How to replace lower forks on a '96

I have never seen seals replaced without dismantling the forks. The seal will come in a fork revbuild kit whether the bushings etc are used or not. Obtained separately but necessary in any case are new lower fork bolts and copper washers. I suppose it might be possible to get the seal out of the fork leg without completely dismantling the fork but the normal way of removing the seal is to use the slider as a slider hammer tool to drive the upper bushing and seal from the fork leg which requires removal of the lower bolt and washer and pretty much fully dismantling the fork. You will also need a special fork holder tool or at the least a pair of vise soft jaws and it is critical how much fork oil is added back into the fork as too much will make the ride unacceptably hard and too little will allow the fork to compress too much and be too soft. You also really need an appropriate seal installer to reinstall the seal and upper bushing etc. All that being said:

Remove forks from bike, with each fork remove end cap and drain plug over a bucket drain oil from each fork reinstall drain plug on lower leg, replace oil thought top of the fork to spec, replace end caps and bleed oil from forks

Assuming you have slackened off the fork top nut before removing the fork from the bike,and you have removed the screw in the fork lower, this secures the damper into the fork, next you will have removed the dust cover and seal retaining clip from the top of the leg, undo the fork top nut completly and remove the spring noteing which end of the spring is at the top, for replacment purposes.
Next fasten the lower of the fork into a vice on the flat ( not tubular surface of the fork leg) push the stancion all the way down to the bottom of the leg, then pull up sharply, repeating this in/out action to hammer out the seal from the leg until the seal/ bushes/ and washer have come out, this mat take some quick action movments to remove or separate the leg, forks which have not been appart in some time may need some heat on the fork seal. ARea of the lower leg

You can remove the lower while the upper is still insitu

hi, the obviouse thing here is to get a manual, however if you think you have the finess required to do the job its fairly straight forward, put bike on stand, raise the front wheel of ground, remove spindle from front wheel, remove calipers from forks, DO NOT REMOVE BRAKE LINES FROM CALIPERS, once you have done this you can then remove the front wheel, put spindle back through loose wheel inc spacers to keep all in place, remove front mudguard, i always tell people to try and remove the lower fork leg first leaving fork tube on the bike, some forks it is poss to do this as the busshing is fitted to the lower leg and not the chrome tube, undo the bolt in the lower fork leg on the underneath inside where the spindle fits through, once removed, using a container to catch the oil, pull dovn on the lug to remove it, if it comes of all the way you are in luck easy job, the fork can then be cleaned and new seal fitted, the manual would come in handy for fork oil levels,if the leg does not come off you will have to remove the whole leg, before you remove it undo the top nut on each leg as the yokes will hold it for you, it is difficult to undo once the fork is removed, once removed, lift up the dust seal, remove the clip, and then the spring from the top, grip the lower leg in a vice with protective jaws, on the flat surface only, to grab the tube area would damage the fork leg, once in the vice, push in the stancion fully depress and pull out sharply you may have to repeat this sevral times useing the stancion as a hammer until the seal is removed, replace in reverse order,
DO 1 FORK FIRST REASEMBLE THEN DO THE OTHER, hope this helps feel free to contact me, paul

hi its been quite a while since i have done 1 of these but if the bike has the original forks on it i am sure you can do this without removing the complete fork of the bike, after suporting your bike you can chose to completely remove the fork if you wish, i would first try it without removing the complete fork first, remove front wheel, remove front mudguard and inner stabilizer, keep all bolts together in a safe place, you will need a clean container, to catch the fork oil,(TIP) if you catch all the oil and alow time for it to drip dry you can measure the amount of oil that was in the fork by pouring it from the container into a measuring jug, this will save time if you dont know the specific amount of oil required, to drain the oil you will need a suitable alun key to undo the fork leg/tube securing bolt, you will find this in the lower of the fork leg where the wheel spindle fits, turn the key anti clockwise to undo it, hopefully it will crack loose, if it just spins and doesnt undo you may need air tools to shake it loose, once the bolt is undone secure the fork leg and remove the bolt, the oil will then desperse from the fork, moving the fork lower slowley up and down will help rifle the oil out, make sure the sealing washer is on the bolt or you may have to fish around inside the old oil for it, when you are happy all of the oil has been removed, carefuly pull the fork leg down all the way until it comes of the stanchion, pour any oil into your container, if when you pull on the leg it does not come off this will be because the fork stanchion on your bike has bushes that are fited to it, and not to the lower leg, in this case you will have to remove the whole fork, remove, the dust cover from the fork leg inside you will see a circlip remove this and washer, remove cap from fork top and pour out your oil, and fork spring noteing direction , remove the lower bolt, fix the fork lower in a vice at the very bottom of the leg wher the flat area is, do not grip tubular area,then to remove the seal you will need to push down on the fork stancion to its lowest point, and sharply pull up useing the stancion as a hammer, repeat this untill your fork seal is removed, replace in reverse order, good luck hope this helps. paul

First of all do not add oil to your front forks with out draining them first. If you over fill your forks with oil you will damage your forks. To change your oil in your forks, first center stand the bike and lift the front wheel by putting a jack under the motor. Remove the front wheel and axle and put a pie tin under the fork tube. Reach up into the bottom of the fork tube with a hex key and loosen the screw but do not remove. Now take the air pressure cross over tube off, this will allow you to unscrew the fork tops( On some bikes you may have to put a towel on the tank and unbolt the handle bars to get them out of the way.). Pull the screws out of the bottom of the forks and gently pull down the oil should come out now. If you need new fork seals take the lower tubes off and replace(You may need to take off the fender and hang the calipers with wires.). Turn the lowers over and dump out the oil and reinstall fork lowers. Snug up screws and sealing washers on the bottom of forks you can not tighten till you put on fork tops. Now pour in measured amount of oil, again do not over fill. Put on fork tops and air crossover tube. Now tighten screws on bottom of fork. Finish reassembling bike.

lower for legs there should be a drain bolt for each leg do one side at a time.
Take the top fork cap off be careful the top cap is spring loaded get a pan to catch the oil,remove the drain bolt let it drain.reolace the drain bolt then you can add your new fork oil,check your owners manual for the proper amount and weight oil you need to replace, replace the fork cap.
repeat steps on the other fork.

I assume the forks are already taken out from the braces? If so gently slide them back in and tighten the clamp bolts partially - just enough to prevent the fork tube from turning. Then use teh allen key and remove teh lower nut. Once loose, loosen teh clamp bolts and problem should be solved

Yep, drain the fork oil, raise the front wheel in the air, remove the front wheel and axle. The nut to remove the lower leg is at the bottom, hidden by the axle. If it still leaks after seal replacement your fork tubes and lower leg sliders are worn out. Reassemble and remove the top fork cap. Pour in the correct cc of fork oil and ride.