Fork Oil Change Help Needed

[Motowalt]

30,000 miles on my 2012 and wanting to change the fork oil.

Did a search but could not find any detailed threads...(could just be me...)

Would someone post up a link or two please?

Finally, do I need a special fork spring compressor tool? (never needed one on any prior bikes...)

 

[Cycledude]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

Yes a spring compressor is needed and it still takes two people and some ratchet straps to get the forks back together, I bought a inverted fork tool kit from Traxxion dynamics on eBay for about $80, instead of fork oil I used synthetic automatic transmission fluid and wow it rides much better than it ever did befor , I replaced all the seals and bushings with http://www.allballsracing.com/ymmsearch/index/searchfromhome/
I've done quite a few seal and bushing changes on regular forks and they are much easier than Yamahas inverted forks, Yamaha sells a spring compressor but I've never seen it or what it costs but I suspect it might make the job easier than the kit I used. Each fork takes 16.5 ounces of fluid so that's what I used, Yamaha instructions say the oil is supposed to be something like 5.9 inches from the top but i was having trouble making sense of their instructions so I just left it with the 16.5 ounces of fluid and it rides better than it ever did befor.

 

[eemsreno]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

It does not take any special tools to change the fork oil. On Non ES anyway.
Just remove the forks from the bike and unscrew the top cap, It will not come all the way off, turn the forks upside down and pump them some and let them sit over night upside down.
I think the manual calls for 16 OZ. but I have found 14 OZ. lets the fork use more travel.

 

[Cycledude]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

I just checked the Yamaha service manual, it says 16.4 ounces of oil in each fork, my forks sat upside down with the caps unscrewed for a couple days but when I completely removed the top cap and pumped the damper like it says to do in the manual more oil came out. If you don't take the forks completely apart 14 ounces of oil should work fine, 16.4 ounces would make it over full and you don't want that. My seals were leaking and the bushings were showing quite a bit of wear at 25,000 miles.
Looking at the pictures in the manual the spring compressor their using looks about the same as the one in the kit from Traxxion .
http://www.ebay.com/itm/262501814326?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

And here is the seal driver I used
http://www.ebay.com/itm/181308499973?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

[greg the pole]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

there ya go:
https://thetenerist.wordpress.com/2014/10/18/fork-rebuild-v3-0-including-fork-seal-and-bushing/

 

[eemsreno]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

I have had my forks completely apart and still found 14 oz works best.
Mine needs the same amount if I just drain the oil or disassemble them.

 

[Calboy]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

If the seals leaked would they be covered under Y.E.S.?

 

[AVGeek]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

If the seals leaked would they be covered under Y.E.S.?

Maybe? Seals are usually considered a wear item, so the higher the mileage on the bike, the less likely they will be covered. As always, YMMV,and it's very dependent on your dealer.

I had never done this kind of service before when I found a leaky seal, but was able to swap it out myself thanks to the tech articles here and my FSM. I was out of the factory warranty period, and didn't purchase YES.

 

[Motowalt]

Re: Fork Oil Changen Help Needed

Thanks for everyone's input. My bike is non ES, so I'm going to try just loosening the caps and see how they drain overnight...I'll also pump them and measure how much comes out.
If that doesn't work, I guess I'll have to spring for the compression tool, but hoping to keep it simple this time around.
Bought 5W fork oil for the refill.
Don't do much off road anymore, and find the stock fork travel to work well for twisty roads around here...

 

[greg the pole]

The dampening rod holds quite a bit of fluid, and can only be drained by taking the fork apart. that said if you don't want to take the fork apart, pour out the old oil, and measure how much came out. Replace with new oil of the same amount.

 

[Random_Rockfish]

Abbreviated fork oil change?

I'm new to the Super Tenere. I'm coming from an oil-head GS that I had for 13 years.
I did all of my services on the Beemer to include 6K valve adjustments, throttle body synchs and ABS module flushings. (After 9 years of ownership, had to also totally remove the dead ABS system - turned it into standard non-ABS brakes and saved $2500.) Even did clutch spline lubes on a K-bike I had which requires pulling the trans off of the back.
I'd like to change the S10's fork oil but one thing I have never done, unfortunately, is suspension work. I have a Yamaha service manual but have no confidence in undertaking a complete fork disassembly with all of the special tools, seals, spacers and various fluid weights and quantities. I do not want to screw things up. I have been reading posts on just removing the forks, opening up the top, letting it drain overnight and then dumping back in the amount drained. This looks doable for me.
My questions are: Do I fully remove the "cap bolt" as it's called in the manual to drain? Will the innards still be safely contained if I do that?
Do I have to do anything special after adding the new oil - pumping or waiting overnight for it to settle?
Is completing this annually a good idea or is every two years okay?

