WHAT'S UP WITH THE FRONT FORKS ON A VALK

[simon]

I decided to pull my front forks off and install some Progressive springs and new seals on my 2001 Standard with only 23,000 miles on it. I love this bike but the front end is way to soft for a bike this size and weight. I pulled the forks off and took them to my local Honda shop to have them do the work since I didn't have the "special tool" or time to do them myself. I got them back today and before I installed the right hand fork, I pushed down hard on it and it had a nice dampened rebound like I would expect. Before I installed the left fork I pushed down on it and it popped back up so quick I thought I broke something in it. I called the Honda shop up and asked if they forgot to put oil in the left fork leg. They told me thats what it's suppose to do and that only one side "the right side" has the dampened rebound and the left does not. I will say, the ride is much better with the Progressive springs but when I hit a bump in the rode I still feel an uneven, sideway, slight sway. I have owned and ridden several Harleys in my day and I must say their frontends are far more stable feeling than my Valk. That being said, I love this bike and wouldn't trade it for another Harley.
 

[Skinhead]

Down load and check out the shop manual and read up on the forks.  It'll make sense to you then.  I agree it seemed strange to me too.  Every bike I ever owned had symmetrical forks.

[Daniel Meyer]

One side dampens on compression, the other dampens on rebound.

[John Schmidt]

If you're getting some sway, you might want to check the shock bushings as well. At 23k miles, if they're OEM they're about ready for new ones.

[98valk]

If you're getting some sway, you might want to check the shock bushings as well. At 23k miles, if they're OEM they're about ready for new ones.

+1, my bushings were gone at 15-18k

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

I thought the fork setup seemed strange too but it works well. You shouldn't feel any sway when stopping.

It's been my guess that since the Valk has this type of fork setup and no fork brace the steel fender may double as a brace. If that's true and your fender bolts aren't tight it might be the problem.