Scorch
0
Hey, guess who is trying to replace his '75 GT380 fork seals? And guess who is having trouble getting the old seals out without destroying the fork leg? Any tips? Do you use a seal puller, can you recommend?
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Pulling fork seals
- Thread starter Scorch
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budzrex
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I usually just hold the fork tube in one hand the lower in the other and with the seal retainer clip out a few strokes and the seal just pops out with the fork tube
budzrex
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I have been doing mine since I was 8 dad said if you choose to play
with it be prepared to fix it when you break it
42 years later I still hold true to that and do almost all mechanical repairs to all
vehicles we own
It also justifies cool tool purchases
with it be prepared to fix it when you break it
42 years later I still hold true to that and do almost all mechanical repairs to all
vehicles we own
It also justifies cool tool purchases
sandman
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I recommend GENTLEY ... you have to pry them out. Use a small piece of wood against the fork and work the seal out.
Use the old seal - to push the new seal in - Gentley.
Use the old seal - to push the new seal in - Gentley.
Wait, you have to pry fork seals out?!?!? On conventionals just pull the damper rod bolt on the bottom of the fork leg and yank the upper and lower legs apart. No prying and you get to inspect the bushings at the same time. It's always worked for me for the past 20 or so years.
Scorch
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I guess because this is an old bike, the way the fork is put together is different, so pulling the upper tube opposite the lower tube won't work. They are held together by the bottom bolt--once it was removed they came apart easily. The fork spring is inside the upper tube, that's pretty unusual.
New seal, hopefully it will fit.
The thing that is scary; hard to tell what is the old seal and what is the sacred fork tube.
You know how the top of a fork has a nice big nut to open it? Not this baby! I can only imagine what will happen when I remove that clip.
New seal, hopefully it will fit.
The thing that is scary; hard to tell what is the old seal and what is the sacred fork tube.
You know how the top of a fork has a nice big nut to open it? Not this baby! I can only imagine what will happen when I remove that clip.
sandman
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Nice - pictures and balloon annotations!
You may try some gasket remover and work the old seal material out with a blunt aluminum, plastic or wood piece (you may have to make).
You may try some gasket remover and work the old seal material out with a blunt aluminum, plastic or wood piece (you may have to make).
Scorch
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Success!
A combination of a chisel, screwdriver and gently applied dremel cuts. It was really stuck in there.
There was some scarring of the fork tube, hopefully it will still seal.
Somehow I have two sets of seals for this bike. I guess I have been planning this job so long, I ordered an extra set. One is from Suzuki, the other is a generic brand, probably gotten off ebay. I imagine using the Suzuki brand is the right way to go?
I hope I have the new seal in correctly...
A combination of a chisel, screwdriver and gently applied dremel cuts. It was really stuck in there.
There was some scarring of the fork tube, hopefully it will still seal.
Somehow I have two sets of seals for this bike. I guess I have been planning this job so long, I ordered an extra set. One is from Suzuki, the other is a generic brand, probably gotten off ebay. I imagine using the Suzuki brand is the right way to go?
I hope I have the new seal in correctly...
sandman
0
Nice job!
You have them in correct --- Letter and Numbers up.
You have them in correct --- Letter and Numbers up.
Oh dang... you weren't kidding. I've never worked on a fork before that didn't have an inner bushing that pulled out the outer bushing and seal along with it when you pulled them apart.
Good job on getting the old seal out, and it looks to me as if it will still seal up... hopefully.
1TallTXn
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When you said 'stuck' you meant it! 
Glad you got it worked out.
Glad you got it worked out.
Scorch
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Got the top bung out, not too bad, about 45 seconds of medium tapping with a socket and hammer.
Not wanting to dare the dremel again, I got smart (I have heard of this happening to people). I searched the toolbox and found this--a seal remover! Actually, it's a tire iron but it worked perfectly. I took it easy easy on the pressureand pried a little at a time, to avoid fracturing the fork tube.
Yes, it eases the seal up. Of course, once the seal gets flush with the fork tube, the tire iron pushes it back down on the near side, so to get the seal fully out...
...I used vice-grips and the edge of the workbench for leverage, and worked it on out.
Now, I have heard several opinions on which side of the new seal faces up I am going with the Letter and Numbers up, as suggested by Sandman. It just looks right...
Not wanting to dare the dremel again, I got smart (I have heard of this happening to people). I searched the toolbox and found this--a seal remover! Actually, it's a tire iron but it worked perfectly. I took it easy easy on the pressureand pried a little at a time, to avoid fracturing the fork tube.
Yes, it eases the seal up. Of course, once the seal gets flush with the fork tube, the tire iron pushes it back down on the near side, so to get the seal fully out...
...I used vice-grips and the edge of the workbench for leverage, and worked it on out.
Now, I have heard several opinions on which side of the new seal faces up
I am going with the Letter and Numbers up, as suggested by Sandman. It just looks right...An off-the-shelf seal puller from the auto parts store should work fine.
I worked at the end of a work table w a small scrap of wood to protect the tubes.
I'd never pulled a seal before, so the first one was a little hard just trying to figure out
where to hook the seal without damaging the fork tube.... the next one was easy.
For those who don't know, most seals have a metal ring encased in the rubber, so you need to hook the ring.
Install the seals w the gap facing down. The fork seals for my KZ650 have tension springs in the gap.
I would only install seals Made in Japan. It has been oft reported that some aftermarket seals leak... probably chinese junk... Not sure about made in Taiwan. K&L seals are made in Japan. K&S? don't know. I think BikeMaster fork seals are now made in Japan.
I worked at the end of a work table w a small scrap of wood to protect the tubes.
I'd never pulled a seal before, so the first one was a little hard just trying to figure out
where to hook the seal without damaging the fork tube.... the next one was easy.
For those who don't know, most seals have a metal ring encased in the rubber, so you need to hook the ring.
Install the seals w the gap facing down. The fork seals for my KZ650 have tension springs in the gap.
I would only install seals Made in Japan. It has been oft reported that some aftermarket seals leak... probably chinese junk... Not sure about made in Taiwan. K&L seals are made in Japan. K&S? don't know. I think BikeMaster fork seals are now made in Japan.
Scorch
0
Good deal, Martin.
Well, I put the forks back together a few weeks ago and everything is looking good. I think it rides better too, but that could be my imagination.
Well, I put the forks back together a few weeks ago and everything is looking good. I think it rides better too, but that could be my imagination.
Scorch
0
The Suzuki seal has two springs, one on each side. You can not see the spring on the one I am holding with my fingers, but it was inside the lip.
Fork service with fresh oil always makes a noticeable improvement in fork performance. Will do the same for the shock.