Thanks for any help.

 

[RCinNC]

Re: Abbreviated fork oil change?

You can unscrew the fork caps totally and nothing will happen; what you're actually doing is unscrewing the caps from the upper fork tube, but the cap itself is still attached to the damper rod assembly and spring. That stuff can't can't come apart until you compress the spring and unscrew the fork cap from the assembly.

You can drain it without taking out the spring and damper rod assembly, but you won't be able to get all the fork oil out without pumping the damper rod assembly, and I don't believe you can do that unless you remove the spring.

The one thing that might present some difficulty is getting the correct air gap at the top of the fork without taking the spring out. It would be tough to measure the space between the top of the fork tube and the level of the fork oil in the tube with the spring and damper rod assembly in the way. You could probably just wing it and replace the oil with the exact amount that you drained out, but you wouldn't be sure that the air gap was correct. Normally you would stroke the damper rod assembly after adding oil.

I serviced my forks at a few months shy of the three year mark. I've heard a lot of guys say how smelly and dirty their fork oil was at around this point, but mine didn't seem bad.

You don't need a ton of special tools to disassemble the forks. I made my own spring compressor out of scrap aluminum, some threaded rod, and a couple wood clamps. This is the link to some photos: http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?action=media;sa=album;in=95

Other guys have done it with just ratchet straps. There are a bunch of Youtube videos of the way others have managed it.

 

[Random_Rockfish]

Re: Abbreviated fork oil change?

Would a thin but rigid wire make a straight shot to the oil, past the damper and spring for measuring?

 

[RCinNC]

Re: Abbreviated fork oil change?

I couldn't say for sure; it's been a little while since I did mine, and I don't remember how much clearance you'd have if the springs were still installed.

 

[RCinNC]

Re: Abbreviated fork oil change?

If it helps, this is a photo of the upper fork tube after it's been loosened, and also shows an uncompressed fork spring. This is basically what you see when you unscrew the fork caps. It's going to be kind of tight, but you could probably get a wire in there to measure the level. If you have a Mighty Vac or other vacuum pump, I'd use that to drain any excess fork oil as you try to adjust the air gap; it'll make it a lot easier.

 

[Checkswrecks]

merged threads here.


Search is your friend, and if you search within a sub-forum, the results will be limited to threads within that sub-forum. In this case, the Suspension/Handling one, because there are more on this topic.

 

[scott123007]

If you're a first timer doing your forks, your best bet is to just remove the caps and drain what is in there. Do one fork at a time so you can measure what comes out, or drain both and divide by two. You are wasting your time trying to measure your oil height in the forks, because that measurement is done with the springs out. It is so much easier not having to remove the springs, especially if you've never done it, that I would consider you doing it twice. Put the same amount of oil in it that came out, button it back up and ride it for a few miles, either off road, or pumping the front brakes on the street. Take the forks off again and drain that oil and refill. That should get you at about 95 percent new. The damper rods hold some oil, but like others have said, the springs have to be removed and the damper rods have to be pumped to get it all out, so just let the forks do the work for you, and change twice.

 

[RCinNC]

Yeah, the air gap setting needing to have the spring removed first totally slipped my mind. My bad.

 

[hawk281]

I use a brake bleeder vacume pump to pull the oil out to a certain level, just place a thin hollow tube of the right lenght into the fork and pump the bleeder. ::021::

 

[Random_Rockfish]

If you're a first timer doing your forks, your best bet is to just remove the caps and drain what is in there. Do one fork at a time so you can measure what comes out, or drain both and divide by two. You are wasting your time trying to measure your oil height in the forks, because that measurement is done with the springs out. It is so much easier not having to remove the springs, especially if you've never done it, that I would consider you doing it twice. Put the same amount of oil in it that came out, button it back up and ride it for a few miles, either off road, or pumping the front brakes on the street. Take the forks off again and drain that oil and refill. That should get you at about 95 percent new. The damper rods hold some oil, but like others have said, the springs have to be removed and the damper rods have to be pumped to get it all out, so just let the forks do the work for you, and change twice.

I'll probably use your recommendation, Scott.
I'm thinking if I measure what I take out and put the same amount back in, I won't be any worse than before I did the procedure - and I'll have fresher oil.