KX125 Fork seals leaking?

[LOCSTA]

Hi, My fork seals are leaking but I don't have the money to get them fixed right now. So my question is, how long can I keep riding before I damage the forks?

Thanks for the help in advance.

Casey

[MXtras]

The loss of maybe 10 or 30ccs of fluid is not going to destroy the forks, but the loss of the fluid will alter the way the bike handles dramatically, which could destroy you!

I think all of us have ridden with leaky forks before. The majority of us will agree that this is something you should fix as soon as possible.

The loss of all of the oil will obviously damage the forks but more importantly, it will remove all of the 'shock absorber' dampening from the forks, leading to a very irratic ride.

It's your bike, but I strongly suggest to repair as soon as possible. Seals are not much cash - substantially less than a trip to the E.R.

Scott

[Macho393]

you can buy the tools and parts to do it for under what you will pay a dealer...tech.Its way easy to do.But you can go old school and just buy the seals and fluid and make you a seal driver out of a pvc pipe..seals should not be more than 30 bucks.

[LOCSTA]

Thanx for the replys. I have no idea how to do it myself so I was wondering what a reasonable price is to pay a dealer?

Thanx again

Casey

[kawasaki125]

have you ever let the built up air out of your shock? that could also lead to leaky shoks.

[MXtras]

Originally Posted by LOCSTA

...what a reasonable price is to pay a dealer?

Reasonable would be around $50 but that's not likely going to be their price!

I usually see fork jobs go for around $115+ per set plus parts. I have always done my own and I do a lot of other folks' suspension. It depends on who it is, but I usually will charge $50 for a quick clean-up and re-seal on a set of forks. My buddies get theirs for free if they bring them to me clean.

There are several guys on this site from You-Tah - maybe one of them could hook you up with a 'how-to' session. It's a simple job once you know what's what.

Scott

[moose99psd]

if you do the seals yourself DONOT get the RED seals... the black ones are a bit more spendy but are of much better quality and dont swell up and tend to tear.

[sinisterkx]

I've had 2 people bring me bikes to replace fork seals and it was just dirt built up under the seal. I have one of those little seal mate shim things from rockymountain that costs about $5 and works great to clean the seals. I would try cleaning them first.

[kawasaki125]

Originally Posted by kawasaki125

have you ever let the built up air out of your shock? that could also lead to leaky shoks.

x2!!!!! i DID that and thay stoped leaking

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by kawasaki125

have you ever let the built up air out of your shock? that could also lead to leaky shoks.

How do I let the build up air out of the shocks?

[MXtras]

There is usually a small bleeder screw on the top cap. It will be a small brass screw, off center and is usually removed with a flathead screwdriver. Keep in mind I am not sure what bike we are working on here....

Scott

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

There is usually a small bleeder screw on the top cap. It will be a small brass screw, off center and is usually removed with a flathead screwdriver. Keep in mind I am not sure what bike we are working on here....

Scott

It's a 2003 kx125

[MXtras]

Look on the top cap of the fork - you should see what I previously described.

Scott

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

Look on the top cap of the fork - you should see what I previously described.

Scott

Sorry to ask so many questions. Do I remove the screw to release the air or just loosen it?

[MXtras]

Either. Removal is really not necessary but you have to loosen it several turns - it seals with an o-ring. Clean the area first - you don't want to knock a bunch of dirt into the hole.

No problem with all the questions, LOCSTA. Glad we could help!

Scott

---------- Post added at 05:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:02 PM ----------

Originally Posted by sinisterkx

I have one of those little seal mate shim things from rockymountain that costs about $5 and works great to clean the seals.

A piece of 35MM film works well, also. You know, photography film - that old fashioned stuff.....

I do recommend removing the seals for cleaning. The film will get the big stuff but the finer crap will wear and score your sliders.

Scott

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

Either. Removal is really not necessary but you have to loosen it several turns - it seals with an o-ring. Clean the area first - you don't want to knock a bunch of dirt into the hole.

No problem with all the questions, LOCSTA. Glad we could help!

Scott

---------- Post added at 05:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:02 PM ----------



A piece of 35MM film works well, also. You know, photography film - that old fashioned stuff.....

I do recommend removing the seals for cleaning. The film will get the big stuff but the finer crap will wear and score your sliders.

Scott

Thanks for the help. I appreciate it.

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

Either. Removal is really not necessary but you have to loosen it several turns - it seals with an o-ring. Clean the area first - you don't want to knock a bunch of dirt into the hole.

No problem with all the questions, LOCSTA. Glad we could help!

Scott

---------- Post added at 05:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:02 PM ----------



A piece of 35MM film works well, also. You know, photography film - that old fashioned stuff.....

I do recommend removing the seals for cleaning. The film will get the big stuff but the finer crap will wear and score your sliders.

Scott

This is my last question, I promise. Do I want to compress the shocks once the screw is loosened to get the air out or will it just come out when I loosen the screw?

[MXtras]

Put it on a stand to unload the suspension then loosen or remove the screws.

Scott

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

Put it on a stand to unload the suspension then loosen or remove the screws.

Scott

Thanks bro. Your the sh!t.

Casey

[LOCSTA]

Originally Posted by MXtras

There is usually a small bleeder screw on the top cap. It will be a small brass screw, off center and is usually removed with a flathead screwdriver. Keep in mind I am not sure what bike we are working on here....

Scott

I finally got around to releasing the build up air and the forks are no longer leaking. Now what I'm thinking is, I don't know if there's any oil left in the forks. Can anyone tell me how to check the fork oil, or how to drain it and refill them if there still is some left? And if I can remove and refill the oil, how much do I put back in? Sorry to keep asking so many questions but I just don't know.

Thanks for the help.