Our Forks Flipped Upside Down (ZX10R Fork Fitment)

Some of our more eagle-eyed followers may have noticed that the front suspension on our Kawasaki ER650 Supertwin was upgraded prior to the recent NG Pembrey race meeting. We have been building up to this switch for a while and have now finally replaced the (very capable) Maxton-converted standard ER6 forks for a set of Maxton-converted Kawasaki ZX10R forks.

For those of you considering this fork swap, here is what was on our parts list:
  * 2004-2005 Kawasaki ZX10R forks and front wheel spindle
  * Modified 2006-2007 Kawasaki ZX10R yokes (note: 2008-2010 ZX10R bolt straight in)
  * Kawasaki ZX10R/ZX6R front mudguard
  * 2004-2007 Kawasaki ZX10R Tokico calipers (or 2009< Kawasaki ZX6R/ZX14R Nissin calipers)
  * 50mm Clip-on handlebars
  * New brake pads & brake lines
  * 54mm Steering damper clamp (if needed)
  * and any other bolts/spacers/etc that you also wish to replace at this time

We chose the 2004-2005 ZX10R forks for several reasons: they were the same length as the ER forks they were replacing, they used a 20mm spindle and they used 300mm brake discs - meaning that our existing ER6 wheels would fit with only different wheel spacers being required. After a revalve and respring by Maxton suspension, along with a full service, the ZX10R forks were ready for action. The modified 2006-2007 ZX10R yokes bolted straight into our ER6 chassis, but prior to fitment our top yoke was milled to remove the ignition key ring and the lower yoke was milled to allow our 'Ram Air' scoop to still get plenty of cool fresh air.

The Tokico brake calipers found on the 2004-2007 ZX10Rs were well-documented to have plenty of power but lacked in feel - for this reason we decided to opt for the common conversion of fitting 2009< ZX6R/ZX14R Nissin calipers. SBS Sintered race pads were chosen as they will work well in both wet and dry conditions. 2008< Honda Fireblade monoblock calipers were also considered as they are also a straight swap onto these forks, but the Nissin calipers appeared at the right time so we opted for those.

With all of the new parts bolted on, we think that a visual improvement was most certainly made. When we arrived at Pembrey, the standard Maxton-suspension settings worked well. After making some preload and compression damping adjustments over the weekend at Pembrey, it was instantly possible to feel the changes that were made, which is nice! But the real back-to-back test to see whether a real improvement has been made will only come this weekend at Darley Moor Round 6 - as we have ridden 500+ laps around Darley Moor on this bike (yes, it really is that many!) - so any improvements, or otherwise, should be clearly apparent.

More news will follow shortly...  :-)