kx conversion vs stock w/ factory connection

[gem]

Last winter when doing my top end(in the living room) I came home one afternoon to see a little puddle of oil on the floor under my driver side fork so I sent them out to factory connection, w/ shipping it cost me about 450.00 to have them redone and sprung for my weight, They were much better. I am wondering if I should consider the fork mod or would that not be much better than what I have now. I am also interested for the "cool factor"

[krazyinski]

Whaa?? you spent 450 on the OEM forks? yes KX forks will still be a big improvement.

[Green Hornet]

$450 OUCH.
I had the KX rebuilt & re-valved as well as the rear re-built & re-valved for $375

[IdahoCharley]

$450 OUCH.
I had the KX rebuilt & re-valved as well as the rear re-built & re-valved for $375

Don't forget that springs and shipping twice (to and from) add up fast. I had JW do his magic on my KTM shock and it was close to $475 counting the new spring and shipping.

[Indawoods]

I do my own ..thank you very much!

[gem]

I took at look at my paper work and it was actually 402.72 but the big question again is should I get involved with this project? I guess another thing to consider is wether or not I would have to get the new forks redone.

[Indawoods]

It's not as complicated as you might think. Allot of common sense when it comes to how they work and what you can do to them. Besides the satisfaction of doing it yourself.....

[thebleakness]

How much are you guys paying for the KX fork mod once everything is set and done? I can do my own work on the forks themselves (at least I have friends who are VERY qualified) but I need the parts themselves. How much can you sell the stock KDX parts that get replaced?

[Indawoods]

I sold my forks and wheel to Fredette for $175.

What parts are you wanting? You usually end up taking some shims out. What is your weight and the current springs in the forks?

[thebleakness]

Well I bought the bike and it was set up for a 140 pound rider and .38kg springs if I remember correctly. It was reassembled with Race Tech Gold valves.

I turned the compression all the way in on the last ride and it helped greatly, front tracked much better and I rode faster. Without gear I'm about 145 and with gear maybe 160 tops?

I'm a low income high school student so money is a large factor in what I can modify. After selling your forks and wheel to Fredette and including forks what did you end up paying for the conversion?

[Indawoods]

It depends... On my personal bike I spent something like $200 over what I got out of the KDX stuff. On my brothers... I got cash back. So, it depends on what you got in it.

What is the oil level in the forks and what weight? That's where I would start.

[thebleakness]

I pulled out the piece of paper that the previous had of his suspension job.

Set up with/for:
Rider without Gear - 150lbs
Gold Valve Kit
US-1 (5W)
Oil Level - 130mm
FRSP 3647 springs (it says these are .44kg/mm online??)
540mm length spring set length
desert/enduro/trails
rider prefers soft stiffness
noive/beginner skill level

It seems if I'm reading this paper right, that this guy spent ALOT of money on both his forks and rear suspension. But that's only if I'm reading this correctly...

[IdahoCharley]

FWIW - The set-up notes you copied to this thread appear to be only the forks.

Cost of conversion like Indawoods mentioned varies depending upon how much you spend for the required parts and how much you recroup from selling the used parts. It not only money, but also some time involved gathering the parts together. (actual conversion exchange time is maybe 2 hours) Springs can be costly ~$100 if needed and purchased new; or ~$30 if needed and you find a good deal on e-bay. Shim removal costs nothing but adding or replacing with different size shims can add ~$20 to $50 to the bill. Purchasing some forks that need new bushings and seals may cost you another $75 for seal and bushing replacement kit. Pressing out the old stem and having it pressed into the KX triple tree may cost $5-10 or it may cost the more typical $25-30. Screw up a neck bearing add another $25 or so.

For our KDX conversion using CR forks with KX triple tree and CR front wheel - the out of pocket end cost was approximately $200 but I did spend about $82 for machine work which maybe $50 was associated with building a couple of split bushings to resize the upper KX triple tree to the CR forks. This cost would not have been necessary had I purchased KYB forks matching the KX triple tree.

