I have a major issue with my Matris cartridge kit.

[etorty]

The dust seals possibly can be damaged by the bottom out... but only the dust seals.
The oil seals are safe, they are down in the fork.
I'll change the dust seals for sure, but in your case the shop must provide a new pair at no cost for you.
And it's not necessary any special tool in order to put those seals in the right position.
Your hands and a little of special grease for fork seals will be ok.
Pay attention to let the seals go down in the right place with a fluid movement. Not zig-zag.
All the circumference of the seal must slide down over the stanchion without any hitch.
 
I hope I've explained my thought... and sorry for my English.

[etorty]

Pattonme said that the compression leg of the fork had a severe problem with oil flow. I have his modified matris forks and (with proper oil level) they are awesome. [...]

Please @wickedtwister, can you specify what oil (brand/model/SAE) do you have in your forks and what's the level? Thank you very much!

[wickedtwister]

I have the oil matris sent (think it was 5wt) and oil level was 120mm from top. With stanchion tube down, no spring, and center "pumping" rod down. It's all on matris set up sheet. When I get home Monday afternoon I'll post a picture of it. There are other matris threads on here that may have a picture of the setup sheet.

[etorty]

This is interesting, @wickedtwister, thank you!
In the sheet I've received from Matris, the level standard is 130 mm. And the oil is Motorex 5W.
But with the 5W my fork can't slide with enough speed at bumps and when I ride on bad roads (bad asphalt).
I've done an experiment with the Motorex 2,5W and the movement of the stanchion was way way better.
 
I think that the @Pattonme's customization is something deeper than I was expecting.

[wickedtwister]

Yup the work he does on them makes it very nice over sharp bumps.

[sansnombre]

Oh, for the love of Mike . . .
 
Years ago I took my brand new GPz550 in for its 500 mile checkup. They had to take out the cams to adjust the valves. And long story short, they put one cam in and had it timed one tooth off, which is a significant amount 15 degrees or so. I found this out by taking it apart myself and found it.
 
A different time, I had the same bike in to a different shop to have the valves seats ground. I took the head off and took it to the shop myself so was able to see inside when I got it back. What I was able to see was all the valves springs gunked up with shop-rag lint and threads. I was freakin' pissed. You could see the stuff! How could they not see it and take care of it?!! Needless to say they got some loud, angry words coming back at them.
 
So . . . shops F up all the time. The best shops cost more money and tend to have older guys with attitude working for them, in my experience.
 
At least you caught it before it damaged anything. See if the shop manager will comp the service or at least give you 50% the next service. Something.
 
Keep the rubber side down.

[avanti]

WHY would one want the same shop that screwed-up the install be the one to "correct" it!?!

[ddog]

WHY would one want the same shop that screwed-up the install be the one to "correct" it!?!

 
This shop is very well vetted by everyone locally and has never had a complaint related to a fork job they've done. They are the best shop in the area and this really never happens and they have assurred me that they will make this right.

[avanti]

Good luck with that!!! Seriously.

[wickedtwister]

If you have it apart buy a oil level guage amazon has them for cheap. Or you can use a tape measure but that takes longer. I would do it yourself put back together and cycle a few time pull cap off and check level again.
 
I don't think they didn't put oil in it but there was a large air pocket that they did not get out and when you rode it worked it's way out and dropped the oil level. Mine looked the same way when I pulled apart after a ride down the street. There should have been some oil left over but I'm sure the shop kept it. They should have also gone by the set up sheet. If they did not i would never go back to that shop. Good luck. I will post a picture of my setup sheet later today.

[ddog]

If you have it apart buy a oil level guage amazon has them for cheap. Or you can use a tape measure but that takes longer. I would do it yourself put back together and cycle a few time pull cap off and check level again.  
I don't think they didn't put oil in it but there was a large air pocket that they did not get out and when you rode it worked it's way out and dropped the oil level. Mine looked the same way when I pulled apart after a ride down the street. There should have been some oil left over but I'm sure the shop kept it. They should have also gone by the set up sheet. If they did not i would never go back to that shop. Good luck. I will post a picture of my setup sheet later today.

 
I would absolutely do this myself, but the shop owner has insisted that I bring the forks in for them to fix. I don't think they'll be too keen to give me a refund if I'm not willing to bring the forks in to prove it. At this point the refund is the only reason I'm bringing them back. I'm definitely going to be watching them fill the forks and ensure that they actually bleed them. I agree that they likely put oil in them, but neglected to cycle the air out. If I get all of my money back and the job is done properly I'll be a happy customer. I think that is a fair compromise for what they've put me through by essentially being lazy.

