Trouble replacing fork seals

[jaguar]

I bought a 17mm allen wrench and the official Kawasaki tool that needs to be stuck into the fork after the springs are removed. It is supposed to keep the assembly that the 17mm screw goes into from rotating will you unscrew it. It didn't.
From the conical 4 sided design of the special tool I would of thought that it fits inside a 4 sided "hole" down in there. Does it not, or did I just not get it to seat down in the hole?
Any suggestions?

 

[tedkxkdx]

I always use an air-impact wrench to get the thing off. Then u don't need the special tool from kawi.

 

[jaguar]

Do you use the air-wrench with the front end all intact and leaning on the front end (to compact the forks) or with the fork off the bike?
thanks

 

[McRider]

I have a 99 220, and the special tool needs to have a hex nut on the end of it, not a four-sided thing. I made my own tool by welding a nut of the correct size onto the end of a 12 in length of 3/4 in iron water pipe. A hole in the top end of the water pipe that a screwdriver could be put through allowed me to hold the pipe while I unscrewed the big allen nut. I have tried the air wrench technique in the past, but sometimes it didn't work.

 

[jaguar]

So what size hex nut did you use? How did you ascertain the correct size to use?

 

[GreenPeace]

The esiest way to replace the fork seals are as follows:
Remove the dust seals. Screw 3 self tappers into the oil seal. Pull the seals out by grabbing the self tappers. Just make sure you dont damage the sides when screw the self tappers in.
That way you dont even have to remove the end caps or oil or seperate anything!!!

Good luck

 

[jaguar]

too cool

thanks GreenPeace

 

[know_fear]

I'm in the process of replacing seals as well. I made the tools to disassemble the forks so that all thats left in one piece is the main (upper) tube and the aluminum (lower) leg with the seals in place. The retaining clip is removed but how do I get the seals to budge? I don't think I'll try the self tapping screw trick. That sounds like a good way to damage the main tube. Is it just a matter of pulling the tubes apart so that the bushing forces the seals out the top or is there something I've missed?

 

[GreenPeace]

I had been where you are now. I also couldnt seperate the two. With sliding hammer action it eventually seperated but damaged the teflon slides inside.
Thats why i do the self tapping screw trick.

If anybody know how to seperate the two without damaging the teflon slides i would like to hear about it....

 

[Simon Fuller]

I had the same trouble with the teflon bushes, expensive to replace too! I have heard (after I had already wrecked the bushes) that if you apply a little heat (remember this is alloy so a Little heat!) to the lower fork tube this can make things easier to slide apart and therefore less risk of damage.

 

[know_fear]

It worked! A little heating with a propane torch allowed the seals to come loose with only two "slides". My teflon bushings were a little rough from my first attempts but should be good enough to re-use.

 

[jaguar]

Man I'm up a creek. I just tried the 3-screw method and it didn't work. what size screws should be used?
next day...
I wound up drilling 3 holes into the seal (since I don't have access to self-tapping screws) and then putting in screws. That allowed me to pull it out. But the drill bit did take off some aluminum from the fork leg. Not too much though. I think it will be allright.
I had pulled off the wiper seal just by using a J shaped stiff wire. I pushed it down past the seal lip and then turned it and then pulled up with pliers.
I tried again to use the special tool and the 17mm allen wrench with the fork off the bike and upside down and body weight on it and STILL no movement of unscrewing. I was wanting to replace the teflon bushing inside. oh well