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Thread: ATC200S Fork Boots

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Arkansas
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    ATC200S Fork Boots

    I bought some budget priced (Chinese) fork boots for my 185. These are the same for the 185S (later model), 200S, and 200M.

    They fit really nice, but there are no vent hole. When the forks compress, the boots lose internal volume. They must have vents. These don't have them, much like any fork boots in the sub $20 price range.

    I have a set of gasket/leather hole punches. This is by no means the first time I've used them on fork boots, but I typically use them to make holes in gaskets. I have a whole set, which is typically how they come. I used one of the smaller ones for the fork boot vents. I backed the punch up with a solid piece of steel (18 wheeler tire iron) in the vise. I prefer to use wood to lessen the damage to the punch, but a bar of steel is all I had that'd fit inside the boot.

    I put the vents on the bottom of the last bellow, which is very common on other fork boots. The OEM boots have vents in the bottom section over the sliders. Some other ATV/Motorcycle boots have vents top to bottom or little tubes at the top. All boots must have some type of vent.

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    I've used these cheap boots before, and don't expect them too last like OEM, but OEM isn't available anymore. Got to have something to keep the fork tubes from being damaged and with a little work, these boots work fine.
    Last edited by ATC King; 09-23-2020 at 10:48 PM.
    The story of three wheels and a man...

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    MN
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    3,260
    Nice! I always did the same thing on cheap boots with a leather punch, looks like a big hole punch pliers for putting holes in things like straps and belts. The smallest punch size is about the same size you used and you don't need a backer, just put the boot between and squeeze like a pair of pliers and done..

    I suppose it must just be cheaper/easier to produce them without the vent holes.
    ---------------------------------------------------------
    1984 Honda ATC200ES "Big Red"
    1982 ATC200E "Hondie"
    1988 TRX300FW "Project Quad" Still in progress....

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Arkansas
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    2,196
    You mean like this...



    I don't do leather work, so the regular punch style is what I have.


    Yeah, cheap boots, so they forgo the extra process of punching or molding vent holes in them. I don't mind though if it saves a few bucks. It's easy enough for me to do.

    I've used a few different brands (whatever that means for generic Chinese stuff) of these cheap boots over the years, and they hold up OK, but if the fork leaks, especially if it has trans fluid in it, the boots break down pretty quickly.

    I put a cheap set on someone else's 200S earlier this year and they didn't fit as good as these. The tops were too small and it took lubricating them and still having to force them over the tubes. These forks are just odd sizes, with the short travel, 30mm tubes are much larger legs. There's not a whole lot of options. DR.ATV sells some OE Honda boots, but not the exact replacement for these, so if someone is going for a total OEM restoration, they'll look a little out of place and they're $62 a pair.

    I've got some Polisport boots on the way for another of my trikes. They are budget priced, but the material seems much higher quality than the other cheap boots. I'm going to make them fit on some 200M forks, which they already do, but are too long. I think I can cut the bottoms off and still make them work, or, move them farther down the slider and make a shim. Either way, I think the quality is higher and I'd rather put them on once in several years instead of once a year like the super cheap ones.
    The story of three wheels and a man...

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