86 250R forks different lengths. What gives?

[InPiEcEs]

I have been picking away at my 86 250R here and there, and now I'm starting to put the suspension back on the fresh red frame. I noticed that my forks seem to be 2 different lengths. I know a few of the parts on my R came from an '85, but not many. I bought it from the original owner in 1991. I have not gone as far as to pull the springs to see if they are both 86 forks, so I don't know that yet. I assume they would be the same length in '85, and '86. Do I have some kind of internal problem? I did plan on replacing the seals just cuz the forks sat for 7 years. They seemed to work well when last used, and no leaks, or seepage. Any clue why they are different lengths?

[InPiEcEs]

I may have a partial answer to my problem. They are about 1 inch different in length. I noticed that the longer one hits solidly when you let it extend, and the shorter one seems to have something stopping it short of full extension. It doesn't hit solidly against the stop. I will have to tear them down and find out what the problem is. Any ideas on what I might find wrong?

[bondoboy]

I had this problem on my 350x. The previous owner bent a tube so he bought a replacement at a cycle shop. It was a little longer but he put it on anyway. The only problem was when you hit a bump the wheel would cock to one side. I guess that is because the forks had a little bit different spring rate. I didn't like this so I got a nice set cheap off ebay and had them rebuilt. It's great now.

[InPiEcEs]

I don't believe that is the problem I have. Right now the forks are off the bike. When you push down on the throttle side fork, and let it extend back out, you can feel it stop nice and solid like it should. The other fork stops a bit short, and feels as though it is stopping on something it should be stopping on. I'm gonna tear them down and see what I find.

[250r'en +TCB]

"The front suspension is very easy. Honda built in a cool feature. On the 1985 model 250R, they had 2 stage springs: one short set and one long. I simply removed the small spring and it set my bike at the perfect height. My bike is an 86R, so I searched Ebay and ended up finding a set of two stage springs for $5. I don't know how Honda decided which springs to put in each model because I've come across 86 R's with 2 stage springs too. Whatever. The only way to find out was to remove the top fork bolt and see which set I had." http://home.comcast.net/~atc330rrider/iceracerpage.htm

The guy is talking about how to build an ice racer on that page and he desribes why your forks are differnt lengths....
-Devin

[InPiEcEs]

I figured out my problem. The rebound spring was in the wrong place on the longer one. According to the Honda manual, it goes under the piston, which would put it between the piston and the fork body. When the fork extends, it rests on the rebound spring. One of mine was on top of the piston. I also think that I may have one '86, and one '85 fork, as one of them has the dual spring setup. All I need is seals and oil, and they are good to go.