I parted out most of the KDX used parts on e-bay which was a pain in the a$$. Purchased conversion forks, wheel, slider protectors, triple tree on e-bay which meant I spent maybe 2 months watching e-bay looking for parts. It not very difficult to gather everything together but you do need patience if your going to gather parts off e-bay - or maybe you could be one of the lucky few who find a complete front end off a KX that is in good shape and only need to exchange the stem and bolt it on.

Was it worth it? I think so - while I believe the stock forks can be made (with springs/oil/shims) to work well for normal trail riding there is underhang on the stock forks which will catch on roots, rocks, and ruts and put you down. This is the primary reason I bought into the conversion: Yes- I would do it again!

[kawagumby]

44 kg fork springs in stock forks for a 150 lb novice trail rider "soft" doesn't seem right - they would likely be noticeably too stiff. I am a 165 LB A rider and I opted for the 38 springs and gold valves on my last 220, and they were just right for rough single track and complimented the stock 5.0 rear spring nicely. Fredette recommends 38's for riders less than 180 lbs.

If someone doesn't notice the drawbacks of your current forks, the money would best be spent elsewhere IMO. The goldvalves are a great improvement over stock, and if the front end works for you...why worry about USD's?

[Indawoods]

Yes... I agree those are heavy springs.... everything else sounds about par....

If I recieved the bike like that... I would work with it for a while to see where I could get it. Mine on the otherhand were junk from the start and i was not about to put any money into them and went straight to USD's.

[canyncarvr]

gem: I wish I had paid only $400+ on my OEM forks before taking them out altogether. Add a few more and that's what I spent on my KDX forks before I put the KX forks on.

Re: 'I am wondering if I should consider the fork mod or would that not be much better than what I have now.'

You should. It will be much better.

The suspension part of my OEM forks is better than my current KX setup, but I haven't spent much time or money on tuning my KX forks. I know I can improve them, just haven't yet. Even considering the 'old' forks being better suspended, it is STILL a much better ride with the KX forks. Honestly...it doesn't matter if you need seals, shims, springs etc. It's still worth it.


Re: TBlea...('ya hijacked another one!)

.38s for 150 is on the high side for a woods setup. .44s? YeeOW! I wouldn't wanna ride your bike for more'n about ten seconds. But, to each his own!

Re: 'If someone doesn't notice the drawbacks of your current forks..'

I disagree. It's hard to compare them if you don't have anything to compare them TO! I had NO impression of the KDX forks flexing, bending and giving under pressure. Just didn't feel it. But...I also figured my WER to be doing absolutely nothing!! With the KX forks in it became abundantly clear that the KDX forks were NOT up to snuff in the slightest. ..and the damper 'all of a sudden' started doing something!!!

If you have the experience to recognize shortcomings that is fine. I didn't. And to not change the forks just 'cuz I didn't 'notice the drawbacks' would not have worked at all well.

[kawagumby]

I don't really disagree with you...but....
it kinda depends on the riding style of the user, for many who do not run in rutted, root and rock infested trails, or deal with the kinds of terrain/speeds that would stress the stock fork setup - the oem's are sufficient IMO. When I see other KDX riders in my area, they are most often on main, open-type trails, often just putt-putting around within a group. In such cases, the money would be better spent on good tires, chains, etc, mebbe even an FMF pipe. Tires especially. Of course, I'm thinking like a guy who has limited funds who needs to make choices - which had mostly been my case when I was young.

For a rider who challenges his/herself at any experience level, yes, the USD's would ultimately be the way to go - agreed.

[krazyinski]

whats the point of riding if you dont go all out and test the limits of man and machine. might as well ride a golf cart on a golf course, or ride a quad.

[canyncarvr]

I assumed there was some riding going on.............

C'mon out and we'll take a trip to the dunes. I'll give you a picture of my Banshee so with all the time passing by that you won't SEE me, you'll remember what it looked like when we left the staging area.

[Indawoods]

...as we head for some challenging terrain called woods!