Doing the seals in my RD200.
I have pulled the stancions from the legs, fully exposing the old seal.
It was impossible to pull out other than pry, snip etc little bits at a time.
Now I am at the point where a lot of the old seal is out but a lot of it seems to have become one with the aluminum. I've got it is a Xylene soak right now to see if that loosens or cleans things up.
Beyond that, any tips?
(https://i.ibb.co/9BmM4Z0/IMG-3083.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/mVHP9HBf/IMG-3084.jpg)
you probably need to collapse it IN thrn pull out. man, that sucks.those forks are really giving you the business
They have zero pliability...hard as rocks. Let's see what the overnight in solvent does...I also have Acetone, right now it's in Xylene. Hell maybe I'll use a propane torch,
Did they have a metal band on outer perimeter of the seals? I've bought a few sets of NOS OEM Yamaha seals over the years that have the metal band on them, whereas aftermarket do not. Currently have those for 1976 YZ/IT400 and our RD250/350 models. Still in the original Yamaha bags with p/n labels on them.
Take a sharp chisel punch and hit the seal's band 90 degrees to the fork wall, being careful not to gouge the aluminum. It will pull up the band enough to get a screwdriver with duct tape wrapped around the shaft to pry the band into a moon shape you can pull out with pliers.
Take a dremel with the thin milling attachment and mill the seal through at one point. Then punch it out with a hammer and screwdriver and a lot of heat. Be careful not topri top much as you will destroy the fork upper ring.
Quote from: RD350NL on February 08, 2025, 03:23:28 PMTake a dremel with the thin milling attachment and mill the seal through at one point. Then punch it out with a hammer and screwdriver and a lot of heat. Be careful not too pri too hard as you will destroy the fork upper ring.
heats going to be your friend here.
Great advice e everyone, thanks. (Like the duct tape trick).
Soaking overnight got more rubber out. I was able to clean out a bit more with a rotary wire brush.
It does seem to have a steel band in there that may be part of the old seal or may be part of the fork inner, I can't tell.
See what I'm pointing at with the dental pick. The pick isn't strong enough to pull it out, if it's even supposed to come out. I could grab it with a needle nose but haven't yet.
Since I don't have the new seals in hand yet I don't have a great reference for what their shape is.
Thanks
(https://i.ibb.co/vvdNdvtj/IMG-3085.jpg) (https://ibb.co/wrQnQrvz)
(https://i.ibb.co/mCKSWCK2/IMG-3086.jpg) (https://ibb.co/4ZLJrZLX)
Ordered all the stuff from Yambits...
You still have some work to do. I would sock the heat to it and see if that helps.
any chance heat will distort the circular shape of the fork tube where the seals live?
I had to remove oem fork seals put in at the factory in Japan in 1974 from a Kwak 400 recently, and they were just as tough as these to get out. I used the Dremel cutting wheel in the end, a seal puller didn't touch them at all. I feel your pain.
nah, heat won't warp them . we'll too much and it goes liquid but, that's extreme and most hand held torches won't do that
Well first off, you have to hand it to YamBits. Parts ordered Sunday night are already in Newark NJ USA and will be at my house tomorrow.
I took the second fork apart today and run it in the heated ultrasonic for a while. The seal came out with relative ease, a small flat blade tapped in and a little pry.
I took the opportunity to run everything through the hot sonic, I'll be ready for the parts to land...
(https://i.ibb.co/0VrTHfqt/23849703-5-F5-B-4108-BD90-1-D6636-E5-CA94.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/LjDwchQ/56-B4-DD63-6484-4-DA1-96-C8-25-C816-F17-EF4.jpg)
(https://i.ibb.co/pBFhFMsP/76057799-4-BF0-482-C-8967-B01-F37116-AEE.jpg)
congrats! :olaf: i know you know this, but def smooth out the nicks where the seal sat. you may want to use a tad of sealant in there upon reassembly, the anaerobic stuff from Permatex is non hardening.
Yea Mark, it's obvious that a hamhand other than me has been in there in the last 49 years.... I'll clean them up before the new seals go in.
Quote from: AAAltered on February 09, 2025, 11:58:28 AMIt does seem to have a steel band in there that may be part of the old seal or may be part of the fork inner, I can't tell.
What was the outcome here? Was it part of the old seal, and how did you end up getting it out?
That WAS part of the old seal. Once I knew it (by getting the other seal out intact) I used a small flat blade and was able to tap it in behind the band and pop it out.
example of OEM banded fork seals from eBay. (not mine).
https://www.ebay.com/itm/314280825684
Yup, has to be them.
This is the metal band I pulled out last night.
(https://i.ibb.co/fVp5K38g/IMG-3091.jpg)
Ok, so which faces DOWN on the new seals? Left one or right one?
I suspect the right one, as that puts the wiper part of the seal at the top.
(https://i.ibb.co/5gCwnKWW/image.jpg)
Yes, the side with the spring goes down into the tube when installing.
Who knew, a 30mm socket is a perfect seal driver...
(https://i.ibb.co/Z6HVJZV7/image.jpg)
Put the legs in the oven for 10 minutes at 175, seals went in easy with the driver. Rings and retaining clips back in and good to go...
Thanks for all the tips gang.
(https://i.ibb.co/qM0wFQkf/image.jpg)
jumped on this thread to give ya a thumbs up :thumbs: . hope mine goes as good , lol
jumped on this thread to give ya a thumbs up :thumbs: . hope mine goes as good , lol
Good to hear you got it sorted out. These "simple" jobs can be the worst ones.
I use a 2 foot offcut of PEX plumbing pipe in the same diameter as the seal to drive in new fork seals easily. Fits snugly and provides even pressure to push it home when hammered in lightly. Usually found in the offcuts box at the local Ace Hardware for $1. As you found, sockets work fine too.
Just to close out this thread from the other week. Seals out, seals in. Crappy gators are gone and replaced with correct dust seals. The pitting on the fork inners isn't that bad, none is near the seal travel. I took Marks advice and turned the most unsightly areas inward. I did buy a silver marker, not sure if I'm going to use it as it didn't seem to hold up too well in a test spot even though it's solvent based.
Anyway the bike was back together and tested. Now it's getting some other maintenance items like tank dampers, rear brake switch replacement and overall deep cleaning.
(https://i.ibb.co/HpBb0ks2/IMG-3112.jpg)
:metal:
Looks good! :clap: And much better without gaiters :thumbs:
I agree Russ...
yup. looks great