How to service and upgrade your forks. Dave's Honda SP1 upgrade project. Fork seal change + re-valve

[@wokkelz]

In the beginning I was thinking, I want to do this to my sp1 forks. Now I will give them to a company that knows what they are doing.

[@sjbechet1111]

You missed the 3rd option for a specific seal driver - turn one up at work ;-)

[@stevesane800]

An absolute genius Dave! Thank you so much for another detailed explanation & information of suspension workings! The lovely SP-1 is a classic motorcycle which you must keep! Imagine having the 748S & this in your stable👌

[@NSR500V4]

Enjoying the more technical stuff you are doing. 👍

[@franklinwilkerson2061]

Long time American subscriber here and I would like to apologize for the rest of slacker America for not appreciating a more cerebral take on motorbike fun like ya'll from across the pond.

[@obsession_engineering]

Thanks for your continued support. We'll educate the rest of your compatriots eventually 😁

[@IN_ZANE_]

That was really interesting seeing the inside working of the forks with the shim stacks and the needle bypass, makes adjusting suspension make more sense. Always wondered how those side mounted radiators worked properly given the lack of direct airflow hitting them. Would be very cool to hear it explained briefly in a future video.

[@MichaelSmith-mc8bd]

Great video Dave! Very informative and also interesting! The mist surrounding this black art is beginning to lift thanks to you passing on your experience and expertise. . Great job!

[@ManxAndy]

Hi Dave …..cold in the workshop today…..👍👌🇮🇲😉

[@obsession_engineering]

Just a little 😬

[@eerr-m1k]

I don't have SP1 manual so I can not check but I do have F4i bike and I see that the front wheel axle and forks mounting are the same. It is written in manual and also a good practice before tightening pinch bolts to pump the front so the forks could "self align" on the axle. Especially it is well seen on this Honda axle. If you look closely on the axle you will notice that one end does have raised edge. If I remember exactly there are two different size side collars and one is in contact with fork and the other is in contact with axle edge. So after you tighten the axle you can tighten the pinch bolts on the lower diameter axle side because this fork is pushed against the collar. On the raised axle side you can see the fork leg is loose and you can move it by hand. So then you pump the front both the forks positions itself vertically and it helps to lower the stiction. On F4i manual the pumping is written with applying the front brake but on some other manuals the pumping is without brakes (and I think it is better practice). If you pump without brakes of course you will need to put some wood deck or something under front wheel to keep the bike stable. I know on race tracks nobody do that and if the bike is in good condition and no damages everything should alight itself by torqueing the bolts. But on old and second hand bikes usually everything is out of spec...

[@DevRSVR]

I never knew i had an inner nerd. After watching this i have accessed it for sure. This is brilliant if a little difficult to take the whole thing in.

[@obsession_engineering]

Embrace your inner nerd, he's almost interesting 😂

[@davidl416]

Thanks for the detailed service of the forks, getting ready to service my own VTR SP2 forks. Read everywhere and so many people complain of how much of a pain it is. Pretty straight forward actually and similar to other USD fork services.. Yes, us rare American viewers call it a triple tree. Cheers.

[@jonathanmackie4884]

Sorry I'm late. Did I miss anything? Oh, good. I need more videos about measuring sag. Somehow everytime someone starts to explain it my brain cells turn to mush and I lose the plot. So, as a heavier rider I need more bigger spring...er... run out of preload... too much sag or some such... oh dear brain's checked out again. Wow! Lot of comments 4 days out. The word is spreading about your content. Keep up the good work.

[@obsession_engineering]

Keep watching, your brain will catch up eventually 😂

[@jonathanmackie4884]

@@obsession_engineering 🤣 Well if I can't learn from watching your vids there is no hope for me.😉

[@cyclingbikerwholovestotinker]

interesting stuff Dave and a welcome break from tonight's dreary snooker semi final, great to see such level of detail and intervention to get those forks and the suspension working to your liking. Look forward to your next episode.

