Topic: CB125S front forks

[longrange]

Hello all,
qu9ck question here about CB125S fornt forks (1973). There are bolts at the bottoms of each fork leg tucked up inside the forks. You have to remove the front axle to get at them.  Thing is that they are not in the manual or in any parts fiche that I have been able to find. One of them is leaking badly and I dont know how to remove it. The bolt just seems to spin and spin in place

[grcamna2]

Hello all,
qu9ck question here about CB125S fornt forks (1973). There are bolts at the bottoms of each fork leg tucked up inside the forks. You have to remove the front axle to get at them.  Thing is that they are not in the manual or in any parts fiche that I have been able to find. One of them is leaking badly and I dont know how to remove it. The bolt just seems to spin and spin in place

How are your fork seals holding up on the bike? I ask because those are the bolts that need to be removed to disassemble the forks such as when doing a fork seal job.

[longrange]

The bottom bolt inside the front forks also appears on the 1979 models, but not earlier, which makes me wonder if I have the wrong front fork legs on my bike

[Alan F.]

Have a look at this:
http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,183051.0.html
Yes, I don't see it on any of the parts diagrams either. Perhaps those are not the original forks to that bike?
Could you post a photo of the forks, maybe someone will recognize them?

[longrange]

Fork seals are brand new from Honda, just installed today. 

[longrange]

Here are some front end pics

[Alan F.]

They kinda look stock to me, do they have external springs?

If not I'd wonder if someone modified the stockers for damper rods and internal springs, I don't think it'd too tough to do.

[longrange]

yeah you can see the springs once the fork boots are off. I thought I had the original forks, so i ordered the seals, boots and pipes for my 1973. They all fit just fine

[Alan F.]

Stranger and stranger, I wonder what the story is then?
I suppose if you've got new seals in place and you can fill your forks without leaks, then you're in good shape.

[grcamna2]

Those look similar to the 1976' model CB125S:do the tops of each fork tube have a machined-down surface that fit into the the top triple.You just replaced the fork seals,did you completely remove those lower allen bolts(I can't see them in those pics with the axle in there)and remove the fork damper rods from them ??

[Alan F.]

This is the 76 model, what damper rods?

[grcamna2]

Good point.. 
Those lowers are the 'unknown factor'.. Someone may have fitted a pair of 79-82'(or other unknown? 27mm i.d.) lowers onto your 73' CB125S 27mm O.D. original fork tubes.Then they would have needed to install some type of bolt/washer set-up at the bottom to keep it sealed.

longrange,Do you have any pics of the forks when they were apart during the fork seal replacement job you did ?

[scunny]

I had a CB100 back in !975, it had internal fork springs ?

[longrange]

sadly, I dont have any pics of the job while everything was apart. I was kind of assisting my friend who is a red seal motorcycle tech. I will be asking him about anything he saw that seemed out of order when we were doing it. The only thing that he brought up though, was the fact that those bottom bolts weren't on the parts fiche. He said everything else was the same. It could very well be that the bottoms are indeed from a later model CB125. My mechanic's GF has a 1974 CB125 that he was starting the forks on today. Ill ask him if her bike does or doesn't have the same bottom bolts.  Putting on a different years bottom forks seems like a strange thing to do. Im wondering if maybe the individuals who were printing the repair manuals in the 70's weren't quite paying attention...

[grcamna2]

sadly, I dont have any pics of the job while everything was apart. I was kind of assisting my friend who is a red seal motorcycle tech. I will be asking him about anything he saw that seemed out of order when we were doing it. The only thing that he brought up though, was the fact that those bottom bolts weren't on the parts fiche. He said everything else was the same. It could very well be that the bottoms are indeed from a later model CB125. My mechanic's GF has a 1974 CB125 that he was starting the forks on today. Ill ask him if her bike does or doesn't have the same bottom bolts.  Putting on a different years bottom forks seems like a strange thing to do. Im wondering if maybe the individuals who were printing the repair manuals in the 70's weren't quite paying attention...

What country is this model? I know about the different forks w/ the online parts descriptions and my USA factory service manuals.I am curious about what the tech says as that can help me to know if the insides of your forks have damper rods installed.

There are many,numerous small Honda 125 street bike models in other countries,like 95% more than there are here in the USA.I love small bikes and want to learn about the different models too.

[grcamna2]

bump

[WhyNot2]

I have a cb100 72, and it has those bolts, They have a brass crush type washer on them.

I can't remember quite what I did when I rebuild them, but, I do remember thinking those bolts weren't doing much in there.

[Alan F.]

Are they just drain bolts? I can't tell if #13 in the diagram is a drain bolt or a fender stay bolt.

[longrange]

Are they just drain bolts? I can't tell if #13 in the diagram is a drain bolt or a fender stay bolt.

the number 13 in that pic is a fork drain bolt. Thats what
I used to empty my front forks of oil.

[longrange]

Good point.. 
Those lowers are the 'unknown factor'.. Someone may have fitted a pair of 79-82'(or other unknown? 27mm i.d.) lowers onto your 73' CB125S 27mm O.D. original fork tubes.Then they would have needed to install some type of bolt/washer set-up at the bottom to keep it sealed.

longrange,Do you have any pics of the forks when they were apart during the fork seal replacement job you did ?

I thought the same thing! That at some point another owner had put the lowers from a 1979 or newer model there. Problem is that the 1979 models only had that bottom as a fork drain point. My bike mysteriously has both the fork side drain point that is correct for the year, but ALSO has the fork bottom drain point as well. 

[grcamna2]

That allen bolt at the bottom is designed to hold the bottom of the inner damper rods on later forks(79'+)

[longrange]

I have a cb100 72, and it has those bolts, They have a brass crush type washer on them.

I can't remember quite what I did when I rebuild them, but, I do remember thinking those bolts weren't doing much in there.

Turns out you are correct sir. After checking my friends' bike and talking to a few other people, turns out those bottom bolts are superfluous and not really meant to be touched or altered in the life of the bike, at least no one I talked to ever had a need to do anything with them.

Thanks forum, for your interest and  help.

[WhyNot2]

I have a cb100 72, and it has those bolts, They have a brass crush type washer on them.

I can't remember quite what I did when I rebuild them, but, I do remember thinking those bolts weren't doing much in there.

Turns out you are correct sir. After checking my friends' bike and talking to a few other people, turns out those bottom bolts are superfluous and not really meant to be touched or altered in the life of the bike, at least no one I talked to ever had a need to do anything with them.

Thanks forum, for your interest and  help.

Wellllll....ok.

But all this, has drawn me back to the attention of my forks and seems, the new seals are leaking.

So, a rebuild is again in my future.