bdmridgeback
Low Down Chop Shop
I am sure most of you have had this issue. You get done washing your Dog, get it dry and spot free. You even let it set for a few hours out in the sun to drip dry before heading off to the local bike night or watering hole.
BUT, when you get there, your damn rocker boxes, pipes, and triple trees are covered if nasty water spots. :bang: :bang: :bang: And you were for sure you had it dry.
Or you have just tried to unscrew your dust covers on the top of your lower fork legs to find out they are hard as hell to unscrew.
Well, the damn o-rings in the top of these dust covers are quite sloppy and let quite a bit of water in. Then when you take off riding after washing it, even a day later, the first big bump you hit the forks act like a water gun and blow all that water out on your nice clean bike.
So, here is a fix!!! We are drilling 3/32" small drain holes for the water to let out in the lower back side of the threaded portion. The holes will be hid up inside and can't be seen, but will allow the water to slowly drain out from between where the cap seats down on the leg.
So start by unscrewing the caps and slide them up the forks and put a piece of tape on them to hold them up:
Now with a 3/32" drill bit or one real close in size but not smaller, we are going to drill up at the steepest angle just not to touch the outer leg itself. You want to be below the last thread but at enough angle to clear the top of the seal on the inside:
You also want to centered right in the middle as well:
Drill slow so that when you pop through you don't stab the fork and you want to go slow so that you don't cut into the top edge of the fork leg that shows after you screw the cap back on. Here is what it should look like:
And here is a shot looking inside to see how it just skims the top of the seal. Mine was actually full of water from washing the bike yesterday, and as soon as it drilled, it drained right out, just like it should:
Now put a bunch of silver anti-sieze on the threads, don't smear it on so thick it plugs up your drain, but put enough on to make it easy to take them loose once in a while to clean them. That should fix that problem!!!:2thumbs:
BUT, when you get there, your damn rocker boxes, pipes, and triple trees are covered if nasty water spots. :bang: :bang: :bang: And you were for sure you had it dry.
Or you have just tried to unscrew your dust covers on the top of your lower fork legs to find out they are hard as hell to unscrew.
Well, the damn o-rings in the top of these dust covers are quite sloppy and let quite a bit of water in. Then when you take off riding after washing it, even a day later, the first big bump you hit the forks act like a water gun and blow all that water out on your nice clean bike.
So, here is a fix!!! We are drilling 3/32" small drain holes for the water to let out in the lower back side of the threaded portion. The holes will be hid up inside and can't be seen, but will allow the water to slowly drain out from between where the cap seats down on the leg.
So start by unscrewing the caps and slide them up the forks and put a piece of tape on them to hold them up:
Now with a 3/32" drill bit or one real close in size but not smaller, we are going to drill up at the steepest angle just not to touch the outer leg itself. You want to be below the last thread but at enough angle to clear the top of the seal on the inside:
You also want to centered right in the middle as well:
Drill slow so that when you pop through you don't stab the fork and you want to go slow so that you don't cut into the top edge of the fork leg that shows after you screw the cap back on. Here is what it should look like:
And here is a shot looking inside to see how it just skims the top of the seal. Mine was actually full of water from washing the bike yesterday, and as soon as it drilled, it drained right out, just like it should:
Now put a bunch of silver anti-sieze on the threads, don't smear it on so thick it plugs up your drain, but put enough on to make it easy to take them loose once in a while to clean them. That should fix that problem!!!:2thumbs:
