The fluid arrived in Prime time as promised (note my disclaimer at the bottom of all my pages - click the link I get a spiff) and all I needed was a window, which arrived last night, after dark, in the bike shed.
- Video 1: Before shed time, I warmed up with a few YouTube clips. The first was an older GMBN one specific to a fork similar to mine. Seals were NOT covered here, but the basic steps and actual hints to the mess are apparent. His fork is way too clean too.
- Video 2: While actually elbow deep into the destruction of my fork, I managed to pull this older video up, which focused more on the necessary CLEANING necessary - a long wooden dole is highly recommended! I lacked any handy wooden options, and ended up using an old $150 Thompson Carbon flat bar as my rag-plunger. If you want to go that way, pick one up here ;)
I went to Home Depot to grab some Nitrile Gloves, sorta like this "one size fits most" - next time I will go for some sizing options.
I also looked for some isopropyl alcohol in a sprayer, or this elusive "brake cleaner" always mentioned in the Youtubers. I have 70% medical stuff, but I want the good stuff. I shopped Home Depot's WD-40 collection, and reading the hazards online and on the product, chose this rather than the available brake cleaners and degreasers offering acetone, which I know is nasty.
SO an outline of my experiences, with some pics and links to product.
- My old floor mounted Park Tool work stand with the tiny round-tube grab - which stinks for all the modern carbon shapes - was an awesome holder for the fork while working on it.
- I did not have the tool(s) to punch off the airshaft, as in video 1. So I partially screwed the bolts on each chamber, and using the socket as a punch, tapped with my big rubber mallet. No real progress.
- Video 2 was much better, using metal on the metal and a real hammer and a tap is all it took in the end - after scarring the finish on the bolts from the sockets, of course.
- This is a MESSY business. I bitch about my Stan's Bubble Baths during tubeless installs and bleeding Shimano Brakes/spraying Mineral Oil, but doing shocks is the worst - nasty stuff coming out 2 sides at once.
- Lots of paper towels, attempts at the degreaser and my 70% medical Isopropyl - the gloves were indispensable, but even with gloves I was touching stuff all over. Clearly I need more practice.
- I had some cloth rags (cut up an old Banana Republic dress shirt) and the aforementioned handlebar to reach into the tubes to clean out the insides as per Video 2.
- Is my fork damaged? The Kashima Coating looks like its been worn a bit thin on the exposed stanchions
- The sweeps were filthy, the seals a little less so, but I might be too late to save the fork(?)
- Installing the new sweeps, after installing the seals, was easy as per the videos.
- Unlike videos 1 or 2 above, the oil dripping from MY FORK was of 2 different colors - yellowish on the damper side, and blue on the air side. I did see the blue "float" oil from the air chamber a few weeks back but only from the top, which I did NOT remove for this service.
- Did someone build or service this backwards at some point? (I thought it was NOS when I purchased)
- OR is something broken?
- REMOVING the seals required a little more force than Video 2 indicates. I also only had a 17mm open-spanner, vs the 19mm, and my fork is a 34 vs a 32 maybe?
- The metal springs popped out first.
- When trying to use pliers, I tore the top of the old seals.
- INSTALLING the new seals was tough too without the magic tool. Black rubber mallet was employed, I hope without too much damage.
- The crush washers from the kit worked great. The kit:
- I soaked my new "sweeps" as per instructed, but I did not clean them in time as I started video 2 part way in.
- After much cleaning of the lowers and the floor and the tools (seriously, just messy), INJECTING the Fox 20wt Oil went smoothly too. I used these syringes, sucking up the remaining oil from the plastic container pictured above used to soak the seals.
- These syringes are ONLY 20ml, my forks required 30cc each side of the fork as per the FOX Bath Oil Volume Chart
- a larger syringe would be smoother, though I worked in 10ml gulps to slurp all the oil from my plastic bin
- again, I had blue "float oil" I presume, dripping out.
- My fork 4 digit code is CL7M, found here:
- I have a 5cc of the Fox Float oil I purchased for this job. The chart indicates I can take 30cc- I assume this goes into the air chamber ABOVE - which seems HUGE, and expensive to get nearly this much in there
- I might add my 5cc to act as a volume spacer, which got me into this mess in the first place!
- AND after putting it all back together, the best part - the test ride!
- The night ride at 1 am showed lots of oil all over the Kashima - made me nervous, all leaky?
- This am, I zipped on the fender, adjusted brake, and I hit the road and then dirt. No black gook, they did feel the same and nearly bottomed out as per the "fun meter"
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