does anyone know if it is possible to reduce the travel on a dj1 to 3"? i have the springs to take it to 4"..is it possible to take it to 3"?
dj1 travel
- Thread starter crashedupderby
- Start date
If you really want to I'm sure you can. You need 3" springs and the right size return spring. I'm not sure that marzocchi makes 3" spring though for 03 and after forks, pretty sure they still have them for pre 03 forks.
i actually have a friend who is going to be doing this to my dj2 very soon. i'll find out what exactly is involved. like rit said, i'm pretty sure it is just a matter of the right size springs and spacers. oh, hey if you want i can ask him how he retro fited a RS U-turn assembly in his 04 dj 1, that's sick right?
i called marz yesterday and the "tech"person told me that if i have the springs to take it down to 4"s, then just leave in the springs that are already in the fork, add the 4" reducer springs and cut down the spacer and that should take it down to 3...we will see...
http://home.insightbb.com/~d.may/index2.html
just make a longer spacer to add to the top out springs,make shorter preload spacers for the top of the 4 inch travel springs.
You may have hex nuts holding the damper rods,you'll need a thinwall socket to remove those,I don't know what size as my DJ and my Super-t both have allen bolts.
just make a longer spacer to add to the top out springs,make shorter preload spacers for the top of the 4 inch travel springs.
You may have hex nuts holding the damper rods,you'll need a thinwall socket to remove those,I don't know what size as my DJ and my Super-t both have allen bolts.
Yep, this is true I just droped my DJ3 to 90mm - it works the same. You can run them at 130, 110 or 90mm quite easily. You could probably go inbetween with some fetling.
When you get the 'Travel reduction kit' from Marzocchi, you get 4 little 20mm high rebound springs. These fit round the damping assembly with the original 20mm rebound spring, on top of it in the stack.
As soon as you start to take the forks apart, and remove the top caps, there are two plastic sleeves that sit directly on top of the main springs. Whatever height of additional rebound springs (20 or 40mm) you add, you need to cut these sleeves down by that amount. Just be sure to cut straight! A junior hacksaw is good.
You do need a thin-walled 12mm socket to undo the bolts at the base of the forks. Most will not fit. Oh, the other thing is, when you take the damping stack out, the aluminium round thing on the bottom is not threaded onto the alu bit sticking out the bottom - it's a press fit. put a spanner over it and tap it off. The oil it need is 7.5wt as standard. Hope this helps.
Update:
I also found that when I cut down the preload spacer (the black sleeve in the top of the forks) as suggested by Marzocchi - ie removing the amount of material I added in rebound springs (40mm for me) I didn't think the forks were stiff enough, so I swapped out the 20mm rebound spacers with the 40mm rebound spacers I'd cut them from. (They start off being about 60mm) Good job I cut straight!
Alternativly if you have a 26.5mm seatpost you've cut down you could probably use that to make spacers the length you wanted. You'd be adding weight though!
This had made the preload much more acceptable to me. I still put a little air pressure in as well, but it's a nicer point to start with.
The only problem with doing this is that when you add a 40mm spacer, the spacer sticks out the top of the forks, making it quite hard to get the top caps on.
I used a 21mm socket and rachet to apply pressure and compress the main spring so I could get them on. If you do this, be really careful. These are the threads that basically support your entire pressure on the forks - imagine how much force that is when you land a decent drop - so be really careful when doing these threads up.
If you have any trouble doing it, don't. Make sure you have the proper tools, and a friend on hand to help support the forks would be a good idea too.
Obviously these techniques void your warranty with Marzocchi so it's at your own risk, kiddies!
I also found that when I cut down the preload spacer (the black sleeve in the top of the forks) as suggested by Marzocchi - ie removing the amount of material I added in rebound springs (40mm for me) I didn't think the forks were stiff enough, so I swapped out the 20mm rebound spacers with the 40mm rebound spacers I'd cut them from. (They start off being about 60mm) Good job I cut straight!
Alternativly if you have a 26.5mm seatpost you've cut down you could probably use that to make spacers the length you wanted. You'd be adding weight though!
This had made the preload much more acceptable to me. I still put a little air pressure in as well, but it's a nicer point to start with.
