I am swapping motors in my 954 due to 2nd and 4th gear issues. What else should be looked at or replaced while it is apart?

Here is my list so far.

Valve check
Leakdown test
Tires, chain, and sprockets.
Brake pads
Fork seals if needed

Is there anything I have missed? What are the common fail points on 954's? The frame and forks have approx 35k. New engine has 16k.

Thanks ahead.

 

make sure your brake pistons move even and freely. clean them up with a toothbrush and some soapy water.

 

If your forks have never been serviced then its definitely time to freshen them up. I am currently rebuilding the forks on my 03 954. The left fork started to leak so I thought it would be a good time to completely go through both forks. My bike has 23k miles and the fork fluid was very dirty with bits of metal shavings from worn bushings. The outer bushings were worn pretty bad so I am putting new dust and fork seals, inner and outer bushings as well as upgrading to .95kg springs from Racetech.

 

how much did all that run you? In a year or two to come I will def. need to rebuild mine

 

Here is a breakdown of parts and prices for fork rebuild.

Outer Bushings $12.86
Inner Bushings $8.92
Cooper Washers (for bolt in bottom of fork) $2.70
.95 kg Racetech Springs $109.99
All ***** Fork/Dust seal kit $27.99
Fluid (Pro Honda SS-8 10W) $20.13
Motion Pro Fork Seal Driver (borrow one if you can 43mm) $42
43mm Fork Seal Bullet to prevent damage to seals on install $10
Shipping for all parts $25

Total $260 parts/tools only, I am doing all the labor myself

I considered buying the gold valve kit from Racetech but really didnt want to pay another $170 for them. Many other bikes use the same springs and valve kits as the 954. Some gsxr 1000's and r1's have stock springs that would work perfect in the 954. I just could not find any used ones right now. If I ever find a valve kit cheap on ebay I will take the forks apart and change them.

I plan on taking pics when I disassemble my other fork and during re-assembly and posting a write up on here. You do not need the special tools listed in the service manual to disassemble the forks. The order is a little different but it works just fine.