Fork solution

[MrYeats]

So I was going to change my fork oil....
I depressed the caps but nowhere to be found were any tabs on the circlips to use for removal. As a fact, there was nothing to grab onto to get out the clips...
A thought to drill a hole in the disk and refill the oil thru there....
I do not know what kind of metal is beneath the thin shinned disk but once a hole is drilled past it, therein lies the monster. A metal so hard I burned out three cobalt bits trying to drill thru it but never got thru...
Unsavory dilemma led me to the ideal to lift the front of the bike off the ground with a hoist and remove the forks and go all the way to the bottom and pull the hexhead bolt and separate the two halves , clean and put back toghether and fill the oil thru there...Reinstalled and good to go...
Can't wait to do it again.

 

[Specdog]

Oh boy, you sure do things the hard way. Those clips come out easy. Use a thin screwdriver and pry the clip from the side then grasp the clip with needle nose pliers and pull them in then out. The hard part is depressing the caps while removing the clip.

 

[HoughMade]

Oh boy, you sure do things the hard way. Those clips come out easy. Use a thin screwdriver and pry the clip from the side then grasp the clip with needle nose pliers and pull them in then out. The hard part is depressing the caps while removing the clip.

Yup...even I figured that out...and that's something.

 

[MrYeats]

I guess you missed the part about there was nothing visible on the clips to get to, after I depressed the disks.

 

[16VGTIDave]

The clips are easy to remove like Specdog said. I use an o-ring hook, but a small flat screwdriver also works to get the clip so that it can be grabbed with small needle nose pliers or forceps.

If it seems to be difficult to do something on your bike, step back and think about it. Re-read the manual. It should be fairly easy. These bikes were made to be serviced with minimal tools. And even fewer specialized tools.

That certainly was an interesting way to get the job done though.

 

[willem]

I've had some trouble with those clips the first time as well, even posted on the forum here for help since I wasn't getting them out. But it just takes a bit of practice, once you get one its super simple. Just don't be afraid they'll break (the manual says to replace them anyways, but I kept them in one piece and re-used them)

But if you did it this way now, good for you and you won't need to do it again for a while

 

[MrYeats]

The scary part is that nothing will drill thru what ever is just under the disk. My curiosity is aroused.

 

[willem]

didn't you already know they secretly put blood diamonds in some XS400's to smuggle them to the US from Japan?

you honestly thought Yamaha was a legit business?? it's obviously owned by the japanese crime syndicate

when I got mine the seat didnt have foam it it, just cocaine.. :/ wasn't very comfortable to be honest

 

[MrYeats]

I just got dirty oil out of mine, no diamonds...Better luck next time eh??

 

[HoughMade]

I guess you missed the part about there was nothing visible on the clips to get to, after I depressed the disks.

Hey, relax. You may have missed the part where many people on this site have successfully serviced their forks without resorting to mechanical butchery. A sarcastic response to someone who managed to do what you couldn't doesn't seem necessary.

I used a pick, I pried out one end of the clip, then ran the pick all the way around until the whole clip was out of the groove, then took it out with my fingers.