soft front forks?????

[harley-kid]

have a 2004 883 man the front forks are very sloppy...im the 2nd owner so do i change oil and add more too stiffin or just buy stiffer springs ???if springs what kind should i get????thanks

[darth]

Originally Posted by harley-kid

have a 2004 883 man the front forks are very sloppy...im the 2nd owner so do i change oil and add more too stiffin or just buy stiffer springs ???if springs what kind should i get????thanks

A set of Progressive fork springs should fix you right up. My 04 was getting weak in the front, so I replaced the stock springs with the Progressives, replaced the fork seals, and added new fork oil... rides and handles great now.

[DR_DEUCE]

Change out the fork oil to a higher viscosity. Go from 5wt to 10wt, or 10wt to 15wt.
A small step makes a noticeable difference, so I would not go from 5wt to 30wt all at once.
This is a low cost proposition. You can later change out the springs if need be.
Metric shops will have the oil ranging in 2 1/2wt increments, where a HD shop might not have those weights. Your forks are Japanese anyway.

[fastkevin]

If the oil's never been changed in your forks before, you'd be surprised the difference you'll see by just changing it. The oil they put in forks at the factory is a fine vinegrette as it is. By now your oil probably has the same consistency as water. It might be a little thicker, but that'd be simply from all the crud in it which usually doesn't compress very well anyway. Regardless of what you do, change the seals out at the same time.
If you wanna shoot me your weight, I can hit you back with the proper spring rate and maybe even the correct oil and oil height for it as well. I have website that I can go to that shows me all this info.
No you can't get it too..you have to be a dealer for this particular vendor..

[towerhandjake]

Kevin, I got a 04 custom (pretty much stock) and also was thinking about changing front fork oil. However I have zero experience with suspension. So I am about 170 and would gladly take any advice you can give me for possibly taking on this task myself. I am very good mechanically, just low on experience.

Originally Posted by fastkevin

If the oil's never been changed in your forks before, you'd be surprised the difference you'll see by just changing it. The oil they put in forks at the factory is a fine vinegrette as it is. By now your oil probably has the same consistency as water. It might be a little thicker, but that'd be simply from all the crud in it which usually doesn't compress very well anyway. Regardless of what you do, change the seals out at the same time.
If you wanna shoot me your weight, I can hit you back with the proper spring rate and maybe even the correct oil and oil height for it as well. I have website that I can go to that shows me all this info.
No you can't get it too..you have to be a dealer for this particular vendor..