250-500cc 49mm RM conventional fork swap

[dnietsche]

Has anyone completed this swap? If so what did you do to make it work? I searched the site and didn't find anything.

Thanks!
Dan

 

[Motosportz]

onto what bike? Measure the stem and bearings, always EZer to swap triples and everything.

 

[Auslander]

I'm about done with that swap on my '06 WR125. There is no way to just swap bearings, the RM stem needs to be pressed out and cut down to fit the Husky bearings. I can put together the details if you want them.

 

[dnietsche]

The complete front end is going on a 2002 CR250. Auslander, I would love to hear the details. I have a machinist that I know well so that part is not an issue, I just want to take some of the guesswork out of the process.

Thanks.

 

[troy deck]

all i know is i got a set of those forks [just the legs] and they can be yours

 

[Kyle Tarry]

I know those were rumored to be good forks (I have never ridden one myself), but is it really worth all the trouble, when you could just set up the stock forks on the bike?

 

[dnietsche]

In my case the stock forks are so damaged internally that it would cost more to repair than swapping the forks.

 

[troy deck]

In my case the stock forks are so damaged internally that it would cost more to repair than swapping the forks.

DAMAGED how you manage that?

 

[2premo]

The complete front end is going on a 2002 CR250. Auslander, I would love to hear the details. I have a machinist that I know well so that part is not an issue, I just want to take some of the guesswork out of the process.

Thanks.

if you are looking for a simpler way to do the triple clamp, in 1998 they used conventional Marzocchi forks not sure if they were 49mm but I think they were 50mm anyway the tripleclamps would fit your bike, not sure if the steering stops interchange but that could be dealt with
dumb question are the RM forks better than the Marzocchi Magnums

 

[dnietsche]

First off I didnt do anything to the forks. This is a rehab of a bike I got for dirt cheap. The dampner rod came loose from the cap where the connect damaging the rod and cap, all seals and bushings need to be replaced, and one of the springs was broken. Like I said, they were damaged.

 

[robj]

I'm running Showa RM conventional 49s on my WR144. They're great forks (some of the only twin chamber conventionals produced). I had same issue, the originals were damaged. There's 2 ways to do this, both involve machining.

1. get 96-98 RM triples and get a new stem machined to match the profile of the Husky stem. The machining is not expensive, but you need to buy good quality raw ally for the job. This is what I did. The rm triples are 20mm offset (very close to the Husky's 18mm) and is actually an improvement over stock. I found some billet Applied Racing RM 49 triples which had an adjustable bar mount. You could even use DRZ triples, the earlier ones being bang on 18mm.

2. keep Husky triples get a machinist to turn you 4 bushes to sleeve down the triples to take the 49mm tubes.

Either way you'll need an RM front wheel, axle and brake calliper.

I took the harder option and used the Husky wheel and wavy disc by converting hub to earlier Husky WR bearing/seal size to run with the RM axle. They match. Just preferred the look of this set up. You'll need to make 2 spacers to position the wheel correctly. I can let you know the size if you go this route. You also need to buy a 'Braking' adaptor to hold the RM calliper further out for the bigger Husky disc.

 

[Moto7man]

I know this is an old thread. I am doing a full restoration on a 1984 RM 250E and I am considering a Showa conventional conversion. But before I do anything, does anyone know the stock offset for the 84 RM 250?