Broken in Houston

[leftfield123]

400 miles into my trip from Houston to Colorado and a fork seal blew. Anyone know of a good mechanic in the area. The bike is an '11 wee strom. Thanks in advance or any advice and help.

 

[ShafT]

Are you back in Houston or 400 miles away from Houston somewhere?

 

[2WheelNut]

I'm guessing that 400 miles from Houston on your way to Colorado is somewhere in West Texas? Maybe Amarillo?

A blown fork seal shouldn't strand you. and a lot of motorcycle dealers are closed on Monday. I'd ride today and find a larger city with a dealer that can work on your bike tomorrow and make that your stopping point tonight.

We can help with research....but honestly.... we'd just be using Google

 

[maximus_flavius]

I’ve rode thousands of miles on blown fork seals. Unless oil is streaming out, it’s no big deal, assuming that your sticking to pavement.

 

[humanrace]

Tie a rag around the fork leg to keep oil off the brake pads and keep riding. A day in Colorado is too important to waste on fork seal replacement.

 

[Tourmeister]

Are you sure it is actually a blown seal? Sometimes dirt can work its way in there and cause a small leak. If you can get a thin feeler gauge and run it down into the seal then go around the O.D. of the fork, holding the feeler at an angle so anything it hits gets pushed UP, that will clear it out and the leak will stop. If the whole seal has been pushed up and out or is completely torn somehow, that would be more of an issue. As others have said though, so long as the oil is not getting on the brakes or the tire, there really is no mechanical reason you cannot continue to ride. You just won't have as much damping as normal, so you might get a bit more front end dive under braking and the front end might feel like one of those old bouncy Caddies you see wobbling down the highways. Just ride accordingly and you'll be fine.

 

[MidlifeCrisis]

I don't get tired of saying this... clean your fork stanchions regularly. If on a long distant tour, that means every night or in the morning before you take off. This is especially critical if you have been riding through inclement weather or over wet/muddy roads, which you are quite often forced to do while on tour. Water and grime get on the male stanchions and will dry overnight into abrasive sandpaper, ready to invade your fork seals the next day.

 

[leftfield123]

Thanks for all the replies and sorry for not being clear. I'm back in Houston and have a handle on the problem. Scott, I tried your technique and it didn't help. Again, thanks for the help.

 

[Tourmeister]

Thanks for all the replies and sorry for not being clear. I'm back in Houston and have a handle on the problem. Scott, I tried your technique and it didn't help. Again, thanks for the help.

Did you find a shop open or someone with tool/parts to get it fixed?

 

[MidlifeCrisis]

Patrick at Motorcycle Unlimited is a good bet.

 

[Cagiva 549]

Fork seal blew on my 950 first day on the road on a Nevada trip years ago . I could tell a slight drop in front fork action the last couple thousand miles on the way home . Biggest problum was steam cleaning all the crap fish oil off the bike , I should have tied a rag around it to contain it . Don’t have that problum any more , I only run ATF in my forks now .

 

[leftfield123]

The problem is, hopefully, solved. I tried running plastic around the seal and on three different days and it worked the last time. Go figure. Thanks again for all the help.

 

[Tourmeister]

That is great! A metal feeler gauge .010-.030" thick will often work well.

Hope you are able to continue your trip without issue!