the 47mm forks are longer than the stock forks and with the Applied clamp at least, the fork hits the handlebar before the fork taper bottoms on the upper clam. I am going to make some 10mm spacers under the bar clamp to get the bar up just enough to slide the forks all the way up.
Some pics.
I am going to take them back out and trim the can shims down so you wont be able to see them, this was just to get the swap done and see how it worked.
You can't do that. Some guy on VitalMX said so. Fuckin' dumbass. I did the same thing on my 99, put the forks and whole front end on it. Worked awesome. Forks were off my 04 450. I didn't need a shim on the bottom though. They were snug in both clamps. Just made the bike so much better to ride. They were already valved for me, so it was just a swap and ride deal for me. Total confidence boost on the bike for me. Me thinkst you're really going to like that when you get it dialed in.
Getting back to that dumbass on Vital, he said that there's no way modern suspension would work on an old bike. Totally mess it up and throw it out of balance. Right. I posted that it was an odd opinion, because I'd done it, and it worked great. So of course, turns into a pissin' contest and someone else chimes in that I've been "owned". Because I actually DID the swap and he just TALKED about it being an unworkable situation. You have to wonder if people really ARE that stupid, or they just play the part on the interweb. From my 49 years of experience, I'm afraid it's the former.
I'm going to ride it seriously for the first time tomorrow, but they feel great. As far as VitalMX, I'm on there too, and you have to keep in mind that 99% of those idiots dont ride, they just talk shit on the interwebs. Why wouldnt they work? You and I know they're just forks, a little bigger and a little newer internals, but they're just forks. I guess he would say the '87 CR250 forks I put on my '79 CR250 dont work either? LOL. Idiots.
Ride report. The top clamp is not an issue because I measured between the tire and the fender and you have to have the forks 5mm below the little line to have minimum tire clearance, which is where the fork is at when it hits the handlebar. Odd since the 47mm forks are longer, but the tape measure does not lie.
Riding around the house and on some dirt roads the forks (which have stock CRF450 valving and springs) seemed too stiff, I only weigh 145lbs so I am always under the weight range of stock suspension settings, but I like my suspension when set up for MX stiffer than my weight would suggest so it usually works out. Once I got it out on a real MX track though, I had to start adjusting stiffer. I started with the compression 4 clicks from full soft, and rebound mid way (8 or 10 clicks I think I dont remember). After a few laps I went a few clicks stiffer compression, then a couple more rebound clicks a few laps later. I was also having some front end tuck and Honda-shake (headshake), so I dropped the forks all the way to the little line, backed off the rear pre-load a bit and a couple more compression clicks. Backing off the shock pre-load and dropping the forks really helped. No more front tuck, still turns inside a 450, and just a hint of Honda-shake which I can live with.
I really like the forks and I'm glad I did the swap, but I didnt really have any choice, my stock forks were destroyed from lack of maintenance from the previous owner. I will try stiffer springs soon, but they are pretty darn close right now.
