so my right fork seal (as sitting on bike) is slightly leaking.. I was wondering how much time i had till it needed to be replaced (strapped for cash is an understatement) and how hard it would be to do it myself. If i cant, does anyone know how much it would cost to take it to a honda shop? it has just over 23K on it but i dont know how often these should be replaced..nor do i know if it has been replaced before.

thanks,

 

It's a sinch if you have the means of supporting the bike. A fork seal driver is nice, but can be done without it. It would take something in the area of four hours... cleaning is a SOB. I highly recommend using Honda seals and not the cheap ones on eBay because you don't save money if you have to do it twice. It'll cost you something in the area of $70 to do it yourself. If you want details on the forks, feel free to ask. There are plenty of us on here that can guide you through that.
A shop, I am sure they'll want to take you to the cleaners. If you don't think you can do the forks, try to at least remove them from the bike and then take them into the shop because it'll save you a little cash. The cost of doing it at a shop, it depends on what the shop charges.

 

that all sounds good to me..so maybe here's a better question. how do i change my fork seal? ie. what tools, supplies, process..stuff lilke that. and should i go ahead and do both while im at it? also, i have no idea how i would support the bike.. so any help with that department would be great as well ( i dont have rafters in my garage..well not any that i can loop something over. i would have to drill a hole in the rafter..dont think the parents would be to happy about that..) oh..and i dont have a front or rear bike stand. i would like to get one..but like i said, strapped for cash..

thanks for the help!

 

I have the section from the service manual I can email to you if you want. If so, PM me your email address.

 

For lifting up the bike off it's wheels, I use an engine hoist or cherry picker with tie downs. If you don't have one you can borrow, then maybe you can rent one. It is highly recommended that you do both at the same time. If you're in a really bad pinch, replacing the bad one is better than nothing. In terms of tools, changing out the seals can be done with a 3/8 metric socket set (9mm to 22mm) with a 3" extension ($45). You'll also need an metric allen set that has at least 5mm and 6mm ($8). An combination wrench set is handy (7mm to 22mm ($20), but can be swapped with a crescent wrench. You'll want something that open up to a 22mm. As mentioned before, a fork seal driver ($50) makes life easy when installing the seals, but can be improvised with PVC pipe. I know there are guys on here that have done this, I just don't know what size they used. The fork size is 41mm, so something just a smidge larger than that. Of course you'll need screw drivers.
To start with, you'll have to remove the wheel, calipers, brakes, handlebars, and fender from the forks. Loosen the pinch bolts on the upper and lower triple clamps and the forks will slide right out. Watch out for the forks to slide out and slam into the ground, so you'll want one hand on the fork as you're loosening the last bolt.
Pull the cap off and drain the fork. Screw off the cap completely from the dampening rod, it'll make life easier. Remove the clips and shim that hold down the fork spring. There is an allen screw in the bottom of the fork leg, you'll have to turn the leg upside down and you'll see the bolt through a hole. Remove the bolt and now you can remove the dampening rod. Clean these parts well and also try to remove as much oil from the dampening rod as possible by pumping it.
To remove the seals, remove the plastic guard. With a flat head, gently push up the dust seal. Once you have it up enough to get your fingers on it, just pull it up from there. There is a retaining clip, it can be remove with a flat head. Fix the fork leg in something holds it in place. I use a vise with many towels to protect the fork leg. Push in the fork tube as far as it can go and then as hard as you can, pull up of the tube. You're going to do this until the seal pops out. Once it's out, the fork will be in two halves. The fork tube and fork leg. Clean these really well too.
Assemble the forks in the reverse according to the manual. Just a heads up, the spring has to go in the way it came out. If you've got any questions while doing this, just ask. If you don't get a copy of this, let us know and we'll hook you up with a download.

 

My dealer told me I would have to leave my bike at their shop for 3 weeks w/ parts and labor costing around 300$.

Moses

 

3 weeks!!!! They must either be REALLY backed up or just suck. In terms of cost, not bad for a shop. If you did it yourself, it would be even cheaper.

 

Dude, you can change both your forkseals in less than a day, including time for coffee and cigs.

The only other thing i would change while i had the forks apart is the fork bushes.

 

yep they're backed up. They said once a lift opens up thats when the work will begin. So thats why they want you to leave your bike their during that time.

Moses

 

any idea how much these would run? also im not really sure what these are so knowing might help my decision whether or not to buy..

also, are the seals the only thing i need to replace, i.e. all old parts just go back together..