K-TOOL Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Is any one brand better than another? OEM or aftermarket? I've seen some fork seals that say guaranteed not to ever leak, but I doubt that. Also has anybody switched to a heavier fork oil? If so thoughts and opinoins. Thanks fo the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warchild Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Stay with the OEM fork seals. Trust me. Try some 20wt fork oil of your favorite brand. I like Bel-Ray and Silkolene, personally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SD Marc Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 Try some 20wt fork oil of your favorite brand. I like Bel-Ray and Silkolene, personally. Why the 20wt? I had my forks reworked by Dan Kyle about 18 months ago called him up and asked him what he recommended for changing it out and he said to use 5wt. Just curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 Wanted more damping... I soon will have 5 in mine...want less damping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northman Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 Why the 20wt? I had my forks reworked by Dan Kyle about 18 months ago called him up and asked him what he recommended for changing it out and he said to use 5wt. Dan valved the forks based on using 5wt oil. Changing from that will change the damping rates (thicker oil - more damping, fork is harder to move through it's travel). As for the stock forks, some guys like them with a thicker oil, to help control dive, etc. This is especially true if you're on stock springs as well. FWIW, the biggest problem with the stock fork is the rebound damping. It's too stiff, causing the front suspension to stack up, and a series of bumps results in the fork compressed further than it should be, with an incredibly harsh ride. Have them revalved, they work soooo much better :grin: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warchild Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 Dan valved the forks based on using 5wt oil. Changing from that will change the damping rates (thicker oil - more damping, fork is harder to move through it's travel). Most definitely concur. If you have had your forks done by Dan Kyle, stick with his recommendations. On those monster-ass 48mm Soqi forks on the FJR, I went with 15wt Bel-Ray, and it made a pretty big improvement. (Though truthfully, just replacing that nasty-ass OEM water that Yamaha had in there from the factory with *any* new fork fluid would have made a big difference! :evil: ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SD Marc Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Chris and Dale, thanks for the clarification. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Since this thread is already going, I think I'll hijack it. My '03 'bird is going in for replacement of the right side fork seal tomorrow with only 10k miles on it. Is premature failure of the seals a common thing? Since it's a warrantee repair (whew!), they will only replace the bad one for free, but I'm wondering if I ought to bite the bullet and have them do the left seal, too, at my cost. Any opinions? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Keith, I would suggest that thy replace both while in thre, it's not much more work adn could save some headaches later. The reason most seals blow is from either burrs caused by rocks hitting your fork legs (the dealer will usually NOT check this out and they must be perfect or this will happen again soon!) or by debris which wears the seal, occasionally it's from too much oil but that doesn't sound like it in your case. I just did both of mine, with factory seals, and everything is great now. The work is in removing the forks off the bike, not doing the seals themselves so error on the cautious side... FYI - I went with Bel-Ray racing 10W and am pretty happy although what they said about the vavling being wrong is correct and the rebound in the stock set isn't right even with the lesser weight oil. Depending on how many miles you have on your stock springs it may well be time to replace them, the replacement interval should be around 16K miles. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redbird Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Steve, stock fork oil is 10w (Honda SS8). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Keith,I would suggest that thy replace both while in thre, it's not much more work adn could save some headaches later. Thanks, Steve. I think you are right and will ask them to change out both seals. I talked to them on the phone just now and they said it would not take appreciably longer to do two than one, just as you say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blkbrdrydr Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Honda will replace those under warranty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Honda will replace those under warranty. I've already checked into it: they'll only replace the leaking right side seal under warrantee, not the left, which is not currently leaking. If I want it replaced, too, I have to pay for it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 Keith, I would suggest that YOU check out the fork legs for any imperfections that probably caused the seal to blow in the first place... the Stealer is not likely to do this as they will profit from it happening again either via their warranty service or your having to pay. You want to feel the fork tube for any irregularities then sand then with crocus cloth or even some very fine sand paper and remove these or you'll be looking at this repair again shortly. Once the repair is done it's a good idea to wipe down the fork legs each time you either wash the bike or plan a ride, I even shoot them with a little WD40 to keep everything cclean and lubed, this helps them last a long time. Lastly, you should be there to make sure they measure the fork oil properly, which I have never heard of a Stealer doing. This is pretty critical in the handling of th bike. I can supply you with the masurements to make sure they get it right. Best of luck, Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 Keith, I would suggest that YOU...<snip> Thanks for the additional input, Steve, however, it's too late for this repair. The bike was taken in early yesterday (Friday) morning and dropped off for the work. I didn't hang around, as I wasn't allowed in the shop anyway, so my wife, who had followed me over in the cage, and I went off to run errands, take in a move, etc. The dealer is an hour ride away from where I live. They called when it was done and I picked it up and rode it home. Everything seems to be OK. I asked about burrs or other problems with the fork tube and the mechanic said it appeared to be fine and theorized the seal was just defective. Time will tell, I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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