Topic: fork internall coated with dirt and fork oil...bad. how to clean?

[HS]

So I've got a spare fork that I'd like to be able to use in the future or sell.  It's in good shape outside but internally, someone opened it up and let the fork oil get dirt on it and it's this thick, dry nasty stuff.  I tried brake cleaner, and I can get at the top area, but going all the way down the cylinder will prove difficult without scratching things up.

I'm assuming I need to soak the fork in something to soften this crud up.  Any ideas?

Thanks.

HS

[Stev-o]

You are going to have to totally disassemble it to do properly. Then, I would try somr Gunk Foamy engine cleaner.

I'm currently rebuilding the forks on my K4.

Would be a good time to replace the springs and seals, then you will be good to go.

[BobbyR]

As Stevo-o said to do it properly you should disassemble and clean. You could fill them with Kerosene and let it sit. People forget about as a cleaner for exotic and nasty toxic stuff like brake cleaner. Most of your commercial products like Gunk and other engine additives contain Kerosene. If you take the forks apart you can still use Kero and they will be easier to clean.

[HS]

a picture is worth a 1000 words, so here it is....it's apart.  That's the problem.  Some pin head took it apart and allowed the fork oil to attract dirt and get so thick that removal has proven difficult...I tried brake cleaner.  I'll try the kerosene...but I have mineral oil.  Any opinions on whether that will work before I go buy the kero?





You can see where I tried to remove some of the gunk towards the top.

HS

[HS]

I went ahead and tried some mineral spirits on the inside of the fork and it works pretty good.  What I'm finding is the damn thing is pitted so the more I think about it, the more I'm thinking that the piston won't be happy inside there.  Anybody got thoughts on that? 

I've got a nice fork my friend Matt here sent me that I'll be using.  These are spares that I had put into motion before Matt came through that finally showed up so it seems a waste to just toss them, but I don't want to give them to some poor schmuck if they're not good.

HS

[tomkimberly]

Go to your local selfserve car wash and use the power wand to clean that out.

The pitting is not a problen in the bore and the piston rides on the interal seal.

Tom

[HS]

Go to your local selfserve car wash and use the power wand to clean that out.

The pitting is not a problen in the bore and the piston rides on the interal seal.

Tom

I like the pressure washer idea.  Thanks, Tom.

Sam

[754]

Looks like they had water in them, for a long period.
 Unless you have bushings in there the fork tube rides on that surface. After cleaning, check to see if it is sloppy..

[HS]

Looks like they had water in them, for a long period.
 Unless you have bushings in there the fork tube rides on that surface. After cleaning, check to see if it is sloppy..

Thank you, 754.  Will do.

Sam

[BobbyR]

The pitting you are really most concerned with is the fork tube. It is hard chrome and must be completely free of scratches and pits. The rule is, if you can feel something with your fingernail, it will cause the seal to leak. Mirnor things can be polished out with emery cloth and atf followed by a good chrome polish.

[tomkimberly]

The pitting you are really most concerned with is the fork tube. It is hard chrome and must be completely free of scratches and pits. The rule is, if you can feel something with your fingernail, it will cause the seal to leak. Mirnor things can be polished out with emery cloth and atf followed by a good chrome polish.

I think he is talking about the lower tube. The top (inner tube) does not make contact with the internal bore of the lower tube.

Tom

[754]

If the bore in the pic is 35mm, its the bearing surface, if there is a bushing in there it is not.
 But as the seal is still in place, it looks like no bushing.
 The blotchy grey looks like water stain, if frosty grey is on the outer layer, it may affect clearance after cleaning it off.

[BobbyR]

The pitting you are really most concerned with is the fork tube. It is hard chrome and must be completely free of scratches and pits. The rule is, if you can feel something with your fingernail, it will cause the seal to leak. Mirnor things can be polished out with emery cloth and atf followed by a good chrome polish.

I think he is talking about the lower tube. The top (inner tube) does not make contact with the internal bore of the lower tube.

Tom

This was general information for people working on their forks in general. If you work on a fork for any reason, you always polish the fork tubes.

[HS]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

[WhyNot2]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

It will, cause I did the same thing, and I put them together anyways, and yes it does leak.

