Shock and fork rehab

[97tiger885]

The forks and the shock are off.  Before I install them on the Trident, what should I do?

All three pieces are original and have 96000 miles on them.  Susquatch redid the rear shock 30000 miles and 2 years ago.  Nothing has been done to the forks except some oil changes.

Whatever needs done, now is the time.

Advice?

[ssevy]

I noticed some drops of oil under the shock today, and looking closely, it appears to be coming from around the seal on the bottom, so I guess I have to do something as well. I just put a new Penske on my Legend last summer, and that was an expensive piece of suspension.
Am I correct that on my 95 I have a Showa, and it is rebuildable? I have an excellent small shop that I thought I would ask about rebuilding my shock if it is possible. The question is, are these decent enough once rebuilt, or should I just swap the Penske onto the Tiger and put the Kawasaki ZX-11 back on the Legend? I know about some other options like Hagon, which seem to be a mid-level quality, and the Ohlins which is no longer available.
As for the front end, it is somewhat soft, but riding it on rough roads last weekend really didn't bother me, and the ride was actually pretty plush. I had though about installing the same intiminators that I have in my Legend, as they really transformed that bike's handling and eliminated nearly all of the brake dive, but now having just ridden my Legend home from storage, I must say the taut ride that works so well for this type of bike doesn't appeal to me on the Tiger. I do want to change out the original fork fluid, however, so I may install progressive springs while I have them apart.
Also, my center stand just arrived today from Twisted Throttle, having been ordered in January. Glad I ordered it then and not now!

[97tiger885]

Am I correct that on my 95 I have a Showa, and it is rebuildable? I have an excellent small shop that I thought I would ask about rebuilding my shock if it is possible.  

Don't know if you have Showa, but the Showa can be rebuilt.  There is a address for a manual in the How-to threads.

[Mustang]

only 98's had showa's
unless somebody has played mix ad match .........................
earlier steamers had kayaba (kyb) shocks and forks

before you swap shocks with legend you'll need to verify the length ...........
a good suspender shop could rebuild a kayaba for a steamer

[ssevy]

Thanks for the info. I had the new Penske built with a remote adjuster and adjustable length so I could tweak the Legend as I wanted. It sounds like my best bet is to swap it into the Tiger and try it. The remote adjuster is larger on the Penske, and the guy at the shop in Reading PA who built it told me having it bolted to the engine near all that heat was a poor decision on Triumph's part. Not sure where I can mount it, as the extra bodywork panels are where I put it on the Legend, but I'll have to experiment I guess.
I also saw some Hyperpro units for our years on ebay from GB that were about half of what the Penske cost. Anyone know anything about these?
Finally, does anyone have a link regarding rebuilding Kayaba shocks, or can recommend a good shop if my local guys don't do this?

[Mustang]

and the guy at the shop in Reading PA who built it told me having it bolted to the engine near all that heat was a poor decision on Triumph's part.

yeah and Honda has the reservoir on their crf race bikes almost touching the header pipe ,and the side of an watercooled steamer engine gets nowhere near as hot as a header pipe on a 450 thumper screaming at 10k rpm. I doubt you or I are ever going to tell the difference where the reservoir is mounted .
the inside of the reservoir is mostly rubber bladder for the nitrogen charge ,very very little oil . 

[dave NL]

Ohlins can still make a emulsion damper for the tiger, well Wim Kroon can (Ohlins Netherlands). I send the old kayaba damper to them for overhaul but the cylinder rod was beyond repair. For about €450 i had a complete Ohlins damper.

[Sin_Tiger]

Ohlins can still make a emulsion damper for the tiger, well Wim Kroon can (Ohlins Netherlands). I send the old kayaba damper to them for overhaul but the cylinder rod was beyond repair. For about €450 i had a complete Ohlins damper.

That's a damn good price,    tempted.