Yamaha YBR Fork Squeak?

[eNtak]

Hey guys, so I have a YBR 125, preparing it for M.O.T and noticed when I compress the front end the forks make a slight squeaking sound.

No grinding or rubbing sounds just a squeak on compression and decompression.

I have no idea when the fork oil was last changed if I am honest
The bike is an 07 Carb version with 24,000 on the clock if that helps anyone.

I have been told it most likely needs an oil change for the forks, the seals are not leaking so it doesn't seem to be a lack of oil issue.

What do people lube their forks with or do people not bother ?

Any help with be great!
Drew

[P.]

You could pop the dust seal up and smear a bit of fork oil around the edge of the actual oil seal, but it'll probably do next to nothing.

It might just want the front end serviced, oil and seals.

[evilzed]

Are you sure the squeak isn't your front brake pads rubbing the disc?

[Chris45]

Probably a dry seal. Wouldn't worry too much about it. Try to identify if the squeak is internal to the fork or external, also whether it is at the start of compression or mid way. If it's not a metallic sound and there's no evidence of scoring/scratching I'd just leave it but monitor on a weekly basis.
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[Teflon-Mike]

The few specs I've found on the net suggest that the YBR125 should carry 154cc of 10wt fork oil per leg. (But check your official manuals!)

Fork oil is sold as such in usual emporiums.

Other speciality oils can be quite exotic alchmist brews, depending on what they need to do, like hypoid gear oil, or brake fluid. Fork oil tends to be just about the thicknes, or weight, and largely actually not beng 'too' thick.

I have heard of the diesel trick used a few times, usually in the trials world, where they want very light damping, it has a weight of about 1 or 2. Honda actually spec ATF or Automatic Transmission Fluid, which has a weight of around 3wt, for some light weight bikes. But 5wt or 10wt dedicated fork-oil, seems more usual.

On a 10 year old learner legal, I wouldn't presume AYTHING though.

1/ is it the actual damper squeeking?

Had some quite bizarre suspension squeeks on stuff over the years, and a lot of them have been things like the speedo cable rubbing on the mudguard, or something behind the speedo. Or the brake hose, or even the mudguard itself having lost a mount bolt and twisting beig tugged by the cables.

When you 'bounce' suspension, you will also tend to do that with the front brake held on, and that gives aother potetial source of non suspension related squeek, whch could be the brake caliper squeeking on the mounts, or the brake pads squeeking in the caliper.

Its also a Learner-Legal, and learners loosing L-Plates are often quite ingenius in how they mout L-Plates, on the frot fork, or mudguard or the clocks or anywhere there abouts and offer even more oportunities for thigs to 'rub' when the suspension moves.

Clean, and inspect carefully EVERYTHING down that area.

2/ Does the fork actually have any oil in it?

Fork seals dont leak, if they dont have anything left to stop leaking.... and bikes a decade old, seals could have been dead ad oil log gone long long ago!!! Lack of fork oil would likely leave a squeek.

A Fork seal swap on a lightweight like the YBR is a reletively cheap and easy job; fork seals should be under £10, ottle of 10wt likewise, and its a job that a half competant frst timer aught be able to do with no or few specialist tools on a Sunday morning.

Learner-Legals lead hard lives, and forks and fork oil do tend to get a lot of abuse, with a lot of very reactive braking and practiced e-stops, which churns the small amount of low viscosity oil to milk quite quick... whlst most maintenance s done n an as needs basis, and only when its obviouse somethigs 'broke'!

Good chance that whether needed for MOT or not a strip and overhaul could be the best £20 worth you could spend on the thing.

And for hapeth of tar, on an older bike, I would probably cut to the chase and expect to replace seals as course, rather than just drain and change oil.

There's usually some very small drain plugs on the bottom of the forks, usually maybe 7mm hex-heads or even cross head screws... these are notoriouse for beng a right pain n the proverial with chewed heads defying thier removal, but not loosenig! So you ed up with a bigger job on your hands than the seal swap a manky plug 'stuck' in the fork leg, neither playing ball coming out so it can be replaced, or staying in and keeping oil from falling out!

And whilst they let the old oil out, the hole is often so small you dot get all the 'gunk' out with it.

Hence, I tend to pull the fork cap; slacken yokes, then remove wheel and attatched bits of brake etc.

Oil can then be drained from the top of the fork leg, into a suitable receptical for disposal, and the fork refilled with diesil/parafin/prefferd solvent, to flush gunk.

Then it can be stripped; and with empty slider and stachon, those cleaned, the damper rod cleaned, seperately, and the whole lot re-assembled with new seals.

The re-assembly is reverse of removal as the manual says, and the leg can be slid back in the yokes, then filled with new oil, the cap replaced, and everything else bolted back on and around... and jobs a good'n. £20 worth of bits and a Sunday morning well spent.

Suspension should suddenly have proper endowement of damping, so ride should be smooter, steering mor accurate and braking more scur, its a real 'boon' to all round riding... reletively cheap, reletvely easy, reletively quick, its a big gai for small outlay....

And squeeks 'should' go away along the way... if squeek was lak of oil or gunk or worn seals, or whatevr in the damper.... but as likely payng attension to other stuff boltd in the distrct to get at and do, you are likely to find and solve ay cause of squeek from a loose mudguard, curiousely mounted L-Plate or frettng cable etc....

Probably worth paying some time and attension to the brake caliper ad mounts whilst you are in the area, cleaning and greaskng the float mounts etc, and again, more chance of making your squeek go away, but at the same time, getting better braking into the bargain, as well as extendng life of brake pads, dis ad caliper.... its all good stuff.

But answer to original question is I would use dedicated fork oil, probably specified 10wt.. but on its own, its probably not going to help much, and may not even be cause of squeek.

Some basic maintenance/overhaul is the full answer to all.
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[Chris45]

And more informative
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Honda CG125>Suzuki GT185>Honda CB 250N>Suzuki GSX400>Honda CX500B>Kawasaki GPZ305> Kawasaki GPZ550>Kawasaki GPZ500S+BMW 650GS

[eNtak]

[eNtak]

[Chris45]

Yes, it will pass the MOT as is. The tester may mention it on the sheet, but I rather suspect if you don't mention it, he won't notice it!
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Honda CG125>Suzuki GT185>Honda CB 250N>Suzuki GSX400>Honda CX500B>Kawasaki GPZ305> Kawasaki GPZ550>Kawasaki GPZ500S+BMW 650GS