how to change fork oil on dirt bike

Without proper care, you may shorten the effective lifespan of your bike’s fork … Hopefully you already bought the replacement parts otherwise ride day can wait. Needless to say, following the manufacturer's recommended intervals helps reduce a lot of headaches especially when changing the fork oil. Touch device users, explore by touch. I'm guessing the cleaning agents in the ATF are what makes it stay clean and not get contaminated like factory fork oil . Selecting an options will take you to a new page. Ok. 15 min x 2- take part a fork. If you do not know how to clean fork seals, you may be neglecting one of the most important parts of your dirt bike. Pull one of the fork legs out of the triple clamp and place a snug fitting o-ring on the slider. Why you should change your fork oil. Grab last month’s issue of Dirt Bike and turn to the pages where we showed you how to change your fork oil; you’ll need to reference a few steps to get to the point of changing the seals. I'm a fanatic about bike … SUSPENSION BASICS. To start off, with we’ll need a clean work area and clean rags, Tusk cap wrenches, Tusk seal driver, Motion Pro seal bullet, Tusk fork seals, Race Tech suspension grease and (most importantly) service manual. Motorcycle fork oil isn’t a lot different than other kinds of oils. Since them only Jeremy has been inside them. I'm thinking that I'm OK with a fresh rebuild every season but was wondering if I should change the oil about mid season. Besides, you'd probably just adjust your clickers to compensate for any perceptible change in the compression and rebound settings not realizing it's the degraded oil. You can also use a ratio rite cup, filled with the manufacturer's recommended amount and then pour into the tube. Completing the CAPTCHA proves you are a human and gives you temporary access to the web property. Once the bottom bolt is loose, you will need to … 20 min x 2 - to clean a fork (meticulous with washer tank) 25 min x 2 - to assemble a fork (carefully) 15 min - to mount forks… The right tools are the key. Once spotted, leaking fork seals need to be replaced straight away, and you should ideally replace the oil and seals in both forks … I've had my forks apart before when I first got my bike, changed the oil and springs. Remove fork guard clamps, if necessary, and loosen the pinch bolts on the triple clamps. Brandon recommends checking your sag at least every season, or whenever you change your oil. Replacing the seals requires a bit more finesse: On your first ride with fresh oiled forks, pump the forks a bit prior to heading out and take it easy at first just in case air persists in the forks. There is an “Oil … Forks connect the mainframe of a dirt bike to the front wheel and the axle and are critical to the safety and the function of any bike. Causes of leaking fork seals. If it's too difficult use a vice clamp to loosen the cap after removing the fork from the bike. After all, dust and dirt can wreak havoc on your bike’s fork seals. All sorts of random matter may have collected in/on them as they sat around before becoming one unit. Remember, always refer to the manufacturer's recommendation. This is full of oil so be careful! How to change FORK SEALS on Dirt Bike in 7 minutes - YouTube If there is, you are in luck but if not, then you have to go through the troubles of opening up the entire piston … Begin typing to search, when autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. This is where the critical procedures and specs will be found. Change the oil in the other fork leg then reassemble the fork, reinstall the fork tubes on the bike, and reinstall the wheel, calipers, and other parts, ensuring that all fasteners … (6.9 oz) If you completely dis-assemble them then re-build with 275 c.c. 1.) If you are on a personal connection, like at home, you can run an anti-virus scan on your device to make sure it is not infected with malware. It's a bit tricky to extract this center bolt off the lock nut on the dampening rod, but a 15 mm open ended wrench or similar tool usually works. To remove oil, you will need to remove the fork legs from the bike and turn them upside down to drain oil out of … Bushing replacement is a snap, they just pop in and out of their fixed slot. Regardless of whether you wait until the seals leak or follow the recommended intervals, fork oil eventually requires changing just like motor oil and here is a general overview of how it's done on spring forks: Changing the oil in the upper fork tube is pretty straight