Uh Oh. Fork Leaking enroute to NW Arkansas....

[Texasten]

Hauling 2014 on trailer, 7k miles on bike. Left fork dripping on wheel.
I only tightened the straps down about 1/2 way as was advised to do.

Anyone know of good shop in NW Arkansas that can replace a fork seal?
Was going to ride a lot around that area, but this may put a damper on that. Only have 5 nights in Huntsville area.

Thanks for any ideas!!!!

 

[rotortech71]

You will probably get it off the trailer and it won't leak again. I wouldn't assume a new seal is needed just yet...

 

[trikepilot]

More than likely not a blown fork seal. I would guess there is some crud up under the seal that is letting oil out as it bounces on trailer. Use a SealMate tool or the 35mm film (or similar) trick to carefully clean out the seal. Betcha this solves your problem.

Tuck it away under your seat and you are good to go - http://sealmate.net/

I truly blew a seal on a 500mile offroad trip a few years ago on day 2 and was forced to ride it as it puked oil. Once I got home and got it repaired, there was no damage and still enough oil in there to be safe. A little fork oil can create a huge mess that appears worse than it is. This is what mine looked like:

 

[shrekonwheels]

Buy a liter soda bottle, dump it out, and try making your own Seal mate. I had success on a friends bike, not on my Tenere though. Anyhow it is worth a try so you can go and enjoy yourself.

 

[Texasten]

Thanks for the ideas! Arrived at Beaver's Bend State park. Going to take bike off trlr, try the thin plastic trick and hope for the best.
Amazed the Onstar wifi working here even tho phones don't.....

 

[tomatocity]

Google search = YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEoHgR36eCA

Should get you through your trip and back home.

 

[Arkyrider]

Hauling 2014 on trailer, 7k miles on bike. Left fork dripping on wheel.
I only tightened the straps down about 1/2 way as was advised to do.

Anyone know of good shop in NW Arkansas that can replace a fork seal?
Was going to ride a lot around that area, but this may put a damper on that. Only have 5 nights in Huntsville area.

Thanks for any ideas!!!!


Yamaha of Harrison, AR about 48 miles from Huntsville and a Yamaha dealer in Fayetteville, AR, Motivation PowerSports, about 32 miles from Huntsville. First choice would be Harrison Yamaha

 

[Texasten]

Wow, thanks for the great ideas, and hope that this trip will include some nice riding.
I cut up a water bottle and tried to clean the fork seal area.
Should I pull the seal up to get a better shot, or leave it alone??
Did not find any major dirt, but there was some that looked like dirty oil that came out.

 

[shrekonwheels]

you pop up the dust protector, the seal is beneath that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lJH3nnw6mM

 

[racer1735]

Resurrecting an older thread, but I've had a weepy fork seal for awhile and finally bought a Seal Mate. Had to use it twice to get the weeping stopped, but the thing that surprised me was the amount of fork fluid that came out while I had the Seal Mate up inside the oil seal. I kept it flat to the fork tube, but by the time I'd made a complete circle of the tube, there was fluid all over the lower tube. I sprayed it down with brake cleaner and wiped up, but I wasn't expecting more than a little ooze. Was this normal?

 

[Ramseybella]

I had cleaned my seals on my Tiger 1050 Triumph and also stuck the spray tube of WD40 between the seal and fork tube and blasted a bunch more crud out from within the seal.
I have Shock Sox on my Tenere and need little cleaning now, but I do need to replace the Shock Sox getting a little weathered after three years.
Sort of like flossing your teeth we hate doing it but it needs to be done!!

 

[shrekonwheels]

Yup it leaks pretty good while you clean it.

 

[klunsford]

Harrison Yamaha is a great place. Good people and worked well with everyone during the rally.