[@juliangreaves5684]

Thanks for an excellent, informative video. You showed commendable restraint in not exploiting every opportunity for innuendo too! 😉

[@obsession_engineering]

I'm far too sensible 🤔

[@the88lundberg]

I love the V-twin superbike era. Got myself a yellow TL 1000 R.

[@Vtwin_Superbikes]

OE firing on all cylinders here!! All two of them about 500cc and 90° apart 😁

[@BatFastard01]

Top vid mate. Thanks. Enjoy the SP1

[@Steeps1969]

Very nicely explained! Not worked on any upside-down forks yet, and never done a fork rebuild that involved more than an oil & seal/dust-cap change. Thanks for this video :-)

[@Crimdog]

Enjoyed it Dave!

[@curttabor2827]

Thank you for a great look inside the forks. I am one of you American viewers West Virginia look up the New River Gorge Bridge and you'll see we have some of the best roads for a Motorcycles, your as you lads put it motorbike , thanks again for your vids ,and I am one of the few here in WV that could say 129 days till TT

[@obsession_engineering]

Ohh, just had a look, the 20 and 60 both look like fun roads... I might have to add them to the future road trip route!

[@edwardweiszbeck1649]

Love your vids sir. And your attention to detail when restoring bikes. If I lived in the UK I’d buy any bike from you. You’re as fussy as I would be if I were mechanically inclined. I know most technicians aren’t so that’s tough I need to find someone like you here in western Canada

[@obsession_engineering]

Thanks for your kind words 😁

[@edwardweiszbeck1649]

@@obsession_engineering you’re welcome and they are well deserved. You do good work.

[@nickrider5220]

Great video, cheers Dave 👍🏻

[@Skid2933]

Spot on Wavey, a couple more tweaks and I'm sure you'll have that neural feeling you got from mine.

[@derekcomer4858]

It’s a lovely looking bike, glad you are keeping it standard. Thank you for the excellent videos 🙏

[@crumblymal8479]

A very interesting watch and a good opportunity to learn something useful 👍

[@pokechopracing8862]

Another great episode Dave thank you. I will be looking into my forks soon and possibly be upgrading the internals. Looking forward to upcoming episodes but I also know you will be busy with BSB. Thanks again from California!

[@TheOriginalCoda]

I had a '14 Fireblade and bloomin eck, I dreaded doing any work on it that required taking the fairings off. What a sh*t show!

[@TheOriginalCoda]

I've just bought a completely stock 2003 SP-2 and bloody eck, it's so EASY to get the fairings off! 😂

[@Lichlord]

Very timely video for me. I recently had my SV650’s triple bored out to 43mm from 41mm to fit another bike’s cartridge forks while keeping the offset and trail the same. Not sure what the donor’s history is so they probably need a service.

[@andrewwallis328]

Just serviced my cbr600f4 forks, new seals and oil. Think I’ve done it right, lol. Great vids

[@STIPOWER97]

Great video

[@bigjam8429]

Nice one davey

[@barryt748]

Infotainment at it's best

[@masonthisquen3845]

TYGA Performance has very nice fenders for a reasonable price. I bought one for my cbr 929, the same fender as the RC51.

[@rickphillips2900]

Another great vid se K Tech valves are brilliant, I have them on my CBR600, and also had them on my ZZR1400, transformed both bikes.

[@obsession_engineering]

Yep, quality bits of kit

[@bikerjock2654]

A great video that almost convinces me I could do it. The main issues I have are, lack of suitable workspace, some of the key tools, and errm… the talent 😊 I would like to improve the handling of my BMW R1200S, which should be good, but is not nearly as confidence inspiring as my Triumph Tiger 800.

[@obsession_engineering]

Big lump those bmw's. Excellent things, but I suspect the trumpet carries less weight which also helps

[@williamgordon207]

Excellent video, thank very much. I too have a standard sp1 in need of new fork seals.