[wickedtwister]

 
I was mistaken it's 130mm not 120mm.
 
After you get your oil level corrected. Set the sag to about 35mm using the preload adjusters. I have my compression and rebound set to 8 clicks from closed.
 
Good luck let us know if you need anymore help.

[etorty]

@wickedtwister : thank you!
I remember than you have Pattonme's modified forks.
I read that you have springs K=9,5 and you've set either the registers at 8 clicks from closed.
Wow.
Do you have Motorex 5W?
Pattonme have reworked the Rebound side, also???
Please, @wickedtwister , can you specify your weight "in gear"?
 
I'm really surprised to see a 9,5 spring AND registers @8 clicks.
I think that Pattonme had worked a lot.
 
My forks, with spring "9" and Motorex 5W, was really really stiff.
Was good with spring "9" and Motorex 2,5W.
Now with spring "8,5" and Motorex 5W, the forks are a little less stiff than in the first case.
I'm planning to use the 2,5 again, but here it's no simple to find this oil.

[wickedtwister]

@etorty, Im 230 in gear this spring is probably one step too strong for me and if i loose any weight i will need to go to the 9. I do have the Motorex 5W oil. I only had to turn the preload adjusters 2 turns to get proper sag.
 
I do prefer a stiffer ride and ive only been commuting to and from work. I hope to hit the twisties this weekend and fine tune my settings.
 
Pattonme has a in depth thread on this kit and the mods he did to them to get the compression side "fixed" I have only had his modified kit never as delivered by Matris so i cant speak to the differences.

[pattonme]

The OE Matris oil is heavy, well, given the piston orifices and valving choices they made. As you'll see in the other thread you need to either fix the C leg (different pistons, different shims) or run a super light oil. aim for 10cSt@40 and it should significantly improve matters.
 
No, I don't modify the rebound valving, it's close enough. Personally I think the Matris kit should just be made into a traditional arrangment where the top-side is just rebound and the Comp is run wide-open - except there isn't a bleed circuit as such so both me and the factory use an undersized shim to act as a bleed.
 

[pattonme]

@ddog, good lord, please PM me the name of this shop...
If there was any oil in there at all, it wasn't remotely enough. When bled, the cartridge is still submerged.
 
I'm increasingly of the opinion that an oil height of 150mm is better for the Matris.
 
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/180639/Forks-by-Matt/Fork%20oil%20weights.html

[wickedtwister]

@ddog, good lord, please PM me the name of this shop... If there was any oil in there at all, it wasn't remotely enough. When bled, the cartridge is still submerged.
 
I'm increasingly of the opinion that an oil height of 150mm is better for the Matris.
 
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/180639/Forks-by-Matt/Fork%20oil%20weights.html

@pattonme why 20mm below where they specified on the set up sheet?

[pattonme]

a couple folks with the kit have reported they weren't getting proper travel at the 130mm level but 150 did much better. I recommend trying the 150 and once the damping is to your liking and you find yourself getting really deep into the suspension travel limits, then add oil to keep off the bottom.

[ddog]

a couple folks with the kit have reported they weren't getting proper travel at the 130mm level but 150 did much better. I recommend trying the 150 and once the damping is to your liking and you find yourself getting really deep into the suspension travel limits, then add oil to keep off the bottom.

 
I finally had a chance to work on the bike, so I picked up an oil level syringe and set the oil level to 150mm. I'll report back after I'm able to get some testing in. Thanks for all the help everyone!

[twotone]

Don't ya love a story with no ending??

[ddog]

Don't ya love a story with no ending??

 
 
Thanks for the reminder @twotone! I've since been to the track and had one of the suspension tuning guys there help me out with setting everything up for my riding style and preferences. The cartridge kit has caused an amazing transformation in the quality of the ride, the front end feels planted when cornering, and sharp bumps are no longer jarring or pogo inducing. I highly recommend this kit to anyone considering purchasing it from @pattonme. Just make sure you get a decent shop to install it, or do it yourself!

[twotone]

Good to hear a success story
If you don't mind,
Can you itemise the settings just to benefit the forum?
 
ie, oil level, 150mm??
Spring....
Etc etc.

[ddog]

Good to hear a success story If you don't mind,
Can you itemise the settings just to benefit the forum?
 
ie, oil level, 150mm??
Spring....
Etc etc.

 
I set the oil level to 150 and the springs are 95 NM. I have not experienced bottoming out, even at 150mm and landing wheelies. The preload, compression, and rebound I'd have to look at to tell you and my bike is at work. I will grab those later.