for forks ache

Oh collective wisdom that formeth UKRM, pray tell would I be right in
thinking that if one of my upper [1] fork legs is a little shinier than
the opposite and upon inspection appears to be a little wet and upon
inspection of said wetness the wetness is deemed to be somewhat oily,
that there's a damned good chance I've popped a fork seal?

[1] right way up forks in this case

Reckon I'll be okay for 4 miles each way for 4 days until I can spare
the bike long enough to get it sorted?

 

Seems like it. If it blows properly the fork oil will splatter the fork
leg, your brakes, the front of the engine and your leg. Mostly though,
they just tend to leak a little bit at a time until you get round to
replacing them.

--

Dave

GS 850 x2 / SE 6a
SbS#6? DIAABTCOD#16 APOSTLE#16? FUB#3
FUB KotL OSOS#12? UKRMMA#19

 

Yes, but don't go mad.

<looks at sig>

I think you'll be OK TBH.

 

If you'd popped a seal [1] as in unseated or the seal had broken up you
would know about it and they'd be a fair bit of oil running down the
stanchion, slider or over the engine.

If the seal is weeping this is usually caused by a very small pit in the
fork stanchion. Which may have nicked the seal. The pits are usually
repairable with a little araldite and wet and dry paper.

Short term, should be alright, but the loss of oil will effect the
damping characteristics and an MOT failure.


[1] Ezekiel 25:17

 

Just watch the oil doesn't run down the fork leg onto the brake disc. As a
temporary measure, prise the dust seal up, and pack some tissue paper in to
absorb what leaks past the oil seal.
--

Stu
XJ900
YTC#11 OSOS#23
pull my plonker when replying

 

Cheeky ****! Don't be judging books by their covers, if I rode like
normal I'd most likely *not* be okay. I'm going to have to remember to
take it easy.

 

That wouldn't be a "good thing" [tm] would it

As I thought, ta...

 

Weeping seals can be caused by a bit of shit getting stuck in there;
very common on off-roaders. Try sticking a thin feeler gauge between the
seal & stanchion & working it round to clean out any crud.

 

Doesnotcompute had a fit and wibbled.....

Shouldn't worry about it. The forks on the CB250RS leaked like **** for
2 years before I could be arsed to replace the seals. I only changed
them cos they'd soaked the brake pads in oil, and I thought it would be
a good idea to not contaminate the new[1] pads when I'd gone to the
massive trouble of fitting them.

[1] OK, so they were used pads, but they were new to this bike.

--
Lozzo
ZZR1100D, GPZ500S, CBCBCB750RSRSRS
BOTAFOT#57/70a, BOTAFOF#57, two#49, MIB#22, TCP#7, BONY#9,
ANORAK#9, DIAABTCOD#14, UKRMT5BB, IBW#013, MIRTTH#15a/16,
BotToS#8, GP#2, SBS#10, SH#3, DFV#14, KoBV#3.
Url for ukrm newbies : http://www.ukrm.net/faq/ukrmscbt.html
www.mjkleathers.com

 

Indeed, looks like it.....

Should be ok, I once rode to Holland from Ireland on me CBR4 with a popped
seal and a big fuggof screw in centre of rear tyre (I anglegrinded the head
of though, so it was a bit recessed). Once in Holland the seal got
replaced........

 

Oooooh! That's a useful morsel.

I actually paid a bike mechanic to sort my YZ's fork seals for for a
change when the left seal started weeping: I just couldn't face
getting covered in fork oil again!

As it happens the mechanic diagnosed and cured another fork problem
I've had so I reckon it was well worth it on this occasion.

 

You can do similar with a bit of masking tape. Bike on centre stand, wipe
the stanchion round with some methylated spirit then put one wrap of
masking tape round it.

Off the stand, quick boing and all manner of shit gets pulled from the seal
and sticks to the tape. Bike back on the stand and pull the tape off.

HTH

 

That's a useful tip, but I can't help thinking it's a quick way of
rogering a seal further ;-))

Fork gaiters are the best solution, of course....

 

I'll bet it can, especially if one uses a 0.5mm feeler! Still, given
the choice between another fucking fork rebuild and a quick poke with
a feeler gauge...

Definitely on road bikes. On my last (first) motocrosser though, as
the fork extended the gaiter breather/drain holes acted like mini
vacuum cleaners and sucked any nearby dust into the gaiter. I don't
think K & N do filters for fork gaiters!

 

The Older Gentleman had a fit and wibbled.....

I've just pulled the gaiters off some CB250RS forks that I picked up,
along with a load of other spares, a couple of weekends ago. The forks
look absolutely fucking manky, with nasty rust on the previously chrome
section between the yokes and the most salt corroded alloy lower sliders
I have ever seen. I took the gaiters off to find the most perfect,
unpitted set of stanchions I could have hoped for. Donkey-dicks rule,
and then some.

--
Lozzo
ZZR1100D, GPZ500S, CBCBCB750RSRSRS
BOTAFOT#57/70a, BOTAFOF#57, two#49, MIB#22, TCP#7, BONY#9,
ANORAK#9, DIAABTCOD#14, UKRMT5BB, IBW#013, MIRTTH#15a/16,
BotToS#8, GP#2, SBS#10, SH#3, DFV#14, KoBV#3.
Url for ukrm newbies : http://www.ukrm.net/faq/ukrmscbt.html
www.mjkleathers.com

 

Maybe. Then again you may be leaking brake fluid from the brake lines
or master cylinder.

 

bbbut I have drum brakes? <joke> well, half a joke.

 

<puts lid back on bait tin and retires to pub>

 

yeah yeah... and why is that in your sig if it's sold?
In fact, why was it in your sig before it was sold?

 

Look, I made it go away.

Well before I sold it, it was intended to be a joke (if that's the word) at
the expense of those with lots of cliquey crap in their sigs and those who
list all their cars and bikes.. I mean why do that? but a couple of people
took it seriously and told me how crap a car it was, which was kind of the
point. Quite ironic I thought.

--