Alas, with the TTX in, I focused my attention on the front suspension this weekend. I bought a set of forks that had Ohlins 30mm cartridges already installed. They were serviced along with the TTX. Installing forks is a straightforward affair, however the task is surely more involved than working on the rear shock.
My bike’s side fairings were already off, giving the necessary access to the lower triple pinch bolts. The front wheel and fender came off first. I worked on swapping the forks one side at a time. The stock forks slip right out from the bottom.
These are the bad boys going in. I know, they look exactly the same as my stock forks.
The hardest part of this installation was probably making sure everything was in proper alignment. After torquing all bolts down to spec, here’s the bike fitted with the Ohlins.
Okay, even though it looks like I basically removed my stock forks and put them right back in – the bigger picture lies in the details. Top caps:
Stickers are the ultimate authority.
While everything was apart, I took the opportunity to tidy up the brakelines by utilizing a WSBK-inspired fastening method. I repurposed a spare tube of tygon to act as spacers/channels for the zipties:
Before installing the fairings, I extended the Quickshifter‘s ground wire and moved its connection more inward by the starter motor. Attaching the ground to the fairing bolt was convenient, but not ideal. I’ve also since removed the LighTech frame sliders, preferring to run without them.
Bike complete and ready to ride… Oh wait, it’s Winter and pouring rain.
I’m planning to bring the bike over to Catalyst Reaction sometime soon to have the suspension dialed and tuned.
seems like the mountain bike world has got a lot of ideas from the motorcycle world, i.e. the way the brake calipers mount to the fork.
f#$% yea.