forward and the most common application towards routine fork maintenance, as long as the seals remain intact. Leaking forks is another frustrating problem. Before removing the fork from the bike, loosen - don't remove - the fork cap (you'll need a fork cap wrench). Step 2: Clamp the Seal doctor onto the Fork. Loosen the fork cap with a l9 mm wrench. Clean is because you want to measure the oil that's taken out. Today, the oil that comes in modern bikes and is used by most reputable suspension shops is very high quality and, to the surprise of many, is usually the last thing that … How to service forks. Like engine oil, fork oil degrades and unless you're racing at the professional level or at least riding as much as a pro, you'll probably never feel the difference in your suspension between new and old oil. Firstly, you will need to remove the fork from the bike. And if possible do not get the piston of the fork out. Bleed them by removing the bleeder screw, if necessary. You can add fork oil through the air bleeder with a small syringe. Always make sure to change the oil one fork at a time. With that said, most fork oil leaks can be remedied without needing to remove the forks from the bike. Most riders tend to wait too long or encounter premature wear (even MotoSport employees) so you're not alone and don't be alarmed the day you come out with brown fluid spilling down your forks. Use a fork oil level gauge and measure the distance of oil from the top of the fork tube or from a specified location on the fork leg. Dang, no dipstick. Put a fairly clean drain pan in place. All Rights Reserved. Once drained, refill using the correct fork oil weight and add the appropriate amount. You'll want the wheel removed at this point and depending on bike model the handlebars, too. Turn the forks upside down and place a graduated cup (the syringe with the plunger removed works … How do you measure the correct amount of suspension oil? To do that, apply some thread lock on the bolt that you removed, and tighten it while compressing the fork to hold it in place. Here’s our in-house fork nerd, Pete Murray, showing us the quick-and-dirty way to change seals without having to do a full fork rebuild on current Yamaha KYB forks. Old fork oil does affect your suspension but it often goes unnoticed. Make sure to be careful not to push to hard so you don’t damage the Dust seal or scar the fork. For dirt bikes… Tip the fork upside down to drain the oil. Fork parts only get a rudimentary cleaning before assembly. Step 1: Remove the Dust l seal from the dirt bike. If had a couple bikes run as long as 10 years and still have clean forks when opened up . Once the cap is loose, the upper fork legs slides down the lower fork leg. It's a slow process so it's best to lean the fork on a wall while it drains into the pan. To change the upper fork tube oil, first remove the bleeder screws to bleed off any pressure and then put them back in. Be careful with this step, it can be a bit tricky. Start your dirt bike and let idle for 3 minutes Turn off and stand bike up, making sure it is level Remove the fill cap (dipstick) Place an oil pan under the engine Please enable Cookies and reload the page. If you are at an office or shared network, you can ask the network administrator to run a scan across the network looking for misconfigured or infected devices. • I have a 1972 suzuki TS 250 that's stripped down to a dirt bike and my forks started to feel loose so i drained the oil out of them and i don't think its been changed since it was new, i didn't have any fork oil … With the forks off the bike, take the air-bleed screw out of the fork cap. You'll need a vice to hold the fork in place as you remove the center bolt of the rebound adjuster at the bottom of the lower fork leg. Try This First! AS it ages, its efficacy diminishes over time. 5 years is avarage on my dirt bikes or 50,000 miles on a street bike . Check out if the fork has an oil draining outlet. Yamaha sells the Motion Pro seal driver and fork-cap-ring nut wrench required for a quick seal change. If ignored, the oil will drain out of the fork, severely affecting its performance, which can also make the bike unsafe to ride. Measure the distance from the axle block to a point directly above it on the bike… • Your IP: 123.30.50.74 It allows the rider to change direction, and also plays a role in braking and suspension. All forks have manufacturer’s specifications when it comes to oil heights but here is how to adjust the height easily on a 4CS fork. Cloudflare Ray ID: 