Fork seals & fork oil for a 700E, forks are mush!

[Anonymous]

Hi there, i just got my new 700e home last night and the fork seals are GONE, the front forks are like mush, "i had to pump them up to 40psi to stiffen them up just for a testride."


Anyways guys, Im not a small fry, i weight about 290... How can i really stiffen up the front forks of this bike without shelling out the money for new springs? Will using a heavier fork oil do the trick?

if so what weight?
or maybe adding some preload to the springs? If so any tips?

Also what are the best fork seals i can get? would the Pro-Moly Leak Proof Fork Seals be the way to go?

Thanks for your help!,
Jason

[Jethro]

Will using a heavier fork oil do the trick?

Definitely try a heavier oil, but remember that the oil has nothing to do with the stiffness of the fork action, just the rate of rebound- as in how fast or slow the fork returns.

i had to pump them up to 40psi to stiffen them up just for a testride."

Remeber that too much air pressure will blow your seals, I think my manual says 35lbs max...

Try and stiffen up your preload, there should be a cap on top of the fork leg with a slot drive you can turn clockwise to compress the spring more.

[Bolder Biker]

Will using a heavier fork oil do the trick?

Definitely try a heavier oil, but remember that the oil has nothing to do with the stiffness of the fork action, just the rate of rebound- as in how fast or slow the fork returns.

i had to pump them up to 40psi to stiffen them up just for a testride."

Remeber that too much air pressure will blow your seals, I think my manual says 35lbs max...

Try and stiffen up your preload, there should be a cap on top of the fork leg with a slot drive you can turn clockwise to compress the spring more.

I don't believe that you can do this with the GS700E fork. I think that you probably have to make pre-load spacers to fit under the fork caps.

BB

[Rico]

Are your fork seals leaking? i.e. fork oil finding it's way out
Maybe they are now after a ride @ 40lbs 8O

Once you have forks that arn't bleeding I'd put new springs in THEN work on the preload. There are alot of posts about fork works. Try a search and if you don't find what your looking for ask.

Heavier fork oil for a fella of your size is not always the answer. Like Jethro said oil has no effect on spring compression. but a big guy can load a fork up faster and farther so a slower rebound on chattery roads may
"pack the fork down".

You can also find many a post on fork tuning.

O.K. I'm off as we speak to tune my front end for a 5 day trip down to N.Cali. in a week.

Rico

[Anonymous]

Yup, the fork seals WERE leaking before i added the air,

i could tell by the oil soaked inspection sticker on the fork body and the "rings" the oil was making on the shafts,

after i let out some air i got the nastiest dirty filthy gray oil on my finger, the stuff thats left in there was NASTY!