alright so my left fork seal started leaking so im taking my CBR to the shop to get both side replaced and I am NOT going to be riding it I just don't want to risk damaging anything while they leak or the other affects of having a bad seal and oil going everywhere, with that being said, heres my question. what is your guys take on riding with a bad fork seal? good to ride? don't ride? whats everyones opinion? again I am not going to ride myself, just seeing what you guys have to say.
Do not ride! It will run down the leg and probably get on your brake pads and/or rotor, cutting your front braking power almost in half since that side will not provide the friction needed to work. no to mention possibly getting on your tire causing a traction issue. Then you need to replace the pads as the odds of getting all the oil out are slim.
+1 When mine were leaking I wrapped some towels round them when it was just sitting waiting to be fixed so it wouldnt get to the brakes/wheels as well.
You might try a SealMate and save a trip to the shop. It fixed a leaking fork on one of my ST1100's. http://sealmate.net/ They are an excellent addition to your on-bike tool kit. As stated, the primary risk of riding with a leaking fork is compromised braking. It would be best to not ride until the leak is fixed.
I rode my Speed Triple till there was no oil in one stanchion. There would be a pool of fluid under the fork before every ride and it was perfectly fine. This went on for a year. I did have the forks completely rebuilt after that though. :mrgreen:
I had to ride with one to a rally. Happened half way there. It was either turn around or keep going. I zipped tied a paper towel and continued on. Caught up with guy on a full dress Beamer and a Yamaha TDM 850, I wanted to pass, but refrained because I was totally bottoming on the brakes. We were on 25 heading toward Windy Ridge. Hats off to the guy on the Beamer, he was railing that lump on a super bumpy road.
both my seals blew after a sub 20 degree ride to hagg lake one day. I rode like a panzy all the way back, stopping every 5 miles to wipe everything down and replaced my seals first thing. Better safe than sorry.
SealMate is worth trying. It may resolve the problem so you can ride safely to a shop for sheal replacement or just continue to ride without replacing the seals. Used successfully on my '09 FJR about 6000 miles ago. Bike is going in for fork valving and spring upgrade soon so the seals will be replaced then.
I think the rule with Speed Triples is that if the seals aren't leaking, there isn't any oil in the fork!
You should have them replaced/rebuilt. Because: 1) If they are leaking, something is wrong. 2) If they are leaking then the fork oil quantity is wrong now. Affects fluidity. 3) If it runs down on to rotors it will contaminate brake pads. Affects stopping. 4) If it continues down it can run on to the tires. Affects traction. 5) The fluid also lubricates the slide bushings. You can damage those adding to cost. 6) Put all those together you have a bike with safety issues. Putting you at risk. Anybody you ride with at risk. Anybody near you at risk. my .02
It's totally personal preference... My bike has had leaky fork seals since ive had it and the front brake has been garbage the whole time too. I use the rear brake a lot and leave following distance, it still stops fine just not like my r1 (go figure?). Personally run what ya brung! I am rebuilding them as soon as i can order the parts....