[@obsession_engineering]

Get in touch through the website if you don't want to do them yourself

[@williamgordon207]

Thanks Dave, i think i'll have a go myself and see how it goes. i did the fork seals on my zx6r last year so hopefully this will be ok too. Do you offer a manufacturing service for the longer pre-load spacers? thanks, Will

[@tonyontrack1967]

Dave’s just serviced/upgraded my Fireblade forks 👍 can’t wait for Donny next month. Btw my HRC brake reservoir sock covers my shiny obsession engineering reservoir stay. May I suggest a new line of OE res socks ❤️

[@obsession_engineering]

You covered up my branding 😭😂

[@tonyontrack1967]

⁠@@obsession_engineering okay I’ll put the sock on the clutch side 👊 😂

[@danielstafford7255]

Lovely bike, I'm a ducati person my self not really into Japanese bikes but these bikes are definitely one of the exceptions 👍

[@pasha12343]

Great demonstration 👍😎🙂

[@bananabrooks3836]

Dave: The thumbnail looks like you've just noticed the frame no. doesn't match the logbook😁 Q. Was the 20 year old springs free length within spec? I think the Sp1 is the cooler model to own now, as most of the Sp2s seem to have been bought by and kept as ornamental 'investments' by 'My place in the Sun' early retirees.

[@paulwilkinson6608]

Great video as always dave.

[@jdahack7367]

Awesome vid. Can you give us an idea of what each upgrade costs,as you do the videos? The fork upgrades have to be a thousand pound with labour and the k-tech bits. Just wonder with brakes and rear shock and labour (if you had to pay) etc, how much the SP would end up costing in the end. You used to be able to pick one up here in N.Y for about $5,000 but I haven't seen one for sale in ages. Now I think a minter is twice that price. Good luck with everything. Love the channel.

[@obsession_engineering]

Retail cost, with all the parts and labour is £5-600. So not a small amount, but a worthwhile investment in my eye

[@chrisbowman4487]

Very informative video Dave top job

[@jamsstar2010]

17.05 measure the gap for the spacer there

[@AnonAmouse-em4mf]

splendid stuff! thanks.

[@mayhemmayo]

THANK YOU MAY. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK

[@petehook2866]

🖖🏻 fascinating, as always. Thanks.

[@Matthias_Wagner]

Great video! Any reason why you are not pushing down to seat the fork legs before you torque down the pinch bolts?

[@obsession_engineering]

Because there's no need!

[@Matthias_Wagner]

@@obsession_engineering I was just wondering, because the workshop manual is mentioning it but I fully trust in your skills and experience. Thanks!

[@Vtwin_Superbikes]

35:32 wait, why no needle??

[@obsession_engineering]

The k-tech kit has a needle that was already installed

[@Vtwin_Superbikes]

I thought that, but is it independent then to the adjustment at the top? How do you adjust?

[@gregrsvr3947]

Brilliant vid

[@Velodictorian]

If you didn’t change the valves, do you have to worry about the clicks before tightening the damper shaft to the top nut? Also, don’t forget to cycle the forks a couple times to center the wheel before torquing everything down

[@obsession_engineering]

The click numbers are still important on the stock valving, very easy to have no adjustment left if they're assembled just a little wrong. There really isn't any need to bounce the forks when refitting the forks or wheel. It has a datum point that the spindle will set it to and anything that requires movement after, has movement built in

[@MrBoama]

great video , very interesting .

[@wishmoor8294]

Nice video! Thanks

[@jonomonks50]

Thanks for the very informative video. do you have a list of the Ktech part numbers you used please?

[@obsession_engineering]

It's all listed on the k-tech site store.ktechsuspension.com/part-finder?find=Honda_VTR1000+SP1_2000 I can supply any or all of it if required

[@jonomonks50]

Thats great thank you, I am in NZ and have a K Tech dealer locally, I will give him a try. @@obsession_engineering

[@stuartleighio4061]

Am sure a Fireblade 929 front mudguard is the same

[@thebigd9989]

I need to do exactly that fork service to my tzr 😅😅😅😂

[@stp7049]

Really interesting and helpful series, thank you!!👍

[@emirhamzic4617]

Great video Dave! I'm looking to service my own forks this weekend so I thought to ask you what's the best way to clean out the internals and fork tubes? Do you use some sort of cleaner/degreaser or do you just let it drip out and then wipe off the leftover old oil?

