Looking to buy a spring compressor | GTAMotorcycle.com

Looking to buy a spring compressor

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NuggyBuggy

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I have had a few occasions to need one. I have used ratchet straps to compress the springs on my dirt bikes, but it was a bit of a pain. Now that I am looking to replace the dust seal on my 87 CBR600F, I am looking for the right tool.

I am looking at either This less expensive tool, or This somewhat more expensive tool.

There’s only a $30 difference, and the latter looks a lot more solid. I’ve heard about the screws bending on the former sort of tool, but not sure if that’s in heavier applications, like car springs. I have no problem paying a bit more for a presumably better and safer tool, if warranted.

I do know I could probably borrow from PartsSource, but the one near my cottage says they don’t have one, and since I have done this a few times now, I am OK with buying. They’re not too much and I like having the right tools.

Thoughts?
 
If you want to borrow the first one, I'm near barrie. I've used them for car springs. To save my face and the tool, I put one on each side of the spring and alternated pressure. I'm not sure about coil diameter on bike springs. It looks like it might work on larger diameter coils (4"+?) but on small coils you could only get one of the claws in and I would trust them much less.
 
Thanks @GreyGhost for your offer, that’s very generous. Cottage and bikes are in the Washago area so not too far from you. I make so many trips to Royal Distributing that my kid once asked me why we don’t just move to Barrie, LOL.

I never even thought about the size of the springs and whether the tool would be able to hold them. The latter tool mostly talks about cars but at one point they do mention motorcycles, so MAYBE it might work?

It looks like the design whereby the jaws go around the spring makes fit someone less critical - if, that is, the jaws aren’t too big to get around the spring.
 
Here is why I used with ratchet straps to compress front fork springs.

Some plumbing pipe and a few bolts washes and nuts.

Think this was the inspiration YouTube

 

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STARSHIP said:
Here is why I used with ratchet straps to compress front for springs

Some plumbing pipe and a few bolts washes and nuts.
Click to expand...
Cool idea.

For anyone using ratchet straps, larger rated straps have handles that are far easier to pull and mechanisms that are less likely to twist and accidentally release. Pic for concept, many options available better than pic but these are about as cheap as you can get with real handles on them.

imageService

 
NuggyBuggy said:
I have had a few occasions to need one. I have used ratchet straps to compress the springs on my dirt bikes, but it was a bit of a pain. Now that I am looking to replace the dust seal on my 87 CBR600F, I am looking for the right tool.

I am looking at either This less expensive tool, or This somewhat more expensive tool.

There’s only a $30 difference, and the latter looks a lot more solid. I’ve heard about the screws bending on the former sort of tool, but not sure if that’s in heavier applications, like car springs. I have no problem paying a bit more for a presumably better and safer tool, if warranted.

I do know I could probably borrow from PartsSource, but the one near my cottage says they don’t have one, and since I have done this a few times now, I am OK with buying. They’re not too much and I like having the right tools.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
They are all dangerous!

$16 at ,PA.

 
The problem with ratchets is that sometimes they are too long between hook and ratchet … on my dirt bikes I had to loop the webbing between several coils a few times to get rid of the slack.
 
STARSHIP said:
Here is why I used with ratchet straps to compress front fork springs.

Some plumbing pipe and a few bolts washes and nuts.

Think this was the inspiration YouTube

Click to expand...
Interesting. What are the straps connected to at the bottom?
 
Here is one on Amazon that will do the trick. This I would use in conjunction with straps or the large spring compressing tools.

But this manufacturer unit would allow you to exert more force than the homemade unit.

May order one to replace my home made unit.




Oh here is a nice one from motion pro

 
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NuggyBuggy said:
Interesting. What are the straps connected to at the bottom?
Click to expand...
They loop through the cast ends of the fork that hold the brake calliper.

Fork tube is being heldin a workmate. Also used a vice with soft jaws to hold the tube reinstalling the springs and levelling the fluid.
 
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I know I am going to have to do my forks at some point… for now Just hoping to get the rear wheel back on the bike before winter as the bike is sitting on a stand and it’s always a crapshoot as I wheel it out of the garage as to whether it will tip. I don’t have enough space in the garage to even move.
 
Lol,no problem, I appreciate any advice, suggestions. My problem is I have limited time and I feel like I spend too much of it diddling with solutioning. Last weekend for instance I spent hours going to stores trying to find a 23mm socket to drive a bearing, when a full bearing driver set is not much and so much nicer. And after buying the set, when I went to drive the next set of bearings, much larger, I had what zi needed at hand.
 
So, I bought the second spring compressor that I mentioned in my original post (This one).

It is sturdy as heck. Unfortunately, the jaws are too thick to grab more than two of the coils of the spring on my bike (87 CBR 600F). The rest of the spring is too tight against either end of the shock. This means that while I can compress the middle part of the spring pretty far, there is still too much tension on the remaining outer part of the spring for it to make a difference.

I wonder whether the same will be true for the other type of spring compressor.

I decide to try ratchets, which I have done with my dirt bikes. I quickly found that the length of the spring in the unit is way too short for me to figure out a way to use a ratchet…with my dirt bikes the length of the spring is so much longer that it’s not a problem.

It seems the proper device looks like this :
63B10A7A-05B3-460E-B001-E733940DECD2.jpeg

And, it’s off to Amazon I go to look for one.
 
I made a tool not unlike what you show above with two lengths of ready rod and end welded to it. Fairly straight forward.
 
timtune said:
I made a tool not unlike what you show above with two lengths of ready rod and end welded to it. Fairly straight forward.
Click to expand...
A bearing splitter and a couple parallel jaw wood clamps probably works too. Lots of options on the what I have vs what is safe spectrum.
 
timtune said:
I made a tool not unlike what you show above with two lengths of ready rod and end welded to it. Fairly straight forward.
Click to expand...
I am starting to get the feeling welding is a skill I will need to learn. Seems like welding something is always one of the solutions offered.
 
GreyGhost said:
A bearing splitter and a couple parallel jaw wood clamps probably works too. Lots of options on the what I have vs what is safe spectrum.
Click to expand...
I have lots of parallel wood clamps and in fact wondered whether they might be a solution. Do you have a link to something I could look at ?

I also wondered whether a Hi-lift Jack could be used somehow. I will say, I am scared sh**less of the springs and so would definitely choose to err on the “What is safe” side of the spectrum. I was less scared of the dirt bike springs then I am now of the bike springs, just because it’s pretty clear the latter are under a lot of tension. I do know the dirt bike spring could seriously injure too.
 
If you've removed the shock and want to bring it by Mississauga, we can try my strut spring compressor which works great for my cars. Never tried a bike shock in there, but if you want I can dig one out and test it.

1668386524806.png
 
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