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Matris FKE spring kit, what oil to use?

Gregoris

Just got it firing!
Joined
Oct 9, 2019
Messages
7
Location
London UK
Hi, I am from London and new to this forum. I recently purchased a second hand V7 Special 2013 model and I love everything about it. I have owned a V50 Monza way back in my twenties and after owning a number of other modern bikes I came back to a Moto Guzzi and feels like home.

I am in the process of upgrading the forks and ordered a set of Matris FM108KE which should be delivered in the next month or so. From what I can tell no oil is supplied with this kit so I was just wondering what I should use once I get them. I weigh 75kg (i think thats about 165lbs). As I understand choice of oil is important but what should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance.

Greg
 
I have the Matris fork kit (F15M108K-F15K {fork type Kaifa}) installed in my 2017 V7III Racer. The kit was absolutely complete ... aside from bits that you reuse from the original fork guts, everything was in the box as far as I recall. I'm pretty sure it came with the fork oil, I don't recall buying it separately. The data sheet says "Motorex Fork Oil SAE 5W (1L)".

I had the fork kit installed at GTMotocycle's shop, which is why I don't recall specifically that the fork oil came in the box, but no additional cost for fork
oil is listed on my invoice.

The instructions that came with the kit say to "pour oil into the fork sot that it flows inside the cartridge. Slide rod up and down several times to bleed any air bubbles out of the cartridge." Then "adjust oil level according to the instruction of the setup card. note: Oil level must be measured without spring and with the rod pushed completely down." The setup card says "Oil level: 130 mm", which is measured from the top of the tube. And all the default settings for preload, compression, and rebound are there to be set as your starting point. The mechanic and I fussed a little with setting the preload for the right sag for my weight, and I rode off with the fork set to the defaults on the damping. I later adjusted both rebound and compression by a couple of clicks based upon what I was seeing in the bike's responses over pavement irregularities and bumps.

It's a fantastic kit: the forks work FAR better than they did when stock.

G
 
Thanks Godfrey,

it is funny that there are 3 separate kits on offer by Matris for these bikes and as you can see here:

matrisdampers.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Guzzi-V7-12-14-V7-II-15-16-web-4.pdf

two of them (the F15K and FKC) indicate in the images that they come with the fork oil, whereas the one that I am ordering (FKE) doesn't.
If you say that the F15K comes with Motorex SAE 5W then I guess this is what Matris would also recommend to be used for the FKE..
 
It is an interesting summary ...and a little confusing! I went back to the Matris web pages to find more information.
  • The FKE kit is "the first step" ... It's essentially a set of springs in whatever weight you want, fork caps with pre-load adjustment, and a tuned damper body with no adjustability (presumably better performing than the stock damper body).
  • I couldn't find the FKC kit listed, but it seems to be the same as the FKE but using the standard OEM springs (just replaces the damper body and adds preload adjustment).
  • The F15K kit completely replaces all the OEM fork internals, adds pre-load, compression, and rebound adjustability, and comes with new springs per your spec. This is the kit I bought from Todd (GTMotocycles) and had his shop install:

I was looking for full adjustability/tunability, so I wasn't looking at the other options when I was doing these mods. :)

It does seem a good inference that you should use the same recommended Motorex Fork Oil SAE 5W with their tuned dampers, at least as a starting point ... the image of the oil on the sheet is the same as for the F15K. Without adjustable valving, the only variables you have to work with in tuning the fork's suspension qualities are the oil weight, quantity of oil, and (with their kit) the spring preload. So, in lieu of any other information, I'd start with that and see if a slightly heavier or slightly lighter weight is more appropriate once .

Exactly how much oil to put in is another question. I looked in the Guzzi V7III ABS manual and found that they're specifying 120 +/- 1.5 mm. Presumably, the Matris kit will include a recommended specification in its instruction manual, like they did for the F15K kit. Perhaps it will also include an oil type and weight specification ... if it's not including the oil.

I think you should wait for the kit to arrive to find out what other information might be available, before
buying oil. Or send Matris a note and see what they have to say about it. :)

G
 
So the FKE fork kit from Matris has arrived and the info leaflet included in the kit states that a Fork Oil SAE 15 is recommended for this kit. There is no other information regarding specs of the springs for example, even though I did tell them my weight when placing the order.
Should I just go for what they recommend and use a SAE 15 oil? Anyone that has installed same kit on a v7 has an opinion-thought?

IMG 6189
 
Do you need to disassamble the fork or could you just drop in the valve, bushing and spring from above? Have you tested the bike after the mod? Comments?

I’m looking for more details as well, it sounds like it is drop in but the extra flow restrictor at the top is off-putting.
Is there a drain screw at the bottom of the forks ?

Thanks,
Don
 
Just an update for those who is looking for the info.
The FM108KE kit I have comes with the springs, but no oil.
You would just remove the fork tubes, remove the springs and spacers, and then dump the oil out.
The recommended oil weight and level are already in the pictures of post #8 above; 15W, 60 mm measured with the fork fully compressed down and with the flow regulator (part A) and the spring.
Put the part C and D from the kit in the tube according to the illustration in the instruction and the cap (E) on with preload adjusters all the way up.

I am about 75kg with gear. Although I have not measured the sag and rode the bike, I can tell you that the forks are now very stiff and can't be easily compressed. My plan is that if it is indeed too stiff, I'd try using the OEM springs and go from there.
 
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Instructions say check the final level of 60mm with spring in and fuel down......?
If you did it without the spring, you probably have to much oil in, hence stiffness...?
 
Instructions say check the final level of 60mm with spring in and fuel down......?
If you did it without the spring, you probably have to much oil in, hence stiffness...?
My mistake, the oil level measurement was taken with the part A flow regulator and the spring in. I have corrected my post above.

@Vagrant I believe the springs that come with this kit are supposed to be stiffer than the stock springs. Before buying the kit, I was deciding on the kit with or without the springs and went with the one with the springs thinking that I could always put the stock springs in, if the result was too stiff. I have compare them with the stock ones and they have greater pitch and little longer also. When I said "stiff" I meant that they are much stiffer than stock, which is what I'd expect. It was my first impression comparing with the stock forks without measuring the sag.

@GTM Todd, I got a coupon from the other store where I have bought some parts for the Ducati Monster, so...
I am eyeing on the Bitubo shocks at your store, which would be the next project.
 
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