[@obsession_engineering]

I blast them out with brake cleaner, degreaser would work too, as long as they're clean for the rebuild

[@emirhamzic4617]

@@obsession_engineering Thank you, much appreciated 👍

[@deanmsimpson]

That was excellent Dave! Thank-you very much. It was very informative. Did you turn up the aluminium spacers above the fork springs or was it an off the shelf item? I'm guessing the former. And if you wasn't concerned with keeping the SP1 looking standard, what upgrades would you have done instead? Cheers 👍

[@obsession_engineering]

I did make the spacers myself. That way I get exactly what I need! I'd definitely have gone open pipes, fuelling module, airbox mods and lighter wheels, maybe an sp2 swing arm too. All the bits everyone did back in the day really.... Oh and a fancy pants shock too, probably

[@deanmsimpson]

@@obsession_engineering I thought so. Very good. Ahhh very tasty! That sounds smart! And would certainly up the ponies and handling 👍 But understand keeping it standard. Thank-you for your reply Dave 👍

[@paulwilkinson6608]

Why doesn't it have quick release fastners. The vfr 750 and the rvf 400 had them . The vfr750 is super easy to remove the panels

[@obsession_engineering]

Honda must have assumed it didn't need to come apart often 🤔

[@paulwilkinson6608]

Ouch. 😂

[@togwilson]

Great video as always. I’m wanting to do my zx6r 03 B1H forks. I bought 10w oil. Should I be using 5w like you? I’m about 90kg and use the bike only on track. Thanks

[@obsession_engineering]

Should be on 5w. The b1h has a bit too much Rebound damping as standard, might work well on track. Standard springs are only an 8.3. I'd be swapping them for 9.5 for track use

[@togwilson]

@@obsession_engineering Actually the guy I bought the bike from put Maxton 95 springs in so that’s good. I’ll get some 5w oil too. Thanks Dave.

[@togwilson]

@@obsession_engineering is there a reason why 5w is better over 10w for my forks? I’ve seen a lot of people recommending heavier weight oil for track/race bikes? Thanks in advance Dave 👍

[@TheOriginalCoda]

@Wavey I've just bought a stock (almost) SP-2 with 19k miles on it. Problem is that the fork and shock springs feel quite stiff, the previous owner was a bit of a 'portly' gent. I've got to service these forks anyway so I'm gonna take them apart. Do springs have IDs on them so I can tell how many N/mm they are, or do I have to measure them? Ta in advance.

[@obsession_engineering]

There's no markings on the stock springs, but most aftermarket items would be labelled. Stock setup is quite firmly sprung (and preloaded in the rear), so it could be stock still. Getting the damping opened up on the clickers may help take some harshness away

[@TheOriginalCoda]

@@obsession_engineering You're a gent Dave. The shock spring is red so I suspect fronts were changed also, so I will tear the forks down this week and have a look. Thanks mate.

[@leegarrett5469]

Hate disc locks!

[@984francis]

Easy to work on? Wait until you need to replace the oil pressure switch!

[@obsession_engineering]

Oh! That good? 😳

[@984francis]

@@obsession_engineering Horrible.

[@93Martin]

Are we really that rare watching from the US?

[@obsession_engineering]

There are a few of you now thankfully. The word is spreading 😁

[@jesuschrist7169]

Easy way to get new fairings off is to crash the bike 😂😂

[@obsession_engineering]

😳😂

[@grachoderunwiderstehlichen]

plus 1200gr helmet , plus leather suit and rear/front shilds plus plus ... why not a camera lens focused to the cable-tie ? old/used oil test could be very information'et because to avoid a wrong decision about next oil Oil is Newton divided squere so Aral/BP or chevron teached this - quality oil is about the adjective