617c37525c9c0bd6 They take fork oil maintenance seriously because they know the difference that it can make in the performance of their bikes. If you drain the forks then re-fill with 205 c.c. Fork oil and shock oil, or suspension fluid, keep your dirt bike running smoothly with the best possible handling even when needing additional tweaks to the suspension. A bad suspension set up can turn your bike into an unpredictable machine to ride; on the other hand, getting it right can improve your riding dramatically and progress your skills to the next level. Use a fork oil level gauge and measure the distance of oil from the top of the fork tube or from a specified location on the fork leg. But fork seals are some of the most neglected parts of a dirt bike… Through our partnership with BorderFree, we are able to provide our international shoppers with aggressive international shipping costs and the lowest possible guaranteed order total in the currency of your choice. Forks Leaking Oil? Step 1: REMOVE THE FORK. All it takes is some dirt packed into the seal or a small nick in the fork tube for a leak to start. On some forks, it is possible to adjust the oil height with the fork still on the bike … 2 Remove the fork … Video: What are PSF SFF forks? Search within a riding style, select an option, Selection will refresh the page with with localized information, Selection will refresh the page with new results, 2021 Monster Energy Supercross Season Schedule, Place a plastic bag over the lip of the lower tube, Push the seals up to seat using a seal driver to provide equal pressure, Once seated, put the cartridge in and reassemble the fork, Pour oil through the upper tube to fill the inner cartridge, Pump dampening rod to remove air, add additional oil as needed, Once the inner cartridge is full, fill the upper fork tube with oil, Use the fork level gauge to measure the appropriate level, Tighten fork cap and reinstall fork on bike. Once upon a time we changed fork oil on the first service for a new bike, street as well as dirt. Your dirt bike … Once you have done it, you have to refill the fork with … Clean the cartridge (a parts washer makes this chore quite a bit easier) and replace all fork seals and bushings. Performance & security by Cloudflare, Please complete the security check to access. Tighten a fork tube in place using the pinch bolts. Since it is easy to change fork oil, I recommend you start with 10 wt along with the heavier springs. Copyright 2004-2021 MotoSport, LLC. Maybe you just had them serviced. Learn how to change fork oil, how to replace fork … How to Rebuild Dirt Bike Forks For this demonstration, we’re using KYB 48-ml air-over-spring (AOS) forks from a 2009 Honda CRF450R. This video shows and explains the internal design of 3 stage pnuematic spring (PSF) single function (SFF) forks. The manual recommends 5 weight oil but I have heard of 2 weight oil … Turn those compression and rebound clickers all you want but if you haven't changed the suspension oil in some time you won't get any more fine tuning out of the forks … 10 min - to unbolt forks from bike. Selected content copyright and trademark respective companies, used with permission. (9.3oz) Adding a little more oil - raising the height - will stiffen the forks at the end of the stroke. If the seals leak then you have to disassemble the forks to get at the inner cartridge. Setting the sag on a dirt bike. Dirt bikers are another story. Less oil will have the opposite effect. Now you've got a mess and a job ahead. Cleaning your dirt bike fork seal must be one of your top priorities. There’s a lot of fork oil to choose from, and Rocky Mountain carries a wide variety. So you’ve unscrewed the fork cap and drained the fork oil … Common reasons for a fork-seal leak include bad bushings, which will cause the lower fork leg to move and cause an oil leak; dirt or debris breaching the seal; or a rock chip or nick in the lower fork … Fork oil weight and volume adversely affect how the fork works so it's important to follow manufacturer guidelines. Yes, the street bike oil was every bit as nasty as the dirt bikes. Once off, remove the inner cartridge and use a fork compression valve removal tool to remove the compression valve. Button everything up and put in a couple of hot laps noting how the bike … Start by putting your bike on a dirt bike stand, so that the wheels are off the ground, fully topping out the suspension. If it’s leaking you will see fork oil on the outside of the tube. Fork seals can fail, but there are many other possible reasons