Are the dust seals leaking ?

bigron

bigron

Registered
Hello folks,
So due to lockdown the bike has been sitting idle for a few months.
While cleaning it yesterday noticed the area around the front left dust seal moist with traces of oil. I cleaned it thoroughly because many times the seal leaks when the bike is sitting idle for months. Took it for a 60/70 mile ride to see if the seal is still leaking.
Came home and on inspection found this.

Do you guys reckon I change the oil and dust seals or this should hold for the time being.
Cheers

20200814_114704.jpg


20200814_114709.jpg
 
I'm curious to hear what others say but a super light film of oil on the tube is normal to me. Your's is concentrated within about three quarters of an inch halfway down the tube. That would seem to indicate your forks are compressing about the same amount every time. I see rings about halfway down the tubes of my forks too but there are also rings above that. It could be a difference in our weight or the compression damping/preload settings. Maybe you like softer forks than I do. Maybe this is a track bike in which case, it would be expected that the forks would be compressing about the same amount every time.

The Ohlins forks on my other bike look similar to my busa. I'm 230 lbs and I ride on the street.

Hopefully someone with more suspension knowledge can chime in but I would say, if you have your preload set properly, you should't be seeing the suspension compress the same amount every time in ordinary street riding. Do you feel that the front is floating when you corner? If so, it's too soft be that from valving, springs or oil.
 
Thanks for the explanation @Mythos @rubbersidedown

The preload is indeed set for my weight. I am around 210. This is a purely street bike.
The front end is quite stable during cornering. Not jumpy or skittish.
The other dust seal is absolutely fine and the tube only has some grime/dust from the ride but no oil film.
I guess I will change both the dust and fork oil seals and also change the oil.
 
bigron said:
Do you guys reckon I change the oil and dust seals or this should hold for the time being.
Cheers

View attachment 1624783

View attachment 1624784
Click to expand...
For the second part of your question if its determined it is leaking,I would rebuild the forks replacing the seals,pretty much now.
There is a "ghetto fix" you could use for now,I however DO NOT recommend it. It's popular with the "Harley Crowd" and others. It has a chance of saving your brake pads and stopping front brake failure.
Its the old bandana trick.

bandana forks.jpg


Just messin' Bro,you know what to do.

Rubb.
 
You have a leak. The fork is pushing the film down to the point where the ring is. Brand new forks can leak, I had that happen too. Sometimes they last forever, just depends on the gods. Ride that too long though and you could damage the coating on the fork, which is a bad thing.
 
Okay, I was reading here and now I am thinking about changing the springs and valves and rebuild the forks. What springs and valves do folks here recommend? Also, I know the stock oil is 5W. Is going with 7W advisable?
The bike has covered 50,000 kms , roughly 32000 miles. 2011. only street riding.
 
bigron said:
Okay, I was reading here and now I am thinking about changing the springs and valves and rebuild the forks. What springs and valves do folks here recommend? Also, I know the stock oil is 5W. Is going with 7W advisable?
The bike has covered 50,000 kms , roughly 32000 miles. 2011. only street riding.
Click to expand...
Sport bike suspension is an' "Art". So many variables. Your riding style,your body weight,how its set up,etc. You say only street riding...if it was me I would not spend a fortune on a bunch of costly mods unless you want too and have extra cash. If thats the case and you want the best,switch out the forks completely. Shi7 can the stockers for a premo aftermarket set. They are not cheap. Then,you are done except for set up. For that,I would enlist the help of an' expert to set them up for you/your bike. The tiny'st tweak here and there is huge on a track/race bike.
For you,for street riding,I would rebuild them (the stock one's) and set them up for your weight and riding...they will be fine. Just MHO.
Rubb.
 
My only gripe with Ohlins forks is that you run can't raise them too much if you want to do that. The lower clamps can't go any lower than the round portion of the tube. On my ZX-14, the clamp is about 1/8" higher than the flat sides on the tube. You can raise the Ohlins rear shock though and that's preferable to lowering the front.
 
That looks fine to me not enough oil to warrant a seal change When you put your hand around the tube is there a lot of oil on your hand ? Before you start spending a lot of cash get yourself a seal mate fork seal cleaner take the dust cover off and clean with the seal tool google it on you tube If you don t want to buy one you can even make one from a thin plastic milk carton good luck :thumbsup:
 
@rubbersidedown - I am not sure I have access to an independent garage here that would have the knowledge to fine tune the suspension even if I invest in expensive parts. Plus like you said, for purely street riding and I have been okay with the suspension of the busa all along, for me it makes no sense to drop that much coin. I will stick to changing the seals and the oil.
Those ohlins are a piece of art indeed.:thumbsup:
The oil capacity per leg is 532 ml according to the service manual?

@busafan08 - When I put my hand around the tube, there is absolutely no oil on my hand. Infact, I can barely smell it.
 
