gomerz have you tried phoning rick ? he sells various upgrades even cartridge emulators for the early type forks if thats what you had in mind . i am not certain that they will give the same level of performance as the bpf ohlins so it might be a problem trying to hang onto the likes of stoner lorenzo etc with them but knowing the stuff rick sells it will be good kit .

I'm sure the early front end can be made to perform very well on track if you select the right springs for your weight etc.

You might also try contacting Graeme France (UK), he has a lot of (successful) experience with racing non-cartridge 400 forks so may have off the shelf parts to suit you.

The early forks are adjustable for preload.

Early forkss are damper rod forks and can be made to work lovely.

Later models have a cartridge and are adjusted using shim stacks etc.

Both forks are good enough without swapping out for other models.

Service them, make sure you have some linear springs for your weight and then you are good to go.

Thanks for the wordy reply too 400s rule on the track....

CMSMJ1 wrote:Early forkss are damper rod forks and can be made to work lovely.

Later models have a cartridge and are adjusted using shim stacks etc.

Both forks are good enough without swapping out for other models.

Service them, make sure you have some linear springs for your weight and then you are good to go.

Thanks for the wordy reply too 400s rule on the track....

I hope you didn't take my reply as having a go at you, that was not the way it was intented. Apologies if you did.

I understand the early are damping-rod and the later cartridge. Was not sure of peopel practical expierence with them.

I have emailed Rick O and he will get back to me when he is able, I have also emailed Graeme France and waiting reply.

I pulled the caps off the forks today, std early forks. Looking forward to getting it on the track.

Will let you all know how I go.

Cheers,

No mate - it is all good

I had early forks on my bike for years and they were bob on. I use late ones on my race bike and they are also really nice. They were fettled by Graeme France when I got them and work very well.

Rick is a working man, he provides us with excellent, well worked out and good vallue upgrades, so patience is the key! He'll get back to you when he can.

I reckon get it out there and see how you go, the early forks are good enough.