Chuck Waggoner / Fab Tech - WP 43mm

Harry

Harry

Member
Hi To all,

I have been reading up on a kit from Chuck Waggoner / Fab Tech that is apparently the magic bullet for the WP43mm forks. Can anyone shed any light on this or know who to contact?

I amtired of being beaten up by these forks - 80kg excl kit 0.42kg/mm - intermediate ability?
:confused:
Thanks in Advance
 
do those kits still exist? if they work/are still available, that's a dirt cheap way to revalve.. ltr worked wonders with my wp's... i would think your .42 springs are too light for you....
 
i dunno what i was thinking .42 is right for front for your weight. mine is revalved, dunno if this helps, but i can only tell you where i'm at - i'm 185lbs with no gear. 205+lbs with gear:
.42kg/mm springs
7.5w 140mm from top springs removed - tubes pushed all the way down.
comp:19 out
rebound: 16 out
 
Thanks - Stainless

Out of interest why are you using 7.5 wt oil in the WP forks? the manual calls for 5 wt at 120mm.

I have even made and fitted sub-tanks to my forks, they do help but I still feel they could be better, especialy on the small chop / braking bumps.

Any help is appreciated
 
Harry,

I think I "kind of" have these in my forks on my 2000 300. I bought a revalve kit off of the big online auction site many years ago and started the install but the dealer helping me rounded off the fork cap and I aborted the install after one side until I got the replacement parts. I still have the rest of the kit waiting to be put in so it should be just half of the kit sitting in the garage (I may be able to send the details if you can't find any info). As for "magic bullet", I would not go so far as to say that but it does help take the edge off. Before the single side was changed it was a physical ride for me (I'm big heavy at 110Kg and 188cm tall, intermediate ability) in the rocks with a lot of deflection but it was okay overall. After the partial change the deflection was cut down by 50% and it took less energy. It lost some precision in the open terrain as the suspension moved more as if it did not control the suspension as well...That being said, with the rest of the kit installed it should be workable in the rocky/slick terrain I ride in. However, I will say that these forks with this kit will likely not work as well as stock Kawasaki KX KYBs, Marzocchi's, Sachs, my 2003 KTM WPs, or just about any of the vintage forks I have on my old bikes. I would go for a re-valve from a respected tuner or try to find some older KX forks (98 or newer) as they work well offroad (don't get Honda forks). If you can find one of these kits or a copy of the contents and can do the work yourself then go ahead and try it as it should be pretty inexpensive!

Eric
 
Harry said:
Thanks - Stainless

Out of interest why are you using 7.5 wt oil in the WP forks? the manual calls for 5 wt at 120mm.

I have even made and fitted sub-tanks to my forks, they do help but I still feel they could be better, especialy on the small chop / braking bumps.

Any help is appreciated
Click to expand...

i went with heavier oil to slow the rebound a bit and make turning in easier. it's a personal preference. i bet i could go back to 5w and wouldn't know the difference. i have bleeders also which i use before every ride. these forks build air pressure fast. by using heavier oil, and lower level i get a little bit more air gap in there.
 
Problem with these is thay have a lot of oil flowing through the rebound piston (midvalve) due to the rod/cartridge dia. ratio. This makes any restrictions in this area very noticable as harshness. You need a midvalve/checkplate setup with a lot of flex. Because of this, the face shim(s) get beat fast and should be checked oftem. I have pulled out cupped and cracked shims, and a friend with a less than neccessary maintanence plan spent half a day on the trail with no rebound damping in one fork leg when the shims failed. Also, they have a low internal volume that makes the air spring curve ramp up fast. They respond very well to sub tanks, I had a set on my '03. They can be made to work decent but its much eaiser to make 45mm Zokes work significantly better. Les does a great job on these.
 
Just like jetting threads, suspension threads make me feel like the unsophisticated boob that I am.

Just to put things in perspective. My first dirt bike, twenty years ago, was a 1979 Yamaha DT175e which evolved into a nice little learner's trail bike. Easy friendly 2stroke power but not much suspension. After a few seasons, my buddies who had been riding all their lives told me I had run out of suspension and needed to upgrade.

Enter the 1989 KDX 200 basket case. The holes in the frame where the linkage mounts were egg shaped. That was a fun project and I got a couple good seasons out of that bike before it started breaking every ride. One time Sean came around the corner at Thomaston Dam and found me jumping up and down on the side of the KDX yelling at it that I don't get out enough to ride and it can't keep doing this to me. The hub had exploded, probably from the timid jumping at Jolly Roger MX a couple weekends before. That bike had impressive suspension compared to the DT, even if it probably got nothing more than fresh oil. Jim Cook ended up with that bike.

And then I got my 2001 xc300. So, it feels pretty sweet in the context of the other bikes. The idea that it can get better is... fascinating. :rolleyes:

More important is the notion that cracked shims or other worn bits could be in there, even if I've been good about keeping the oil fresh. So, maybe it's time for a full tear down soon. It's been said elsewhere that these forks are easy to work on. So, maybe I get brave and dig in to learn more about another mysterious gizmo. Only a couple special tools I'd need, I think...

OTOH, this is an area where a trained eye might (probably) see something that I wouldn't catch. So, if the goal is to make sure it's all A-OK, then discretion is the better part of valor.
And if they'd benefit from a revalve, that's for an experienced technician too. Of course, it seems if I'm asking for a revalve I'd be asking for more this or less that. And as noted above, it feels pretty sweet to this unsophisticated boob. So, I'd have to ask for an unspecified "better" Swiss Army Knife setup (since I try to ride both track and woods). And gimme some of those sub tanks because I'm packing some serious wind!:eek:

Anyway, just rambling about all that I'm learning here.
I'm going to see how quickly I can ramp up my air spring curve at the track this afternoon, if everything goes right.

-Dean
 
I doubt the shims are worn out as the bike still has the original chain and sprockets on, that it had when I purchased it brand new. And they still have plenty of life in them. I am just looking to make what I have as good as it can be on limited buget.:)
 
I think you misunderstood me. My point was that if you modify the midvalve in the fork with lighter shims that flex more, the maintanence requirements then go up to maintain reliability.
 
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