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bigron said:
@rubbersidedown - I am not sure I have access to an independent garage here that would have the knowledge to fine tune the suspension even if I invest in expensive parts. Plus like you said, for purely street riding and I have been okay with the suspension of the busa all along, for me it makes no sense to drop that much coin. I will stick to changing the seals and the oil.
Those ohlins are a piece of art indeed.:thumbsup:
The oil capacity per leg is 532 ml according to the service manual?

@busafan08 - When I put my hand around the tube, there is absolutely no oil on my hand. Infact, I can barely smell it.
Click to expand...
Its a personal choice thing my friend. If yer not out there draggin' knee, why bother. I have had rediculasly well set up sportbikes and it is awesome no doubt. But if yer not into serious twisties and canyon carving yer money is prolly better spent elsewhere on what you do enjoy about your Busa. Some of the guys on here can track these bikes very well,but they (Busa"s) are just not the best track bike. Throw all that money into suspension and some kid on a 600 will go by you like you are standing still. I gave up on twisties when I bought the Busa I have now...it...and me...can't turn for krap. :laugh: I'm ok with that. There is however nobody around here that can beat me in a straight line. Thats where I have my fun.
busafan08 said:
Your good to go then keep an eye on it though After every ride check it :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Yer good to go as he ^ mentioned. Looks to me like a slight leak which will not get better. It can't. As busafan 08 mentioned,a tiny piece of debris can lodge between stanchion and seal...but IMHO it is rare.
Qwik fixes can work,I'm just not built like that. My OCD will go thru the roof. Buddy of mine with a car (BMW) said I've got a coolant leak what can I do? I said fix it. He went with some "Stop Leak" LOL...OK,worked for a week. Now he has to fix it. A gum wrapper for a fuse,beer in the radiator,nylons for a fan belt....sure,on the road in the middle of nowhere.
Rubb.
 
like @fallenarch already wrote

the (LH?) OIL seal is a little bit leaking and should be replaced a.s.a.p.

the amount of oil will increase till, in worst case, the oil reaches the brake disc / pad.

the dust seal never can help at this issue - it is, as its name say, only against DUST (and mud or so)
 
We need to back up a bit gentleman and @rubbersidedown (see what I did there, lol). How long has it been since you had the forks serviced? If it has been several years, say 3-4 then your forks need service. You won't notice the performance of the forks fall off, it is very gradual and assuming you are not pushing the suspension to the limit it can go unnoticed. My forks were leaking and I lost nearly half the oil before I noticed a significant problem and my "ring" of dirt on the fork was much smaller (see photo below). So, your forks need service. If you are going in it is a good time to upgrade the forks, whether that means going to new high high dollar Ohlins or just springing the stockers properly. You should talk to some of the suspension guys like RaceTech. They can get you the proper springs for your weight, upgrade the valving with gold valves and help you get the proper oil viscosity and volume for your application. I used them on my Bandit and they are great to work with. Best of all they are relatively cheap.

Good suspension will change your bike. It's not just turning. The biggest change I got from the Ohlins was more confident braking - an amazing boost in confidence. But properly sprung the OEM forks work fine. So do some research and find out what you need for your weight and riding style. If you are under 200 lbs the OEM springing is probably acceptable. If you push the bike a little harder, you'll want springs too. Do the work, you will be glad you did!

Fork Leak.jpg
 
yes @fallenarch


you are SO right.

but your advice with ohlins is i guess the most expensive way - big grin - and the best.
it is simply the question how big your money bag is - lool -

i have (clothed) ca. 105 kg and use the wilbers promoto with a 5W20 fork oil - air space above as wilbers say for the promotos at their shop
and i am really happy with that combination - even at our (nearby) race track
might be a little less expensive chance for first try (and hopefully no error)

what always is a little try ´n error is the viscosity of the oil - available 0 / 2.5 / 5 / 7.5 / 10 ... and so on
in combi with the air space

btw - if for instance you mix a 5W and a 10W 1:1 (50/50) , you get a 7.5 (too) - depending on the ratio, you can mix a special viscosity yourself - the only what i would avoid is to mix a mineralic and synth oil - i do not think that they would work fine together - i think ! i do not know because i never tried that mixing.
 
bigron said:
I am not sure I have access to an independent garage here that would have the knowledge to fine tune the suspension even if I invest in expensive parts.
Click to expand...

Here is an alternative. Consider boxing the fork and sending it to Daugherty Motorsports in Fort Wayne. Jamie Daugherty's road tune is spectacular and extremely reasonable in pricing. My older e-mail shows a spring and revalve for the fork of $335 (add shipping to the shop and possibly some small items like upgraded seals.) They are busy and do require scheduling a job, and it is race season, so timing could be bad. At a minimum call him or send him an e-mail with your concerns. Jamie is extremely responsive. To the point of the concerned members above, use the opportunity to fix the inherent problems in the suspension. It need not be expensive and it need not incorporate aftermarket parts that you or the next owner may not want.

My bike is new to me and thus I have not had the Hayabusa done, but I did have the VFR done. That bike wanted to throw me clear off when it hit any bump. It now rides like a Lexus but remains planted when pushed. I cannot wait one day to have this awful spongy fork of the busa reconjigured by that same shop.
 
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