KX Riders
Maintenance & Technical => KX500 Original => Topic started by: jkindt on October 28, 2011, 01:30:50 PM
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I bought a set of blue anodized usd forks for my newly acquired 89 K5. Upon receiving them I noticed a few things. First of all they are genuine Pro Circuit tuned forks used by Sheak when he was on the team, it has his name and settings still on both tubes. Second of all, unfortunately, they are off of a KX125, not a KX500! I was hoping to have usd forks for this bike, but now it seems it isn't happening with these forks. The question I have is, what are these things worth? And, how much is a set of proper usd forks worth for my 500?
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Were you at exactly i have a set of forks for a 89 500 you could have for nothing just extra parts from my 500af build :-D
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I got a good set of '89 forks, just wanted to upgrade to the USD forks like on the newer models. What I would really like is a set from '97+ with the larger diameter. But in reality, my stock '89 forks are fine. I will likely sell these KX125 Pro Circuit forks on ebay or something, just wondered if they are worth much. I bet they were back in the early '90s!!! :-D
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I usually get 100-150 for them in good shape.
It takes a while to sell them as there is not a big demand for them.
The better the blue anodize the quicker they sell.
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I got a good set of '89 forks, just wanted to upgrade to the USD forks like on the newer models. What I would really like is a set from '97+ with the larger diameter. But in reality, my stock '89 forks are fine. I will likely sell these KX125 Pro Circuit forks on ebay or something, just wondered if they are worth much. I bet they were back in the early '90s!!! :-D
'89 was the last year of "conventional" piston valve forks. In '90 kawi switched to the 1st gen USD forks. Your '89 triple clamp won't work. In '94 kawi switched to the current 2nd gen USD forks. Those 90-93 USD's are an odd duck I wouldn't waste money and time on them. If you really want an USD upgrade try to find a complete 94+ setup.
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I figured I was doing good. I found the blue anodized forks, with both triple clamps and handlebar clamps. The picture showed Pro Circuit stickers, but I figured those were just something someone put on. It wasn't until they showed up at my door that I realized they were the actual Pro Circuit tuned forks, but also that they were from a KX125. What I thought would be a bolt on swap isn't gonna happen. Anyone wanna buy some KX125 forks? They are in Southern Alberta, so I have no idea what shipping would be, I would have to find out. Just a little discouraged, thats all.
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Just my odd ball thinking here but couldnt you just buy heavier springs & use those 125 legs? I mean, where you have them, & odds are you'd wanna set up whatever forks you get for your riding style/type.
If you are going to start from scratch though , I'm thinking that someone ought to guinea pig a 2008 & up 450f frontend on their bike. I talked to a guy at one of the triple clamp makers & he said that you could do it by pressing in the stem from tthe k5 if I remember right. It would change the geometry, more turn friendly, which is what I was after as welll as those new sweet forks. If anyone has done this it'd be great if they could chime in.
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Just my odd ball thinking here but couldnt you just buy heavier springs & use those 125 legs? I mean, where you have them, & odds are you'd wanna set up whatever forks you get for your riding style/type.
If you are going to start from scratch though , I'm thinking that someone ought to guinea pig a 2008 & up 450f frontend on their bike. I talked to a guy at one of the triple clamp makers & he said that you could do it by pressing in the stem from tthe k5 if I remember right. It would change the geometry, more turn friendly, which is what I was after as welll as those new sweet forks. If anyone has done this it'd be great if they could chime in.
My bike runs 08 kx450 front... Search.. There is a thread on it
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Just my odd ball thinking here but couldnt you just buy heavier springs & use those 125 legs? I mean, where you have them, & odds are you'd wanna set up whatever forks you get for your riding style/type...
