KTM Forks on a XR

[CanadianFast50]

who has done this? what does it take to make it work?

[birddogg]

Hey CF50! My friend did this on his 50, I don't know all the details but he said all you need is a spacer. The rear shock will bolt on as well. He was going to sell me his 2001 for $1000 and my rear shock but I passed. He did say the forks were way under-sprung. birddogg6969@yahoo.com ?

[CanadianFast50]

birddogg, if the fit is good then I will be able to make things work with other springs or spacers, did he say if he thought they were strong enough? any issues with bending?

[birddogg]

He only ran them for a few weeks, but he is a big guy (6'2 about 230) and rides hard so if they were going to bend easily he'd have been the guy to do it. He used to be a pro quad rider back in the 80's and usually stomps everyone in the local vet class on his 450. ?

[birddogg]

Did you find a sweet deal on a set? ?

[CanadianFast50]

the local dealer here has a set from an older pro junior (2000?) stil with a drum brake. he is willing to let me have all the stuff and try to make it work , we will then decide what it is worth, its all used stuff anyway, I will attempt to fit it all up this weekend, wish me luck. $350 or so should cover it.

[birddogg]

Bid low and good luck ?

[minifig-phil]

Are the the USD ones? or the Marzocchi ones?

[CanadianFast50]

Marzocchi I think, I will be picking them up tonight to see if I can make it all work, is there some that are worlds better or beffier then the others? have you tried this Phil? I don't know what I am going to see when I get there. I have the option to take them and see how they fit and how strong they look before I buy them, I will post once I get it together.

[minifig-phil]

I was looking into using them but then I settled on trying to keep it as much Honda as I could and bought a set of CR60 forks. I'm going to make a set of tiple clamps for it once i get the frame.

I would still consider using them if I could find a set cheep enough.

[CanadianFast50]

thats nice to hear considering you are not fooloing around (ie: super pro frame) and you were considering the KTM forks that makes me feel better about the whole deal. $500 Canadian Funds, that didn't seem offensive to me considering it would be over a grand for the RG# stuff if I went that way, sure they are not as good but I like keeping my money as much as the next guy.

[minifig-phil]

Do you have access to a machine shop?

You'll probably have to shorten up the tubes.

I also checked on the KTM web site and there are 3 or 4 different lengths of travel of forks

for all the different 50's that they make.

$500 seams kind of steep to me I paid $25us for the CR60 forks.

I would look into it a bit more before you buy them.

I'm going to have to make a new dampening rod and shorten up the tubes and make triple

clamps for the CR60 forks before I use them. It's not as easy as just bolting them on.

[CanadianFast50]

phil, 500 is for everything, clamps, bar mounts, forks, front wheel assy, brake panel, tire, like you say I have to be sure before I buy, bu this is a good start considering the farting around I would have to do to gather all these bits elsewhere, I will keep you informed and check ebay to se what there is out there.

[CanadianFast50]

minifig-phil, I picked up the forks last night, COTW (Cash On Them Working) and took them home, they look right until you put them beside the bike, they are way long, I do have access to a machine shop and would definitely have to shorten the tubes, I think I would even have to cut and weld the lowers too, I have to start hacking stuff up but I am going o study them really close and then decide what to do, I think it will all work out with some fussing around. What are your thoughts on them? I think that the cut and weld idea is good but will have to wait and see what I have access too to mock them up. Later ?

[minifig-phil]

You can't cut and weld the sliders the bore inside is pretty important. Do they hang past the axle too much?

Or too long where the fork seal goes?

What KTM50 did they come off of?

[atomrotten]

Are they KTM 50 forks? If they are they will work. You will have to add a xr70 swing arm minimum to even out the ride. I would suggest you contact My Buddy Donnie at www.paxracing.com He makes these kits work great on the 50's and uses similiar ones on his race team. Donnie is a super cool cat and a wealth of info with this fork set-up.

Later Atom RoTTeN

[CanadianFast50]

the forks are off of a 2001 50LC, marzocci mini, with 180mm of travel, I think they should work with a longer swing arm and shock, I will try to figure it all out this weekend, I will post with my findings.

rotten, I will see what I find this weekend and then go from there with the pax guys. ?

[50race]

I was experimenting with ktm 50 fork a couple of weeks ago. It is cool because I am good friends with some guys at a ktm shop. anyway I was using 03 parts and wat i found was this: the jr. lc forks will work well with a +2 inch swingarm. the jr lc steering stem is too short. the jr lc hydraulic brake hose is too short. you need the lc front wheel.

the easiest way to get the forks to fit is to make a different steering stem and buy the sr lc brake hose. the shop that i go to has heavy duty forks springs availible The Cycle Shed and a place that is working in conjunction with them is making a kit that comes with a complete front end with a complete wheel and aluminum rim. i think the kit is said to cost $950

[CanadianFast50]

anything more to add guys?

[atomrotten]

You can buy the set complete ready to install from PAX for 750.00. They are Paoli the same forks on the Polini bikes. They are just as good as the KTM fork and it is a proven set up by PAX.

Later Atom RoTTeN