Fork Seal removal

faber

faber

XS400 Enthusiast
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Hi folks,

Since I just started work on this bike again (finally finished my other project) I thought I would post a quick how-to on tearing down the front forks and removal of the old failed seals.

My blog has all the details and steps here: http://www.fmbikes.com/2012/02/fork-seal-job-for-the-xs400/

I will be posting another article soon on how to rebuild everything measure correct fork oil amounts, etc.

These are NOT the first set of fork seals I've replaced and the tips and tricks I've learned doing many of these might come in handy for others.

Thanks!

-cf
 
don't forget those damn Allen bolts from under the forks are really hard sometimes. If you don't have an impact, crack the bolt off with a hammer, don't push the Allen key!
 
When I did mine I didn't have too much trouble with the bolts. I just did a set of xs650 forks and they used lock tight to hold them in, it sucked!
 
Yeah

If you find you're having trouble getting that bottom rebound stay bolt loose try heat first.

A little goes a long way to releasing even red thread locker.

-cf
 
should have read thise BEFORE starting to tear mine apart.. i was following haynes but is fairly vauge about details.

i didnt realize there was a metal ring inder the seal and tried to pound the seal down cause mine were superglued. anyway i wrecked the ring before i noticed it was there.

is that part of the old seal? or did i just screw my fork
 
i figured as much. darn.


i think its number 4 on those diagrams for $8 but they dont carry them.

i hope i dont have to dish out for a new fork leg or somthing stupid
 
Last edited:
update**

the fork seals have a metal ring in them, underneath the seal is the seal spacer that easily slips out once the fork seal is removed.

heat gun and a vise was the trick, thanks for the help
 
wow I just took one of these out of my forks and it was really stuck in there good. Heat gun is not optional imo, its essential!! Even after I heated it up heaps, it still required quite a lot of force to pry out. Theres no way it was coming out without heat. I was only using a screwdrivewer, im sure that tool you fabbed up would make it a lot easier. Thanks again for the great write up faber!

(heat gun is key here!!)
 
No. Fork oil weight and engine oil weight are different things entirely. They're also designed for very different tasks.
 

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