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Confused over Cali 1100 fork seals

GuzziHero

GuzziHero

Cruisin' Guzzisti
GT Contributor
Joined
May 2, 2009
Messages
485
Location
Stoke-on-Bloody-Trent
Right, having the fork seals done on my Cali 1100. A guide I read shows that the fork seal retainer is a spring clip. Came to do the seals and in the slider is what looks like a piston ring. I had to drill out the seal to remove it.

Now I got a new seal retainer and... its the same!

So... my question is... how do you get out these fork seal retainers? Is there a special tool for the job?
 
I use a couple small screwdrivers to work them out. Once you get an end up, they walk out pretty easy. The EV style retainer is much easier. You do know that it is best to place the tube in the slider and then install the seal with a two piece seal driver. You don't want to take a chance on the tube bushing nicking the seal.
 
The guide I just found suggests that. Cheers for making me aware of it.

I might just collect my bits from the place theyre at now and take them to Nigel at NBS.

Oh, on the one I have open, I also noticed some repair work to the inside where the seal sits. Its only at the top of the seal area and doesnt run all the way down. Is that likely to cause leakage?
 
GuzziHero said:
Oh, on the one I have open, I also noticed some repair work to the inside where the seal sits. Its only at the top of the seal area and doesnt run all the way down. Is that likely to cause leakage?
Click to expand...

Can't say without seeing it.
 
My local engineer now says he can sort the retainers, now he knows the method of getting them out.

He reckons he can sort the damage out if that does cause another leak, too.

Cheers once again for your advice :)
 
FML!!!

I just put some shopping in my commuterscooter top box and found.. the metal ring that goes under the seal on the slider!

Is this ABSOLUTELY vital, or can I dodge it for the mo?
 
GuzziHero said:
FML!!!

I just put some shopping in my commuterscooter top box and found.. the metal ring that goes under the seal on the slider!

Is this ABSOLUTELY vital, or can I dodge it for the mo?
Click to expand...

It needs to be in there. The seal needs to be trapped between it and the retaining ring.
 
I thought so. Sick thing is, if I hadnt just this week started carrying a snake lock in there, I'd have seen it instantly :(

Cheers for the reply

Y'know theres this phrase going round the internet at the mo... FML. Thats how I feel sometimes. Why do these things always seem to happen to me? I do my best to get things right and always come away looking like a complete cock through no fault of my own :(
 
Hopefully this is the last question I have on thus subject.

I got the seals from Cardiff Motorcycles Ltd, it says they are for a 1994-1995 California 1100 (which mine is). I have what I believe are the standard forks - Bitubo, polished aluminium sliders with finger adjusters on the caps, the direction marker is white with Bitubo on it.

The engineer says that with the cup (the missing silver ring), the seals go in. With is, the seals appear to be about .5mm too long.

So the question is this: How much force should be needed to install the retaining ring? Is it possible that he isnt trying hard enough (he joked about being worried about splitting the slider!)?
 
The new seal supplied may be thicker that the original. O.5mm would be allot to overcome. What is the thickness of the lower ring? Maybe taking 0.4mm off of that would be the way to go.
 
It's at the engineers so I dont know right now, but he did say he would be prepared to shave the seal. The OD and ID of the seal are apparently correct, it just isn't squashing down enough.

I'll get him to shave it. He is a proper engineer, he just likes to make sure that I'm happy with what he intends to do before he gets to work.
 
GuzziHero said:
It's at the engineers so I dont know right now, but he did say he would be prepared to shave the seal. The OD and ID of the seal are apparently correct, it just isn't squashing down enough.

I'll get him to shave it. He is a proper engineer, he just likes to make sure that I'm happy with what he intends to do before he gets to work.
Click to expand...

Seals are sized in three dimensions, OD, ID, and Thickness. It sounds like the seals you have are too thick. Shaving the seal doesn't sound like a good idea to me.
 
Right, I gotcha.

Hmm, then I need to know if the Bitubo forks are original, so then I can find out if the seals are correct for them.

My course of action then is to call MotoMecca or similar, find out if the dimensions of the seals I have are correct, and then if necessary buy the correct ones.

This entire bike is just ****ing me off :(

---
Right, just found out the seals for the original are supposed to be 40x52x10. I'll find out from the engineer if those are the seals I have right now. I will also measure the wrecked seal I have.

Actually, just by measuring the old seal I can get the required dimensions...
 
ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

Trust me to get a ****ing backwards rat! The mofo at the bike shop has rammed in the flat 10s... then told me that the seals SHOULD be...

40*52*7.5/10.

And can I find these buggers anywhere?

So far this has cost me £60 and Im no better off than I was.
 
Take the seal size numbers with you to a bearing supply house. They should be able to match one up. Be sure the seal has a spring that pulls the lip in against the tube.
 
The saga continues.

MG Cycle has them on its site, but are out of stock and have been for some time.

I contacted Moto Mecca yesterday, they sent me some... 40*52*7!!! I hope they work... this will be the third type of seal tried so far!

Oh, and theyve charged me £14.28, when I could have got them for £4.88 each from a bearing house... Moto Mecca have a lot of stuff that other places dont, but they are now my last choice when ordering parts.
 
I've just changed the seals on my Cali 1100i, had the same problems.
First set were 10mm thick, second set 7.5mm thick - these looked good but the clips wouldn't go in just like yours so I ordered a set from MG that are the correct 7mm thick.
Took off forks and fitted the seals from the top using a lubed up thin piece of plastic milk bottle wrapped between the seal and the stanchion to avoid damaging the seal until it was down to the slider, used a seal driver to fit and new seals and BOTH let a small film of fluid past them when the forks are pumped!
Will these bed in or are the seals faulty?
 
The plastic mild bottle may have been too thick, or an an edge that damaged the seals. The way I put seals in, tube in slider first, them run the seals down from the top. I don't use anything between the seal and the fork tube. I've got a tool I had made from plastic pipe just for this job. One end is used to drive the seal in place, then you turn it over to install the dust covers. It is long enough to extend beyond the fork tube so light use of a hammer drives the seal and dust cover home. If anyone wants dimensions let me know.
 
The top of the stanchions has a bit of rust where the clamps hold so I didn't want to risk that cutting the seals, the milk bottle is soft plastic and only thin, that's why I used it as a barrier, is there any chance these seals will bed in with use or are they shot?
Regards,
John.
 
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