Lazy way of changing fork oil?

[andmoon]

What's wrong w/....

opening the drain on the bottom and then adding air to blow out the oil....fill w/mineral spirits and repeat.

I really don't want to remove the forks.

 

[Guest]

Take off the fork cap so they will drain.
Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Agemax]

What's wrong w/....

opening the drain on the bottom and then adding air to blow out the oil....fill w/mineral spirits and repeat.

I really don't want to remove the forks.

if you just want to change the oil, why all the fuss? just open the drains, let it sit for a while then fill up with new.

 

[tkent02]

Let the air out first, or it will blow oil all over your wife's cat.

 

[Agemax]

Let the air out first, or it will blow oil all over your wife's cat.

my wife wont appreciate her pussy being covered in second hand fork oil haha

 

[tkent02]

She might like it, you never know.

 

[crapwacker]

She might like it, you never know.

This one's headed the wrong way in a hurry!

 

[Steve]

I have always suggested bleeding off the air first to reduce the possibility of strange patters on the far wall.

Andmoon, your idea is certainly plausible, but there is no need to use the mineral spirits. Simply drain, plug, fill.

.

 

[Big T]

I have always suggested bleeding off the air first to reduce the possibility of strange patters on the far wall.

Andmoon, your idea is certainly plausible, but there is no need to use the mineral spirits. Simply drain, plug, fill.

.

Carefully fill with exactly the stated amount in each leg

 

[bwringer]

Carefully fill with exactly the stated amount in each leg

No, that will overfill it -- all the oil never drains out. Oil volume doesn't matter -- oil LEVEL is what matters.

Dump in some random amount more than the needed amount, pump the forks several times to remove air bubbles, then slurp out the excess oil to the recommended level using a large syringe and a piece of hose. I use a syringe sold for mixing 2-stroke oil.

Most of the time, oil level is measured from the top with the springs OUT and the forks COLLAPSED all the way.

Make sure it's EXACTLY the same on both sides -- be consistent with your distance measuring and oil slurping techniques.

 

[salty_monk]

Brian is right but although the manual states you need to be within 1mm each side I very much doubt you'll have a huge issue if you are slightly out of spec.

Doing it your way I would drain, measure out the right amount of oil (you could leave out 10cc or so if you want to compensate for any left in the fork) & then add it to the fork leg.

Now to be 100% correct, measure the height one side with a "dip stick" (It will be on an angle so make sure you slide it down the back side resting on the wall of the tube). Make sure other side measures the same. Adjust to suit.

The height of the oil basically controls how much air is in the fork, the air acts like an additional spring. It serves no other purpose so I can't see a slight underfill or overfill in one or both legs causing a problem. Overfilling can help to stiffen the fork, till you blow a seal!

Dan

 

[posplayr]

Make sure it's EXACTLY the same on both sides -- be consistent with your distance measuring and oil slurping techniques.

And pay attentions to those dribbles as well

 

[BassCliff]

Hi,

But taking the forks off is really not that hard. You can read about my recent adventure here:

Install Progressive Fork Springs


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[bwringer]

And pay attentions to those dribbles as well

Yup, make sure you have your boots nearby when you remove the drain plugs so that they can receive a beneficial coating of old fork oil. Helps with waterproofing.

I've yet to do anything involving opening up forks without making a big mess with fork oil. If I'm very lucky, I'll spill the new clean fork oil.

 

[Don-lo]

DON'T remove caps if you are not on the centerstand. DON'T remove both caps unless you have a jack holding up the front of the bike.

 

[bwringer]

DON'T remove caps if you are not on the centerstand. DON'T remove both caps unless you have a jack holding up the front of the bike.

Excellent advice, if it wasn't obvious already.

Is this one of those "don't ask me how I know" bits of advice?

 

[Don-lo]

Excellent advice, if it wasn't obvious already.

Is this one of those "don't ask me how I know" bits of advice?

Hahaha, it isn't obvious until it happens

and don't ask me how I know either

 

[woodsietx]

Hahaha, it isn't obvious until it happens

and don't ask me how I know either

You saved me a mess I'm sure.

Can you take off one cap? The reason I ask is I'm trying to determine what the PO did to the front end of the bike. I'm hoping there's a set of better springs in the front like the Progressives that are on the back. I know something was done because the shocks on it are black. From what I can tell the stock shocks were aluminum colored. My 80 had silver, my 82 had black. I don't believe they are painted. There's no anti-lock either. And as I recall, if they had put 82 shocks, the fender would have had to be changed too. (I had put my 80 fender on my 82 and I had to drill out the bracket.)

Any thoughts on checking the springs? It's not critical I replace the fluid just yet. If it's an easy check, I'll do it.

Woodsie

 

[tkent02]

I like to hang the center of the handle bars from the ceiling to work on the front end.

Bike on the center stand first. A ratcheting tie down works fine.

Single hook right in the middle, to the bracket for the garage door opener or a rafter or whatever. it only takes a few pounds to lift the front wheel.

Sometimes the easyest ideas are the best.

 

[Agemax]

I like to hang the center of the handle bars from the ceiling to work on the front end.

i dont think my living room ceiling will take the weight of my bike