Any experts on RK's??!

[Smudge]

Hello again all!
Firstly, how do I know exactly which model of NSR I have? I think it's an RK but what are the differences between that and an RL for instance? (the bike is '91/'92)

Next... me piggin forks, I changed the seals last night for a new set of gen Honda ones from David Silver Spares (good guys!) and the ones that came out had metal cup things as part of the seal... the new ones didn't, but I thought "hey, it's probably just a change they made," unfortunately when I dropped the bike off the stand today and pumped the forks the (nice new) fork oil started pumping out past the seals
So HELP!! have I got the wrong seals? is there a right way up / wrong way up??

Finally, are the forks supposed to make a "clunk" noise on being bounced up and down...? or is it ANOTHER thing bu66ered

Hope somebody can help!
Cheers, Smudge
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[Hunter]

Hi There!

I have got a set of gen honda fork seals.. these are all black plastic/rubber things.. but most importantly have a black spring inside the grove to tightly grip the fork all around.

Check for the spring..!

Shouldn't you also be using thicker oil.. i heard the AT oils are also commonly used. Anybody know of a particular grade.


I too have an RK.. but mine does not clunk... although I am losing fork oil.. i have to fix the new seals soon.

Was it a difficult job? what tools do you need for it?

cheers!

[G]

AFAIK there's very little difference between the different RL etc models... different fairing/headlight configuration possibly.

I had to have the forks on my bike re-sealed unfortunatley as I absolutley *had* to have it to get to work at the time I got it done at a garage, just incase I messed something up.

The clunk could be the forks bottoming out due to lack of oil, or it could suggest slightly bent forks, or even possiblt some missing bearings in the yoke. It's definatley worth checking to see if the fork stanchions are straight... these could have caused the seals to leak and thus mean the problems gonna happen again anyway.

As for the seals I'd take 'em back to your dealer and make a fuss.

Btw. the manual says the oil should be 'ATF'... I've got the manual on my site (click on the G at the bottom) if you want it.

If you need any advice for doing it you could try asking Annabella (nicely )... I think she's succesfully done it on a Rk model.

[Hunter]

DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO CHANGE FORK SEALS IN AN NSR?? ALSO, WHAT DOES 'ATF' STAND FOR?

[Smudge]

Hi Again!
Story so far...
The 10w oil is I reckon FAR too thin, it was a guess based on my GPz and XBR both of which weigh (lots) more and use 10w...
SO, I'll try again with ATF (Automatic Transmission Fluid, Hunter), that may also remove the "clunk" which I think is the damper cartridge moving too freely due to the thin oil (I hope!).
Having done a search of the RK/RL/RM part no's they all use the same fork seals and NS ones are totally different so we reckon I've got the right seals. (David Silver Spares are very helpfull when you ask them awkward questions ) The fische does however list a "washer" to go between the seal and the retaining circlip so I have that on order Hopefully the change of oil and the addition of the missing "washer" will do the trick, I'll keep you posted!
In answer to Hunters question, stripping and building the forks is pretty straightforward, as long as a halfwit hasn't been in before you and left out some of the parts (why is it always me!)
Just take your time, do one leg at a time, clean EVERYTHING, be gentle with all the parts you intend using again and keep track of what goes where... easy huh
G, thanks for the advice... I downloaded the bit of the manual I need... now I just need to work out how to unzip it Ta anyway,

Oh and I refrained from asking Annabella how she successfully "did it" on an RK as I think the answer might make me blush

Take it easy out there,
Smudge
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[G]

To unzip it you just need winzip (the evaluation version).

[Annabella]

Guys guys guys...It's dead simple.

You have an RK genuinally? OK, there is NO difference between the RL, and RK. The seals themselves are black rubber with a silver spring inside. The things that may need changing if there is still oil pouring out are the slider bushes. These are split bushes that are top and bottom of the fork. You buy them in pairs, quite expensive for originals - but well worth it. Just slide the new ones in place. There is a thread somewhere wher I've given full instructions..... Shouldn;t take you longer than 2 hours (and thats taking into account having problems undoing the bolts in the bottom of the forks!)

Good luck.

[Smudge]

Hi Annabella!
Yes it's a dead simple job, (or it should be ) I've just hit a couple of probs because it's an unfamiliar bike and the gen Honda seals are different from the ones that were in there! Oh and a previous "mechanic" managed to do the fave trick of re-assembly with parts "left over"...
The bushes are ok, I habitually check these whenever I have a set of forks apart... so I won't give you any conclusions until I'm more sure of tha prob
The reason I didn't say "the jobs easy" is that for all I know someone reading this can't even change a plug... and I don't want them stuck with a set of stripped forks blaming me 'cos they can't put them back together again....
As I think I mentioned, the seals that came out have a thin metal cup on one side, are black rubber and have one metal tensioning spring in them, the replacements are normal black rubber with two tensioner springs... weird huh
Cheers Anyway
Smudge
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[Annabella]

Hmmm very strange? Did the old ones come out easily? Do the new ones fit snugly? Very strange. Perhaps they're not the right ones to start with.

[Smudge]

Yeah I thought it was a bit weird, old ones seemed an ok fit... had been fitted by an ape with a hammer but ignoring that ok.
New ones look right for the stanchion but a bit loose in the top of the fork leg. I'm hoping the washers when they arrive will snuggle down the seals (good tech expression huh ), enough to get a good seal!
As I say I'm pretty sure the replacements are right, and the forks look standard (as far as I can tell)... Maybe the ape force fitted non stock seals??
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[Hunter]

Cheers Smudge for the info..

Just a couple more questions:

1) Any particular type of ATF for the forks? Any grades/suggestions?

2) Is it difficult to re-insert the spring and close-up the forks by hand?

These may seem a little dumb.. but I need to know!!

[Smudge]

ATF generally doesn't give you a choice of grade If there is then go for normal "car" ATF
and yes you will easily replace and compress the spring enough by hand
Good luck, Smudge
Oh and if you take it apart and the old seals match my description then please tell me!! Ta, S
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[Annabella]

You certainly don;t need to strength of an Ox nor a hammer to fit fork seals! So they must have been the wrong ones! I used a big plastic tube (think it was an old waste water pipe thing) and an rubber mallet to *gently knock the seals into place, and they sat nice and flat then. I just used standard fork oil (its knida pink...mmm pretty! couldn;t tell you anything interesting like its grade!)

[Smudge]

Hi Annabella!
I think it was youthfull exuberance and complete incompetence that led to him hammering the seals... they weren't too tight at all, I guess I'm just good at buying bikes from people whose toolkits consist of a range of different sized hammers
I guess I should change my signature... how about (delivered through a megaphone) "We've got you covered, put the spanner down and step away from the toolkit"
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