How much wear is too much on fork tubes?

[badyellowvette]

Doing a rebuild on my K9 leaking forks and wondering about the wear on the tubes. You can see dull areas on both tubes but can't feel anything. The dull spots are on the front of the fork tubes. The bushings are wore also. Trying to get this rebuild done and wonder if it's time to change them or aren't they bad enough to leak with new seals and o-rings. At only 1300 miles I can't believe they are wore at all.

 

[TomM]

Hard to tell for sure from the pics,but it looks like it's worn through the chrome. I'd replace them just to be safe.

 

[KaptinAmerika]

Your bushings are done.
You probably have one more trip with your tubes, 10,000 mile service interval, then they will need replacing
Part of the excess wear on the tubes is because the bushings were allowed to go for too long.

 

[speedball jr.]

I hope your around here for a long time Kaptin.

 

[badyellowvette]

I hope your around here for a long time Kaptin.

What he said!

 

[badyellowvette]

Will it hurt anything to turn the tubes an put the wear toward the back?

 

[woodbutcher]

with your bushings in that kind of condition, hate to say it, but you might want to dig a little deeper into the past of your skoot. i changed mine at 8500 and they did not look that bad. it could be possible that the odometer on you bike was "disconnected for a length of time" and does not show the true mileage. i know nobody wants to hear that, especially with as much agonizing as you went through to find the right bike but it could be a reality that must be faced. i hope it's not but it is a possibility.

you might want to check out your wheel bearings for unusual wear because they could really do you some damage if they fail.

 

[badyellowvette]

This all might confirms my suspicions that this bike has more miles on it then 1300.
Good idea about checking the wheel bearings woodbutcher.

 

[Wills67]

I'd look at the neck bearings too while the front end is apart that far.

 

[ZeDevil]

Sorry for hijacking this thread, but it is regarding fork tubes:
Anyone know what length are the tubes for a 03 Chopper? I know they are 41mm but couldn't find the length.
Thanks!

 

[Th3InfamousI]

with your bushings in that kind of condition, hate to say it, but you might want to dig a little deeper into the past of your skoot. i changed mine at 8500 and they did not look that bad. it could be possible that the odometer on you bike was "disconnected for a length of time" and does not show the true mileage. i know nobody wants to hear that, especially with as much agonizing as you went through to find the right bike but it could be a reality that must be faced. i hope it's not but it is a possibility.

you might want to check out your wheel bearings for unusual wear because they could really do you some damage if they fail.

^^ I agree! No chance that bike has 1300 miles, more like 13,000 miles on it with that kind of wear. I just took mine apart at 10k and I couldn't see barely any copper. I only did mine because I needed to change the tire so I figured I would do it since it was about due.

 

[Five Five]

Your bushings are done.
You probably have one more trip with your tubes, 10,000 mile service interval, then they will need replacing
Part of the excess wear on the tubes is because the bushings were allowed to go for too long.

X-2 :2thumbs:

 

[badyellowvette]

So this was interesting.

I rebuild the left side of the forks with the wore out bushings and the upper bushing was a bitch to drive in but I got it all done and back on the bike.

I moved to the other side and bushings both upper and lower don't look wore at all. I had to look close to see the difference from the new ones. When I went to drive in the upper bushing on this side it just took a couple hits with a rubber hammer on the tool I made to set it.

The fork tubes have about the same wear on both sides which I polished most of the marks out with polishing compound. It seems like the left side is tighter then the right, must be why the bushings wore out on that side.

They will probably wear out too soon again and the next time I rebuild and replace the fork tube I will check the inside measurement of the bearing mounting surfaces.