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Don't know where to put this but since there seems to be a lot of interest in and knowledge about 65 FL's, I'm putting it here.
I'm in the process of replacing the fork seals and while I'm doing that I would like to fix another issue I've been ignoring. What's happening is the fork tubes are topping out when ridden across small bumps such as corduroy pavement or where the road surface meets a bridge apron. Sometimes a pretty loud bang but most often a tapping noise, one for every ripple in the road.
I had to replace the fork springs long ago and this has been going on ever since. At the time I replaced these springs I realized something was different than the other hydra forks I had seen. That is when I discovered the 7/8" spacers in the bottom of the tube under the spring (see attachment). In one illustration the spacer is #2 for 65 only, in the other it is # 12A for 66 only. I left this spacer out when reassembling because the preload on the spring would be just too great with it installed.
The question is did 65-66 FL's have a progressive type spring that needed the spacer for ride height and a bottom valve assembly that was drilled to compensate for the spring being weaker at the top. Because I'm cheap I don't want to throw 150 bucks away on a pair of valves if it won't fix the problem. Thanks in advance for any replies.
SD531470_0018.jpgSD531472_0020.jpgSD531469_0017.jpg
I'm in the process of replacing the fork seals and while I'm doing that I would like to fix another issue I've been ignoring. What's happening is the fork tubes are topping out when ridden across small bumps such as corduroy pavement or where the road surface meets a bridge apron. Sometimes a pretty loud bang but most often a tapping noise, one for every ripple in the road.
I had to replace the fork springs long ago and this has been going on ever since. At the time I replaced these springs I realized something was different than the other hydra forks I had seen. That is when I discovered the 7/8" spacers in the bottom of the tube under the spring (see attachment). In one illustration the spacer is #2 for 65 only, in the other it is # 12A for 66 only. I left this spacer out when reassembling because the preload on the spring would be just too great with it installed.
The question is did 65-66 FL's have a progressive type spring that needed the spacer for ride height and a bottom valve assembly that was drilled to compensate for the spring being weaker at the top. Because I'm cheap I don't want to throw 150 bucks away on a pair of valves if it won't fix the problem. Thanks in advance for any replies.
SD531470_0018.jpgSD531472_0020.jpgSD531469_0017.jpg
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