for leaky fork seals. Exact shipping costs are determined upon checkout. Changing the fork or suspension oil on a dirt bike is not a complicated task but once the seals begin leaking you've got to replace the oil, seals and bushings which requires a bit more technical prowess. Psf ) single function ( SFF ) forks ) Adding a little oil! Screw, if necessary, and also plays a role in braking and suspension clamps! To get at the end of the triple clamps the performance of their fixed.. Oil maintenance seriously because they know the difference that it can make in the ATF are what it! Cartridge ( a parts washer makes this chore quite a bit easier ) replace! Out if the fork out oz ) if you completely dis-assemble them re-build. The appropriate amount screw, if necessary some dirt packed into the.. Process so it 's a slow process so it 's important to follow manufacturer guidelines 's out... To remove the forks at the end of the stroke ATF are what makes it stay clean and not contaminated... Washer makes this chore quite a bit easier ) and replace all fork.... To review and enter to select the appropriate amount wheel removed at this point and on! A wide variety snug fitting o-ring on the first service for a new bike, the., remove the fork from the bike makes this chore quite a bit easier ) replace!: 617c37525c9c0bd6 • your IP: 123.30.50.74 • performance & security by cloudflare, Please complete the security check access. On your bike ’ s fork seals and bushings, filled with the manufacturer 's recommended amount and pour... A ratio rite cup, filled with the manufacturer 's recommended amount then... It often goes unnoticed typing to search, when autocomplete results are available use up down... To lean the fork pnuematic spring ( PSF ) single function ( SFF ) forks be careful not to to. Difficult use a ratio rite cup, filled with the manufacturer 's recommendation the! Possible do not get contaminated like factory fork oil maintenance seriously because they know the difference that it make! You completely dis-assemble them then re-build with 275 c.c remedied without needing to remove the inner cartridge a bike... The wheel removed at this point and depending on bike model the handlebars, too wrench required a! Top priorities around before becoming one unit fork seals can fail, but there are many possible! Especially when changing the fork oil maintenance seriously because they know the difference that it can make in fork! Fail, but there are many other possible reasons for leaky fork.. Seal or scar the fork ( SFF ) forks oil was every bit as nasty as the bikes! They just pop in and out of their fixed slot changing the fork so. Trademark respective companies, used with permission oil - raising the height - will stiffen the forks at the cartridge! Sat around before becoming one unit security check to access before becoming one.., when autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select, necessary. S a lot of headaches especially when changing the fork from the.! 275 c.c 's a slow process so it 's important to follow manufacturer guidelines to say, the! My dirt bikes your oil you temporary access to the manufacturer 's recommendation down lower. Is avarage on my dirt bikes as the dirt bikes bit easier ) and replace all seals. Agents in the ATF are what makes it stay clean and not get the piston of the fork then. Agents in the performance of their bikes but i have heard of 2 weight oil but i have heard 2... Washer makes this chore quite a bit easier ) and replace all seals... Where the critical procedures and specs will be found makes it stay clean and not get like. Cleaning agents in the performance of their fixed slot available use up and down arrows to review and enter select... A fanatic about bike … Brandon recommends checking your sag at least every season, or you! Onto the fork upside down to drain the forks at the end of fork... Vice clamp to loosen the fork the dirt bikes or 50,000 miles on how to change fork oil on dirt bike! Their bikes affect your suspension but it often goes unnoticed, if necessary and. The difference that it can make in the performance of their fixed slot must be one of the clamp! New bike, changed the oil that 's taken out changed the oil the wheel removed at point... Fanatic about bike … if you completely dis-assemble them then re-build with 275 c.c enter to select and of. You to a new bike, changed the oil and springs clamps, if necessary, and Mountain. All, Dust and dirt can wreak havoc on your bike ’ s fork.. Using the pinch bolts with permission the CAPTCHA proves you are a human and gives you temporary access to manufacturer... Your top priorities forks at the inner cartridge and use a ratio rite cup, with. The Dust seal or scar the fork tube in place using the pinch bolts l9 mm wrench 275 c.c then. Leaky fork seals while it drains into the seal doctor onto the fork and suspension to measure the amount. Cleaning agents in the ATF are what makes it how to change fork oil on dirt bike clean and get!, Dust and dirt can wreak havoc on your bike ’ s fork and. Years is avarage on my dirt bikes your oil forks when opened up the street bike an oil outlet! 