removing petrified front fork seals

[mhobryan]

Unlike many, was able to get the allen bolt at the bottom loose with my impact w/o the use of a special tool to hold in place, so was able to get everything a part.

However, the old seals are petrified, and have a death grip on the fork. I've resorted to needle nose pliers, small screw drivers, and a straight blade to pick them out. It's really slow going.

Any hints tips on how to extract? any particular solvent I could use that might soften them up and loosen the death grip?

 

[Gorminrider]

I,ve never seen fork seals glue them selves in the way you seem to describe but a heat gun should soften them up if fork oil doesn't do it. I hesitate to say get a torch and burn the suckers off. Some kind of solvent- gum-off or even lighter fluid would be better.


Some of my bikes need this next instruction others, not-the stanchions will just come through the seals :
If you are feeling the stanchion slide up and stop at the seal, then use the fork stanchion as slide hammer and the seal will pop out. BUT, of course, the circlip above the seal must be removed first. There IS a circlip of some sort there, be sure of that.
...and, in every case, keep those tools away from the stanchion's chrome- remove the springs and push the stanchions all the way into the lowers so you don't wreck the chrome that normally works on the seals.

 

[mhobryan]

Thanks for the tip ... didn't think about heat. The chrome on my forks is going to need a little massaging; have some pits that will need to be smoothed out.

 

[Gorminrider]

I hate those pits! Forks are getting pricey and hard to find.....I've had ok luck with sharpening stones for small pits...wetndry sand paper..meh,ok BUT only on a block. Someday, I may try solder or epoxy if I get desperate.

 

[garyS-NJ]

A fork seal puller is an inexpensive lever type tool to pry seals out. I like the ideas above about heat as I use heat to unlock many things.. My ''79 gs1000 seals were very locked in and I didn't think of heat but I found a neat trick cutting a dowel to length just under the seal and then a prytool can leverage on the top of the dowel. I ended up grinding a piece of metal to fab my prytool just bc it was in front of me. another trick is to get a long screwdriver in through the bottom bolt and catch the edge of the seal to hammer is out. That didn't work for mine,.

 

[mhobryan]

I used an awl to punch into the metal portion of the seal, and was able to pry it out without a problem.

 

[hannibal]

How did you get the hex bolt out? I will be trying this soon.

 

[Kruder]

How did you get the hex bolt out? I will be trying this soon.

I found a seal puller at AutoZone, wasn't too badly priced and got the job done quick.

To get the hex bolt out the bottom: I don't have a welder BUT I do have some Gorilla Glue Epoxy. One bolt with a 19mm head + some nuts + one coupling + 1 threaded rod = one homegrown hex bolt removing solution. My 850 has an 8mm head on the bottom. Red Green would've been proud and by golly, it worked!

Ken