At first, that's what I figured. I thought, oh well, so I end up with a solid handlebar mount instead of rubber mount. I would respring them anyways (which is almost a shame since that's part of the work Pro Circuit did to these forks). But then I got measuring and my front wheel won't fit, brake caliper won't fit, too many extra parts to get just to make the 125 forks work. And, after all that I would end up with smaller diameter forks than what I already have, although they would be the USD forks vs. the conventionals that are on it. I may consider the '07 and up KX500 forks with their larger diameter, or possible the '08 KX450 conversion if I can convince myself that I need to spend that much money on an old bike. Likely I will just rebuild and respring the stock '89 forks and call it good. It is mostly for mountain riding, not a lot of track use, although I have a friend that only rides track and wants me to come play next spring. :lol:
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the 89 kx forks were boss and far superior to anything back in the day. just something to consider..
but if you want a newer front end then by all means
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In order to avoid putting more money into this bike than it is worth, I am just going to keep the stock '89 forks. Where is the best place to get heavier springs for them? Also, how heavy should I get? I am about 240lbs and ride mostly mountain trails, not a lot of motocross, but some. :-)
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In order to avoid putting more money into this bike than it is worth, I am just going to keep the stock '89 forks. Where is the best place to get heavier springs for them? Also, how heavy should I get? I am about 240lbs and ride mostly mountain trails, not a lot of motocross, but some. :-)
go to racetech.com
front spring= .50kg
rear(to match) = 6.0 kg
i entered 240 lbs into their calculator and that is what i got
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Thanks for the quick response. Is there anything else I should do to the forks other than change the springs and standard service? Different fork oil? Or just keep them stock other than the springs? Also, I am going to have to post a pic of my rear shock once I get it removed, it is not stock, it has a remote reservoir hose clamped to the subframe... :roll:
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re-valving if you want the best performance
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What is involved in revalving? Is this something I can do myself? How do I know what it needs? I have never actually bothered changing anything, just change the oil and bleed the air. Of course I have never had a bike that I thought was worth setting up properly....
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What is involved in revalving? Is this something I can do myself? How do I know what it needs? I have never actually bothered changing anything, just change the oil and bleed the air. Of course I have never had a bike that I thought was worth setting up properly....
you should just send the forks away to a suspension shop cause revalving with all the shim stacks sounds too complicated to me.
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What is involved in revalving? Is this something I can do myself? How do I know what it needs? I have never actually bothered changing anything, just change the oil and bleed the air. Of course I have never had a bike that I thought was worth setting up properly....
You really need to justify spending your hard earned money. I'm willing to bet the stock OEM '89 forks after a fluid change and possibly a set of springs to match your weight will suffice for the intended use of a casual weekend KX500. You go spending hundreds of dollars on a upgraded front end (a revalve at minimum is going to cost you $300) . You need to honestly ask yourself am I going to truly feel a positive difference ? If you were competitively racing your 500 now the money spent becomes more justifiable. In my 30 years of being around young dirt bikers the #1 mistake I observe is people that spend huge money on bling and performance when they are only novice weekend riders... (I am NOT implying you are a novice weekend rider, i'm simply throwing out some opinioniated observations ). Just think before you spend...
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Totally agree. I wouldn't know the difference. I am not a racer, never been, never will be. I wasn't even looking for such a big bike until this deal came along. I do want to clean it up and set it up for me, but it won't be my main bike at this point. I am still looking for a deal on a KX250 that would be my main ride. This would be my 'I got a bigger bike than you' bike to pull out now and then to show off on.
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What is involved in revalving? Is this something I can do myself? How do I know what it needs? I have never actually bothered changing anything, just change the oil and bleed the air. Of course I have never had a bike that I thought was worth setting up properly....
You really need to justify spending your hard earned money. I'm willing to bet the stock OEM '89 forks after a fluid change and possibly a set of springs to match your weight will suffice for the intended use of a casual weekend KX500. You go spending hundreds of dollars on a upgraded front end (a revalve at minimum is going to cost you $300) . You need to honestly ask yourself am I going to truly feel a positive difference ? If you were competitively racing your 500 now the money spent becomes more justifiable. In my 30 years of being around young dirt bikers the #1 mistake I observe is people that spend huge money on bling and performance when they are only novice weekend riders... (I am NOT implying you are a novice weekend rider, i'm simply throwing out some opinioniated observations ). Just think before you spend...
thats true.
