Forking hell!

[odie]

Well i decided to do my fork seals yesterday as they had blown late last year (not having a garage i had to wait for a decent day to do them).
Well it all started out well (with the best intentions), but soon turned into a complete and utter farce once i had removed the forks from my bike and started to "try" and strip them down!
The first thing i noticed was that one of the drain screws had a stripped thread, easy repairable as i have a heli-coil kit of the right size, not a big problem but not a good start.
Once the screw had been "pulled", out came what can only be described as silver paint, mmmmmmmmm looks like something has been wearing away the Ali i think to myself.
I pop off the gaiters i had fitted 2 years ago to stop the legs from rusting further (they were already pitted but not near the seals) only to discover that the clips that hold the seals in had rusted away, ok that makes it easier to remove them as they are now dust.
So i undo the bottom bolt holding the fork together (note, it is easier to do this "with" the fork top still on as it keeps the fork under tension) only to discover that at some time since i did the seals last the bolt seems to have turned to putty, because as soon as i go to undo it, it rounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok fine, i will drill it out, that went ok, not a problem, now at least the fork fully extend, now to slide them apart.
Well i tried and i tried, and my mate and i tried and we tried again and again, nothing, not a d**n bloody thing, we tried heat, we tried more heat, we tried soaking it in wd 40, i think to myself mmmm this ain't right, seems a bit tight, i know they can be a b'stard but this is taking the piss (other words were said but due to the graphic nature of this post reader discretion is required ;D)
Well we gave up after 3 long, long hours because if we hadn't i wouldn't even have something to hold the front end of my bike up.

So, any-one got a spare set of forks they want to sell?
Must have good stanchions

[McF]

That sounds like a forking nightmare
Hope you manage to source some replacement ones, quickly and economically.

[pivo]

Pfff, soon I also have to change my seals and fork oil let's hope for a bit more luck... Good advice to first remove the bottom bolts before removing the forks.
Sorry I don't have any spare forks to sell.

[odie]

Apr 10, 2010 11:18:02 GMT 1 McF said:

That sounds like a forking nightmare
Hope you manage to source some replacement ones, quickly and economically.

So do i!

[bozboz]

If the seals are still in, try this, it is extreme but its always worked for me:

Put fork back together as if you had rebuilt, but fill to the very top of the stanchion with old oil the thicker the better (engine oil, whatever).

Then get a hydraulic jack(aka car jack).

Next get your car(or a neighbours) & find a brick wall

Put the car jack on its side against the wall so the wheels are against the brick.

Park the car parallel with the hydraulic jack with a rear wheel directly opposite the jack. Leave enough room to fit the fork.

Slide a bit of wood over the wheel to protect it and put the fork in the gap. Start pumping the hydraulic ramp, this will force the fork to compress. Keep going untill the oil forces the seal out. Forks whould be able to be pulled apart now-just make sure you clean well

NB> Get a oil drainer under the fork to catch any oil that flys out when the seal is broke!!!

Heres what I mean:


obviously replace the ntv rim with an actual wheel attached to a car lol!!!
This is how I get my cb500 forks apart...they really are buggers!!!

hope this helps!!!

[McF]

It's certainly novel and well worth trying

A few of my own thoughts on cautions

Make absolutely sure you have removed the seal retaining circlip

Be very careful that the jack and fork leg remain in line and at right angles between the wheel and wall. If they get out of line, you could end up doing some pretty nasty damage to someone or something (like the car)

I would suggest putting a thick sheet of plywood against the wheel for the end of the fork to act against. If it does go horribly wrong, it should reduce the potential for damage to the car.

Good luck and don't forget to post back with a report on the technique and also photos of the plan in action

[rat256]

I can sell you for small beer vouchers a set of fork lowers... if you can get the stanchions out. all my stanchions are a bit ropey. I can even throw ina set of seal clips!

[devlin86]

i'm glad i've got a spare set of forks for when this happens lol'