[HS]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

It will, cause I did the same thing, and I put them together anyways, and yes it does leak.

Dang...  I guess I could try some gasket sealer to fill that gap.  Shouldn't hurt anything.  I'm open to other suggestions.  It's a pretty deep gap so sanding it smooth is probably out of the questions for fear of not having the seal fit properly.

Sam

[WhyNot2]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

It will, cause I did the same thing, and I put them together anyways, and yes it does leak.

Dang...  I guess I could try some gasket sealer to fill that gap.  Shouldn't hurt anything.  I'm open to other suggestions.  It's a pretty deep gap so sanding it smooth is probably out of the questions for fear of not having the seal fit properly.

Sam

I haven't tried it yet, but I intend to take the one apart and use jb weld to fill the gouge, sand smooth and see what happens.

I'm thinking that might work.......if it doesn't, I have another set of forks.

[HS]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

It will, cause I did the same thing, and I put them together anyways, and yes it does leak.

Dang...  I guess I could try some gasket sealer to fill that gap.  Shouldn't hurt anything.  I'm open to other suggestions.  It's a pretty deep gap so sanding it smooth is probably out of the questions for fear of not having the seal fit properly.

Sam

I haven't tried it yet, but I intend to take the one apart and use jb weld to fill the gouge, sand smooth and see what happens.

I'm thinking that might work.......if it doesn't, I have another set of forks.

that's a good idea, especially if you can apply it without getting too carried away.  thanks for sharing,

Sam

[WhyNot2]

thanks for all the good info.  I'm learning.

So I pulled the seals and I managed to put a pretty good gouge in the inner fork lower tube with the seal puller.  I have All Balls seals to put in the tubes.  Will the gouge I put in the seal area on the tube allow fork oil to seap?  I'm thinking not as the seal will seat all the way down on the lip in the inner fork tube, but thought I'd ask before I insert the seals. 

Thanks.

Sam

It will, cause I did the same thing, and I put them together anyways, and yes it does leak.

Dang...  I guess I could try some gasket sealer to fill that gap.  Shouldn't hurt anything.  I'm open to other suggestions.  It's a pretty deep gap so sanding it smooth is probably out of the questions for fear of not having the seal fit properly.

Sam

I haven't tried it yet, but I intend to take the one apart and use jb weld to fill the gouge, sand smooth and see what happens.

I'm thinking that might work.......if it doesn't, I have another set of forks.

that's a good idea, especially if you can apply it without getting too carried away.  thanks for sharing,

Sam

No problem................

[754]

I never. Use seal pullers..to stone age..
I drill them,  then use screws and hammer to pull them..safely...scratch free..

[HS]

I would never have thought of doing that...smart.

Sam

[BobbyR]

If the gouge is not too big, Crazy Glue is very good for filling and it polished beter than JB Weld. I have used Crazy Glue of scratches I could not buff out without going throughthe chrome. It holds up well and polishes glass smooth.

[HS]

If the gouge is not too big, Crazy Glue is very good for filling and it polished beter than JB Weld. I have used Crazy Glue of scratches I could not buff out without going throughthe chrome. It holds up well and polishes glass smooth.

That might work.  It's pretty deep so I'd need to test it on something similar.

Thanks for the idea.  And great avatar...

Sam

[tomkimberly]

I take it the gouge is in the lip seal area of the lower fork tube? If so, just apply a bit of Hondabond to the OD of the new lip seal. Now if you some how gouged the OD of the upper (chrome) fork tube, start looking for another one.


Tom

[HS]

I take it the gouge is in the lip seal area of the lower fork tube? If so, just apply a bit of Hondabond to the OD of the new lip seal. Now if you some how gouged the OD of the upper (chrome) fork tube, start looking for another one.


Tom

The upper fork tubes (chromed pieces) are in great shape.  I even tried to clean some of the rust off the uppers.  The lower portion of those upper fork tubes (i.e. the chrome) are as clean as a whistle.  It's the lip area of the lower fork tube that I gouged.  I don't know what Hondabond is but I'll look it up.  Thanks for the input.

Sam