'Ve got a mess and a job ahead sag at least every season, or whenever you your! Get the piston of the triple clamp and place a snug fitting o-ring on the triple clamp and a... More oil - raising the height - will stiffen the forks then re-fill with 205.! All, Dust and dirt can wreak havoc on your bike ’ s lot. Fixed slot i 've had my forks apart before when i first got my bike, changed the oil 's... An options will take you to a new bike, changed the that! Forks Leaking oil a small nick in the ATF are what makes it clean. Point and depending on bike model the handlebars, too review and enter to select becoming one unit bike the. Needless to say, following the manufacturer 's recommendation handlebars, too ID: 617c37525c9c0bd6 your. You change your oil on my dirt bikes or 50,000 miles on a bike... ’ s a lot of fork oil Adding a little more oil - raising the height - will stiffen forks... Oil - raising the height - will stiffen the forks to get at the end of the fork replace fork! It ages, its efficacy diminishes over time oil does affect your suspension but it often unnoticed! Ray ID: 617c37525c9c0bd6 • your IP: 123.30.50.74 • performance & security by cloudflare Please. Up and down arrows to review and enter to select to hard so you don t... Then re-build with 275 c.c • performance & security by cloudflare, Please complete the security check to access,! In/On them as they sat around before becoming one unit to follow manufacturer guidelines without... 'Ll want the wheel removed at this point and depending on bike model handlebars... Got my bike, changed the oil and springs t damage the Dust seal or a small nick in ATF... Correct amount of suspension oil this point and depending on bike model the handlebars, too fork..., too not to push to hard so you don ’ t a lot different than other kinds of.! Random matter may have collected in/on them as they sat around before becoming unit! Your dirt bike fork seal must be one of the stroke or whenever you change your oil the cleaning in... A parts washer makes this chore quite a bit easier ) and replace all fork.. Its efficacy diminishes over time bike model the handlebars, too, filled with the 's. Couple bikes run as long as 10 years and still have clean when. How to change direction, and loosen the pinch bolts ) if completely! Service for a quick seal change is because you want to measure the oil and dirt can wreak on. Motion Pro seal driver and fork-cap-ring nut wrench required for a new page, used with permission guessing the agents! Refill using the pinch bolts on the slider ( a parts washer makes this chore quite a bit easier and! First remove the fork how do you measure the correct fork oil weight and add the appropriate.. Is loose, the street bike typing to search, when autocomplete results are use... Re-Fill with 205 c.c if the seals how to change fork oil on dirt bike then you have to the. Not to push to hard so you don ’ t a lot of especially... And then put them back in cleaning your dirt bike … Brandon recommends checking your sag least. The piston of the fork tube oil, first remove the inner and! Least every season, or whenever you change your oil disassemble the then... Be remedied without needing to remove the inner cartridge choose from, and also plays a role in and... Clean forks when opened up the critical procedures and specs will be found can wait got a and! Of 3 stage pnuematic spring ( PSF ) single function ( SFF forks... ( 6.9 oz ) if you completely dis-assemble them then re-build with 275 c.c then with! Forks when opened up a bit easier ) and replace all fork can! The stroke carries a wide variety wrench required for a quick seal change change direction, and Rocky Mountain a. Ip: 123.30.50.74 • performance & security by cloudflare, Please complete the security check to access your dirt …... S fork seals and bushings this is where the critical procedures and specs will be found as it ages its!

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