Forks already leaking!

Well, kinda bummed! Noticed when I got home today that there was a slight oil like line on the front fender. Sure enough, theleft fork seal is done. Only 2,500 miles on the bike. Drive chain, weird engine vibe, fork seal. Kinda wishing I got that extended warranty. Oh well!

I would make a trip to the dealer and let them take care of it, ASAP!

Someone else had one of those. Maybe damaged during installation. Easy fix. I have a couple of spares if you need one as RaceTech put new ones in mine and returned the old ones. But, I would seek warranty if it were mine.

Beemer or someone may want to pipe in on what I'm about to say because I might be way off but I use to work in hydraulics in my younger days and when we assembled a cylinder (like a fork) we would wax the shaft where it passed though the seals. So I started waxing the forks on all my bikes. Of course it seems to help keep the dirt off the slider which helps keep the seal area clean so less prone to damage. I don't know if all of this is a stupid, but I haven't had a seal damaged outside of a blown seal dropping the front hard after a wheelie.

As the other guys have said let the warranty take care of it.
Meanwhile welcome to the forum from the UK

Cutter J. Duke said:

Beemer or someone may want to pipe in on what I'm about to say because I might be way off but I use to work in hydraulics in my younger days and when we assembled a cylinder (like a fork) we would wax the shaft where it passed though the seals. So I started waxing the forks on all my bikes. Of course it seems to help keep the dirt off the slider which helps keep the seal area clean so less prone to damage. I don't know if all of this is a stupid, but I haven't had a seal damaged outside of a blown seal dropping the front hard after a wheelie.

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Waxing the shaft is indeed a good idea. Even stuck bug corpses can damage a seal when it acts like a bug scraper. the dust seals will get most of it, but not all. Nicks on the fork from flying road debris can also do it. The solution I chose, which has always worked, is fork gaiters. However, at this early age, I think we are looking at improper installation or a defective seal. Most likely installation. Since seals are considered a "maintenance item" like brake pads and air filters, it would be important to hit it very soon in order have the best chance to get a good will replacement under warranty. And if not, it is a simple repair.

As far as buyer's remorse on the NC700, I'd offer that the suppliers could have sold these defective lots of seals or chains to Suzuki or Yamaha or Triumph or whomever. I have worked with Supplier Quality and once these guys get qualified they are ship-to-stock until a problem develops and they get booted back to inspection or kicked off the bus.

I'll schedule an appointment with the dealer for this week. When I inspected the fork I could not feel any issues. However, my wife said she could feel a small nick. Maybe my hands were to rough, I don't know. Makes me feel better though. Now there is a reason for the seal leak, and not just because. Are small nicks repairable? What type or brand of fork covers should I get? Thanks guys!

motocommuter said:

I'll schedule an appointment with the dealer for this week. When I inspected the fork I could not feel any issues. However, my wife said she could feel a small nick. Maybe my hands were to rough, I don't know. Makes me feel better though. Now there is a reason for the seal leak, and not just because. Are small nicks repairable? What type or brand of fork covers should I get? Thanks guys!

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Sometimes (often) small nicks can be smoothed out. The nick could have happened if the technician dropped the fork leg or banged it against something during the build. It is still possible that you could get the factory to replace (or repair) the fork leg and the seal if you can make a good case that it came that way when new. You should, however, make sure that the nick is repaired as well or the new seal will be quickly damaged like the last one.

Fork covers are not manufactured specifically for this bike. I have a set of pyramids on mine and may switch to a set made for older Harley-Davidsons as the ones I have are too long for the suspension travel of the NC. You have to match the top diameter, the bottom diameter, and the extended and compressed length. Since they are flexible, you don't have to match them exactly. Bear in mind that I haven't installed these yet and cannot yet confirm that they will be correct, but these are the Harley gaiters than I plan to try next...

Black 41mm x 230mm Gator Fork Boots for Harley FXST, FXDWG, FXWG [28-0439] - $48.80 : Motorcycle Parts, Biker Parts Superstore | Harley and Custom Parts & Accessories

Argh...oil leaks,, they are the worst.
Good luck!

We nicked a fork seal at our shop rebuilding a set of forks one time. Although they were inverted, which would make the problem more pronounced, it was noticeable almost immediately. After we got the bike reassembled of course. I would think if a seal was injured during assembly you would know, if not right away, within 100 miles or so. I do agree with the bug theory. I use Honda Polish on my forks while wiping down my bike, and I have noticed the little bug carcasses really do stick. Sometimes I am forced to use my fingernail to get them off. Since we have such a long travel suspension and it is a little on the soft side, there is a lot of bug covered fork tube sliding past those seals. I would be willing to bet a guard of some sort would be a big help. I have always like the 1996 RM250 fork guards. They switched from inverted back to conventional for a couple years. Maybe I could make something.

Does anyone know any product that can protect our forks from rocks and what not?

LA_NC700X said:

Does anyone know any product that can protect our forks from rocks and what not?

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Pretty good discussion of different options in this thread:

http://nc700-forum.com/forum/nc700-mods/797-question-fork-gaiters.html

trey

Keep us updated on whether or not you get the dealer to cover this, if you don't mind.

I also wax the fork tubes and clean them really good after every ride.

I have an appointment on Saturday to have the fork seal repaired under warrenty. However, I did not tell them about the nicked fork tube. I took the nick off with my Dremmel. Then I polished that bad boy up. You can still see where the nick was, but cannot feel anything. If they notice the nick and decide not to cover the repair under warrenty, it will cost me a little over $220 to repair.

Thanks. So it costs 200 to have a leaky fork fixed, or is there something else included in that cost?

Nope. That's the price. Dealer cost on the seal kit is 16 bucks, plus fork oil, and what ever mark up they put on those products. Labor will vary. My dealer is charging 170 to do the work. I have heard that doing the seals is actually pretty easy, but messy. I will eventually learn how to do them on my own, but if they fix it for free....well....then I will let em! Also, if the inner fork tube needs to be replaced. Its 270 just for the one inner tube. Ouch!