Roadholders anybody?

What happens if everything is tight except the front wheel spindle is loose and the nut not tightened?

As Alan hints at - it sounds like something out of parallel. Are both crowns in good condition? It sounds like one might be twisted...

When my forks are not parallel they make clanking noises - but they still bounce.

Is the mudguard bridge fouling the force shrouds?

Previously wrote:

Hi folks, being at wits end to solve the problem with my Dommie front forks, casting around for wisdom. Must be missing something.

Bought this lovely bike ('54 ironhead bolt-up frame) a few years ago, it had the fork problem then,that the legs compress but not return. It got through a few MOT's with the tester shaking his head but passing it. I nevere fell off but always felt wary. Grasped the nettle only last month, took them out, dismantled, checked, replaced seals and bushes, got each leg bouncing nicely. You guessed, put the whole thing back together on the bike and they are worse than before. Unwillingly they will go down, even more complaint if you want them to come back up. The usual trick of loosening everything off round the yokes and front spindle doesn't seem to show anything: they stay obstinate.

Am I dealing with gremlins and beasties here or is there some rational line I can take with this. I have to confess right now that I am not a whiz engineer or even mechanic and on top of that, I really dislike working on front forks. It's the combination of strong springs, oil and smooth surfaces that gets me wound up.

But I digress. I will get these roadholders working, pretty soon, with a few helpful suggestions. I have also heard it's possible to improve the damping characteristics maybe while I'm at it. I have seen one or two pieces on t'web but would appreciate some comment from somebody who has tried any of them?

Cheers, Rhon

Hello I have a 54 Domie So let go back over every thing again and look very carefully at every thing thats there and then cheque the workshop manual on the fork section , and see witch springs you have in there the springs maybe from another model of Norton like a Commando or something then you could cheque the nut that tightens the spring up or there something fouling the damper tube or stanchions , any I would Strip the lot and start again and put it back bit by bit and check every thing as you go , Your Anna J

Do they still stick with the wheel spindle pinch bolt and wheel nut loosened off? It might be that the forks are being distorted out of true if there is something amiss with the front wheel spindle. Thought - could there be a mismatch of parts from 7" forks and 7 3/8" forks? Gordon.

The hub bearing dust cover sometimes gets forgotten.

I had the same problem. I found wear in the right-hand slider. When I checked closely, there was the slightest bend in the stanchion, which I only detected after rolling it over a flat surface. My guess was it had a knock on that side some point, and over time the forks had been apart and reassembled with the stanchion in a different position in the yokes, so when everything was nipped up the lower end was not running parallel with the damper, grazing the inside of the slider. This effectively created a 'ridge', upon which the damper would get stuck if the forks compressed too much, preventing them from springing back. I would also check the damper caps, I was surprised at how much a new pair tightened everything up - worn caps create more play than I certainly imagined anyway. Another suggestion I would make is to have your yokes professionally checked and straightened. The lesson I learned was that good damping depends on so many variables - and ain't cheap. But it was worth it for me as the handling is now so much better. Good luck.

Mudguard can pull legs together.

Robert - that's a very good tip! It might not be Rhon's problem but it's worth bearing in mind for people (like me!) who have bought pattern mudguard bridges which may not be the correct width. They should be tried against the forks when they are clamped up at the yokes and the front axle & wheelnuts are in position. If there's a gap between the mudguard bridge and the fork legs at the fixing studs, then either bend the bridge to eliminate the clearance or measure the gap and use washers or spacers to pack the gaps out.

For Rhon's to jam in the compressed position, even if only temporarily, there must be something withtoo tight a clearance indicating a bend or ridge in the stanchions, as has been suggested. Definitely a big hammer job.

Cheers, Lionel

Hi, has your old bike had a sidecar on it in the past, as this can twist the bottom yoke out of true. If so, first it probaly has sidecar yokes. If it has solo yokes, are they correct for the frame, are the stanchions the correct length, are the internal parts correct for the year, should it have external springs, which early forks had? If all parts match, the tubes are all straight, then take the front mudguard right off, slacken the wheel spindle pinch bolt, put the front brake on hard and push the bike forward and down hard a few times, hold the brake on and then tighten the pinch bolt. If the forks now work ok, then refit the mudguard checking all fittings align with the bolt holes with no strain. You have checked that the wheel spindle is not bent at the thread neck first, I assume. Hope all goes well for you. Paul

The only Norton Roadholder sidecar yokes I have seen had the word"Sidecar" cast in the top so thery were easy to recognise.

Cheers, Lionel

I note you say it has always been like this - so it sounds like isn't just something that has gone wrong like re-assembly (an 'acute' illness) but something that's always there (chronic).

A couple of years ago I changed ny fork seals, so I did the bushes at the same time. Result was sticky forks - so I put the old bushes back in.

I wonder if P.O. changed the bushes for a marginally oversize pair like I did?

You don't have the option of putting older ones back in to find out. But maybe you need to strip the forks to find out (without the springs to complicate things)?...

Previously wrote:

Hi, has your old bike had a sidecar on it in the past, as this can twist the bottom yoke out of true. If so, first it probaly has sidecar yokes. If it has solo yokes, are they correct for the frame, are the stanchions the correct length, are the internal parts correct for the year, should it have external springs, which early forks had? If all parts match, the tubes are all straight, then take the front mudguard right off, slacken the wheel spindle pinch bolt, put the front brake on hard and push the bike forward and down hard a few times, hold the brake on and then tighten the pinch bolt. If the forks now work ok, then refit the mudguard checking all fittings align with the bolt holes with no strain. You have checked that the wheel spindle is not bent at the thread neck first, I assume. Hope all goes well for you. Paul

Hi Paul,

I assume we are talking about f/bed forks here, so I'm puzzled as too why you say early forks had external springs. All the f/bed dommies I ever worked onhad internal springs, including my own 1951 "88"

I always found the external springs were to be found on the "long" forks fitted to the single down tube frames or onthe shorter Manx forks.

Ian.

Hi, Ian, I might be well be confusing forks, as so much used to be swopped about in the old days. If it fitted and worked one used it. The Street Scramblers had external springs. I had one new. Best regards, Paul

Rhon, did you ever resolve this?