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So I have spent some time comparing parts diagrams between the KX500 and KX125 between the various late '80s and early '90s bikes. It appears I may not be out of luck with these forks after all. I thought I was getting 91-93 KX500 forks, instead I got 91-93 KX125 forks. I will have to respring them anyways, so that's not a big deal. I thought I could just bolt the forks on and use my old brakes and front wheel. It now seems that even if it had been the KX500 forks, I still need the newer brakes because they bolt up to the fork differently than the '89 conventional forks. The only thing I can see different is that I will end up with solid handlebar mounts instead of rubber mounted ones. I have the bike down to just a frame with forks, so I will pull the forks and see if the USD forks fit my frame and if my wheel bolts up. lt will be easier to get a new brake caliper than another set of forks. AND I can brag about genuine Pro Circuit forks on my bike!!! :lol:
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if you can source a 91-93 kx 250 top yoke you can have the rubber mounted handle bars
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If these forks did indeed come from Shieks bike you may not have to respring them. Usually MXrs put stiffer springs in them. Rebuild them and try them as is then decide if the springs are needed.
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Well...the forks definately fit. They are a direct bolt on to the frame. I think I can live with the solid handlebar mount if I have to, I got some decent 909 handlebars that are 7/8" already. The only problems I have found so far is mounting up the front tire.
1) The axle is too small on the front wheel to fit the newer fork. Can I just change the axle, or do I need to change more parts in the hub?
2) The brake caliper doesn't fit. I will just find one that matches up to the forks.
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youll need the front wheel and brake setup from the kind of bike the forks came from
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You'll need a front brake caliper from a 90-93 kx125 kx250 kx500, 91-94 kdx250.
On your front axle it will depend on your hub.
The hub will be stamped F-1212 or F-1249, possibly something else.
Or, measure your bearing diameter and tell me if it is 17mm or 20mm.
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The hub is stamped F-1212....tell me some good news....can I use it? :-D
I was hoping to get away with using the caliper and just changing the mounts, but not sure that will work...and as far as the brake disc, it is toast anyways, almost paper thin and ready to fall apart, I will just order one to match the new front end. 8-)
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Hello.
You will need a 17mm axle that FITS 90-92 KX125 KX250, 90-93 KX500 part number 41068-1310.
That should set you up.
I have a bunch of this info recorded here:
http://oem-cycle.com/KAWASAKIKX500BIKEID.aspx (http://oem-cycle.com/KAWASAKIKX500BIKEID.aspx)
The axle should look like this.
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Perfect! I think I should be able to find that, at least I can still use the wheel I have. Those are expensive to ship. May as well throw in new bearings and seals while I am at it since I am going this far. Thanks for all your help. 8-)
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If I were to refresh my forks, would I just put in new seals and oil? Or is there internal parts that wear out and need attention? These blue forks have no play in them that I can feel, so the bushings seem fine, just one side has a slight leak.
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If I were to refresh my forks, would I just put in new seals and oil? Or is there internal parts that wear out and need attention? These blue forks have no play in them that I can feel, so the bushings seem fine, just one side has a slight leak.
Unless your seals are blown and leaking all's I would do is flush the fluid. MX bikes usually don't have a problem with worn bushings. KX fork seals are however prone to leakage.
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So a seal kit would be enough as long as the bushings look okay? There's no other internal seals or moving parts that would need routine replacement? I just don't want to order seals, and then find out I should have gotten a more complete kit for these forks. 8-)
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I have a 92 k5 and yes it has the blue front shocks on it. Love them, far as I'm concerned best shocks kawa put on there 500's. And yes if anybody wants to sell them I'll buy them.