Hello everyone.
This time, the front fork springs from my Honda XR250 BAJA (the Japan-market XR250 / MD30) have come back from WPC treatment (a Japanese micro shot-peening surface treatment).
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Honda XR250 BAJA Fork Springs: Measuring the Free Length Before WPC Treatment
Before assembling my XR250 BAJA (MD30) forks, I found rust on the springs and measured their free length. The short A springs were past the service limit and discontinued, so I sent them for WPC treatment.
I had the WPC treatment done by JAMS, a company that used to trade under a different name.
The springs came back carefully packed.
As well as what you see in the photo, the box contained the invoice and receipt, stickers, a sheet of precautions and packing material.
The masking tape on the springs had its ends folded over so it would be easy to peel off. I really appreciate that kind of attention to detail!
Here are the springs back from treatment!
Silver-grey is probably the best way to describe the colour. It's a calm, even sheen, and I could have stared at them all day.
Let's compare before and after.
The photo below was taken before I sent them off. Before WPC treatment, the springs were a dark brown, almost black.
↑ Before WPC treatment
↓ After WPC treatment
It's hard to tell from a photo, but they really are beautiful.
↑ Close-up after WPC treatment. The surface is slightly uneven, but smooth overall.
The photo above shows the rusty part of the spring. I'd been wondering what would happen to it.
This looks like the rusty spot after WPC treatment. It's slightly dented where the rust was, but there's no rust at all; it looks as though the rust was removed and the surface treated.
They came back really clean, and as the treatment is said to improve spring performance and durability, I'm really glad I had it done.
I've also written a guide to overhauling the XR250 / BAJA front forks, from disassembly to oil, springs and re-plating, with the steps and costs.
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Honda XR250 / BAJA Front Fork Overhaul Guide: Steps, Costs and Model-Year Differences
A summary of my XR250 BAJA (MD30) front fork overhaul: the order of the work, re-plating costs, spring differences between the XR250, BAJA and XR250R, mixing fork oil to match Honda's viscosity, and axle thread sizes by year.
I've also written about how I improved the feel of the front end on the road.
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How DACHI Stainless Spokes Gave My XR250 BAJA a More Planted Front End (and the Real Reason)
After fitting heavier DACHI stainless steel front spokes, my XR250 BAJA's front end felt more planted. Thinking it over, the real cause was probably a heavy 43-litre top box and unadjusted rear preload.
