dropped the bike off to them at 830 and it was ready for my dad to pick up by 230... the workshop is very clean and their work is always quick. they might have also run some brake fluid through the front system cos now the lever is hard as a rock

so anyway having just ridden around town and to work, i can say that the front end feels very tight, but a good tight... no doubt i will play with the damping and rebound setting to accomodate for the new springs but thats for the old road this weekend

another note of detail is that they did return the forks to the position they were set from when dave3 mechanical services helped me fit the MX bars. we pulled the forks through a couple of mm and they matched that perfectly. they also replaced a blown headlight bulb and had a general look over the bike... all expected, but none-the-less something that a lot of shops wont do.
so for the steering head bearings, fork seals, new springs and a general check, the cost came to $690. $350 of which was labour (he estimated 3.5 hours work on the phone to me) and $280 for the pair of springs.
now i'll have to get the rear shock looked at... anyone know of any second hand WP shocks going? either that or i'll take a trip to zeno...
