On the left is the top bush that came out of the forks, on the right is a new one recently purchased. The old top bush is shorter in length than the bottom bush. Did they start making them longer? Why such a big difference? The short bush would give longer travel in the leg, right? For sidecar use maybe although I can't see how that would make a difference...thanks
Yes there was 2x different lengths ,short earlier models ( not sure on exact year) ,longer bush gave more support in legs , if you use longer in your forks it will alter spring tension ,more pre load ,
The forks were changed around 1952, gaining the long top bush and different stanchions with improved damping.
Thank you both, every day's a school day! The bike's a 1950 model, likely the original bushes too.