GPZ500 fork oil.

Bike is a 1997 D2 model.

I need to know how much each side, and what grade please.

Anyone got a clue, cos I don't.

 

Lozzo fumbled, fiddled and fingered:

http://www.partspartners.com/html/ex500.html

reckons 287cc here if that's any help?


--
Steve Parry
K100RS SE & F650
and a 520i SE Touring for comfort

(not forgetting the SK90PY)

http://www.gwynfryn.co.uk

 

Steve Parry says...

I found that before, but it refers to the A model up to 1993. Mine's a
1997 D2 model[1]

[1] Actually an E2 Italian import with twin discs, but the inner fork
and spec is the same.

 

Is it really that critical? Just get a litre of 'medium' for a tenner, and
top it up 'til you can't top up no more, surely?

 

Monkey fumbled, fiddled and fingered:

It does'nt work like that .. if you did that the forks would be locked
solid


--
Steve Parry
K100RS SE & F650
and a 520i SE Touring for comfort

(not forgetting the SK90PY)

http://www.gwynfryn.co.uk

 

Oops. Good job I've never changed my fork oil then.

 

Monkey says...

Too right. Each lkeg only holds 290ml. There has to be an air gap at
the top. The usual scenario with Kawasaki is that they don't give a
quantity, they say to fill the fork leg to a certain distance from the
top when the spring is out and the forks are compressed.

 

The Haynes book of lies says approx 300cc, dry fill (after overhaul)
352cc +/-4cc of SAE 10W20...

Which should equate to an oil level of 117mm +/-2mm...

HTH

 

Owen says...

It does help...lots. The tossers at the Kawasaki dealership I phoned
today told me lies then.

Many thanks, Owen.

 

Lozzo scribbled:

So how do forks actually damp then?

I always thought (not having given it any thought obviously) that the
fork was filled with oil, with a rod with a sealing bit on the end of
it going up and down, with a very small hole in the sealing bit, hence
only allowing the forks to compress/decompress as fast as the hole
allows the oil through? A bit like a syringe filled with oil, end
sealed, pinprick
hole in the plunger, you could only squeeze it in so fast, the oil
would control the speed (speed for a particular squeezing force that is)

 

frag says...

http://www.hotbikeweb.com/tech/0205hb_storz/

HTH

 

Correct. The forks are only partly filled with oil, though, and the bit
with the hole is down the bottom end where the oil is. The point being made
was that if you filled the forks completely with oil, the forks wouldn't
compress at all, because oil is incompressible. You need an amount of
compressible air in there, and this air also acts as an additional spring.

 

Lozzo scribbled:

IDH, ta.

 

platypus scribbled:

The way forks are designed I can see that now, ta.

 

Welcome, always...

 

My son is looking for kit... Where do I find the Ride tests on gloves,
jackets, trousers, gloves, helmets...?

Its prolly a stupid question, but it wouldn't be the first that I'd
asked...

 

Owen says...

This is a long shot, but have you tried looking for the relevant copy
of RiDE magazine?