The only problem with doing this is that when you add a 40mm spacer, the spacer sticks out the top of the forks, making it quite hard to get the top caps on.
I used a 21mm socket and rachet to apply pressure and compress the main spring so I could get them on. If you do this, be really careful. These are the threads that basically support your entire pressure on the forks - imagine how much force that is when you land a decent drop - so be really careful when doing these threads up.
If you have any trouble doing it, don't. Make sure you have the proper tools, and a friend on hand to help support the forks would be a good idea too.
Obviously these techniques void your warranty with Marzocchi so it's at your own risk, kiddies!
do you like how the fork rides now?....i'm riding a rigid fork and i like the geometry and how the bike handles...but my wrists dont like it one bit......thats why i am going to put the fork back on, after i reduce it..
Yeah, It's really nice. It's pretty much as close to the BMX experience as I've had on a MTB, (see my thread 'My new Revell 250R in this thread for a look at my bike set-up) plus with the extra firm set-up it's more like a sting remover than wallowy suspension. I checked it out though and you still get the full range of travel if you hit em hard, like slamming down a bunny hop or dropping off a wall.
I think if you're considering going from rigid to sus then setting the fork stiff as I described is a nice way to get your feet wet without being weirded out by the movement - especially if you're Dirt Jumping. When I first started Dirt Jumping on a full susser, I was weirded out by the way the bike moved when i hit a jump, I nearly got thrown over the bars in midair because of how i'd set my rebound daming up (or rather - hadn't set it up!). However, once you get used to it a bit more you can start to use the travel to make stoppies, endos and hard braking much more predictable and forgiving.
The DJs are laterally stiff too, especially since I'm using a bolt on hub rather than QRs. When you pick the bike up and just drop it, there's that nice feeling of solidity like when you drop a BMX, no clattering or clunking or other weirdness. The only difference is the front end doesn't bounce, and the back wheel bounces up and down a couple of times. On the whole I'm pretty impressed with the DJ3s. Previously I've owned Z1s, Psylos, and ridden on various other forks like Jnr Ts, Whites, Shermans (didn't really like SPV on the front) - all of which are a lot more expensive and can be tuned everywhich way - I'm kind of liking the simplicity of the DJ3s and except for the preload and travel, they are set-up really nicely out of the box.
Mine are the 2003 model, which are lighter than the 2004 because the 2004 have steel stantions (sic - i know). To be honest - I have 0.000 worries about breaking them though. They are still pretty damn burly.
OMG It's snowing! Argh! I'm going outside....
I think if you're considering going from rigid to sus then setting the fork stiff as I described is a nice way to get your feet wet without being weirded out by the movement - especially if you're Dirt Jumping. When I first started Dirt Jumping on a full susser, I was weirded out by the way the bike moved when i hit a jump, I nearly got thrown over the bars in midair because of how i'd set my rebound daming up (or rather - hadn't set it up!). However, once you get used to it a bit more you can start to use the travel to make stoppies, endos and hard braking much more predictable and forgiving.
The DJs are laterally stiff too, especially since I'm using a bolt on hub rather than QRs. When you pick the bike up and just drop it, there's that nice feeling of solidity like when you drop a BMX, no clattering or clunking or other weirdness. The only difference is the front end doesn't bounce, and the back wheel bounces up and down a couple of times. On the whole I'm pretty impressed with the DJ3s. Previously I've owned Z1s, Psylos, and ridden on various other forks like Jnr Ts, Whites, Shermans (didn't really like SPV on the front) - all of which are a lot more expensive and can be tuned everywhich way - I'm kind of liking the simplicity of the DJ3s and except for the preload and travel, they are set-up really nicely out of the box.
Mine are the 2003 model, which are lighter than the 2004 because the 2004 have steel stantions (sic - i know). To be honest - I have 0.000 worries about breaking them though. They are still pretty damn burly.
OMG It's snowing! Argh! I'm going outside....
i had blown up or broken 3 dj's on my way to rigid town...so going back to squish will not bother me....it does take a couple of rides to get used to...if i cannot sell the fork soon then i will reduce it to 3" and rock the mic.....peace