If you read your manual it will tell you that several special tools (KAW tools at that) are needed to work on your forks (dismantle and rebuilding). I did mine without those special tools. First order of business again is to read the manual and know what you’re getting into. The bike must be on the center stand or on a lift to get the pressure off the front wheel and forks. Otherwise you may get sprayed with oil or have flying objects (springs). If your bike is an older model it pays to go ahead and replace bushings and all seals while you have it apart. Once the front wheel is off the ground you need to release the pressure on the springs. Older models have an air inlet valve on top of the forks. This pressure must be released before dismantling the forks or you could be injured. Mine does not. If you’re going to just replace fork oil you can do this with the forks on the bike. Any other work I found easier with the forks off, especially getting the retaining rings on and off. The rings sit in a grove just below the lip of the top of the forks. Initially I had trouble spotting this but once you push down on the top, the ring is seen. It is a little of a pain to get out and I see why the manual states you should replace them each time. They are bound to get a little out of round by prying them out with a small screwdriver or grabbing them with needle nose pliers. Applying pressure on the top of the forks is where you need one tool or device. They apparently make a special "T" handle that allows you to lean over it to put pressure on the spring and grab the clip with the other hand or by someone else. If your like me and have a lot of junk lying around it won’t take you long to find something like a small piece of PVC pipe to fit over the stem that the fork cap screws onto. With the forks off it was easy to lean on the PVC to depress the fork enough to get the clips out. Just put something soft over the PVC pipe so you don’t have to call 911 with an impaled object. Unless you have a big buckle on your belt, then that will work as well. If you try this with the forks on the bike be careful you don’t tip the bike over as you try to put pressure on the forks. You tend to forget your on a lift or stand as you concentrate on getting that *%#@ clip out. Go ahead ask me how I know. After the first "whoa" I waited until I had the forks off. The other thing to deal with when they are on the bike is the handlebars, cables, meters, etc.

When it came time to put the new bushings in I used the old ones on top to protect the new ones while they were tapped into place. For the seals and dust covers I used another piece of PVC, (1&1/2) instead of the special tool. Again this worked better with the forks off and firmly resting on the floor with a shop rag or piece of cardboard underneath for protection. **If you are doing the Fork Lowering Kit make sure the springs go in as directed. (One end will have shorter spacing.) I got one together before I saw the note and had to take it apart again. That’s why I say read and re-read (is that a word? I don’t know I’ll have to read it again). I’m thinking about removing 5-10ml from each fork, as they are pretty stiff with following the instructions.

Through other bike enthusiast at work, I got hooked up with a down home HD shop called Hunts Cycle Shack outside of Winchester, VA. Gary and Sam Hunt are the mechanics and the girls work the desk. I was looking for somewhere to send a few parts off to get chromed. They are a drop off point for Browns Plating out of Tenn. While there this winter I noticed some chrome goodies without the HD logo on them. After making a list of things I’d like to cover on the KAW I went back down there to rummage through some bolt on’s. Took my front axle with me and found something to fit it. Then I ran across some dust covers. The folks were nice enough to allow me to take them out of the package to check for fitment. Although none were exact, the old Dremmel Tool got them close. The large opening going down on the slider is a very tight fit and that keeps them in place. The important thing to remember is to keep the fit over the forks tight enough to keep out dirt and water (although you do have the OEM dust covers on). Check and recheck that it is on there evenly and not cocked a little. Otherwise, the fork may rub one side and you’ll have scratches, and the cover may loosen up and be left bouncing around.

To compliment the polished forks with chrome fork covers I also polished my calipers, triple tees, and chromed the dash and rotors.