Maxton Fork Conversion

[Guzzirider]

Helen has been complaining about the forks on her V11 Sport since she got the bike and I promised I would get them sorted for her. Rather than spend a considerable amount upgrading to another type of fork like an Ohlins, I decided to get the existing Marzocchis rebuilt and upgraded by Maxton.

 

Maxton have an excellent reputation for improving and building suspension units and Richard the proprietor told me he could improve them by throwing away the internals, and fitting his own cartridges and springs. He would also fit rebound and compression adjusters for both fork legs.

 

I drove to their workshop just over a month ago with the forks, and Richard carefully inspected them while I was there, to check they were straight and look for other defects. He was familiar with these type of forks, having rebuilt the forks for the TT Tenni a few years back. I obviously wanted them set up for road use, and after giving Richard all the information he needed about Helen and her riding style, I left them in his capable hands. He said they would be ready in about 3 weeks or so, this being his busiest time of the year.

 

There were a couple of weeks late due to a delay in Richard getting the correct type of springs from his supplier, but Helen picked them up on Tuesday, and I refitted them to the bike last night.

 

All I can say is WOW!!! What a difference!!! The quality of ride is much improved, and they feel just right out of the box, feeling great over the bumps and giving a much more sophisticated ride.

 

I know you can upgrade these forks yourself, but if you are the type of guy who would like an expert to improve your forks for you then I can recommend Maxton for sure.

 

Price for the conversion was £376- much cheaper than a fork swap.

 

Next step is to fit the Ohlins rear that I have bought, and then to set the bike up for Helen- I think the end result should be a very comfortable fine handling machine.

 

Guy

[big J]

There's a big difference isnt there.Damping quality and feel are vastly improved,miles over stock.

 

As you say,bodgery is fun,but theres a world of improvement to be found letting the guys who know what they're at do it properly.

[Guzzirider]

There's a big difference isnt there.Damping quality and feel are vastly improved,miles over stock.

 

As you say,bodgery is fun,but theres a world of improvement to be found letting the guys who know what they're at do it properly.

 

Spot on Big J- I would not purport to know what i am talking about when it comes to improving forks- spring rate / air gap?

 

I'd rather trust somebody who is the acknowledged expert on this subject.

 

I know you fitted a Maxton rear shock- did you get your forks done too?

 

Cheers

 

Guy

[big J]

Not yet Guy,I was working away most of last year and didnt get the chance.Like yourself I spoke to Richard about it and it's on the cards.I've ridden a good few bikes set up by them,never failed to be hugely impressed.

 

I suppose like a lot of folk,I would always have gone looking for more power to improve my bike til I got the chance to find out what a difference a properly engineered suspension makes.Fair opened my eyes.

 

As a bonus,the guys at Maxton are spot on.First class engineers but always willing to help.

[Guest GUZZI@50]

Guy i've had the maxton upgrade done on my forks,Has made a big improvement but there is only rebound adjustment no compression .Is this the same on your forks?When i asked him why there was no compression adjustment Richard told me that it wasn't posible to do it to my type of fork. Look forward to your reply Graham.

[quazi-moto]

I've contacted Traxxion Dynamics here in the states about a similar conversion. I'll probably wait until the riding season is over for this year, but its something that I'm seriously considering.

[Guzzirider]

Guy i've had the maxton upgrade done on my forks,Has made a big improvement but there is only rebound adjustment no compression .Is this the same on your forks?When i asked him why there was no compression adjustment Richard told me that it wasn't posible to do it to my type of fork. Look forward to your reply Graham.

 

Hi Graham

 

Helen in a rush left the paperwork and manual at Maxton and they are posting it to me.

 

I'm pretty sure they said they would be adding compression adjusters and there look to be 2 different adjusters on each fork- I'll let you know when the manual arrives.

 

In any case, they seem pretty well set up from the crate and seem fine under braking so I can't imagine I would be tweaking it much anyway.

 

Cheers

 

Guy