My front is too hard

[Johnwhit]

I replaced the fork seals on my 2002 r1150gs and the front seems to only move the shocks over moderate bumps and sits solid on normal road bumps(unless I'm putting power down and then you can see movement over bumps)
I undid the shock and the wheel seems to slide up and downwithout resistance when on the centre stand

I also had to much oil in the shocks and drained it till the level is as high as the fork brace not sure if its too low or high & causing this

any ideas or is my shock dead ?
cheers
JOhn

 

[davegs]

Shocks

What on earth do you mean about shocks? there is only one shock and thats in the centre of the forks these forks ARE NOT hydraulic!!! the oil (just a bit) is there to lubtricate the springs ONLY!!! it IS NOT there for damping. I think
if you've filled the legs up with oil your getting a hydraulic lock and I'm suprised the fork seals aint blown out. So take it to a dealers or an independent and get it sorted leave theis sort of job to those who know.

 

[rocky burns]

Still too much oil by the sounds of it

 

[Packer]

What on earth do you mean about shocks? there is only one shock and thats in the centre of the forks these forks ARE NOT hydraulic!!! the oil (just a bit) is there to lubtricate the springs ONLY!!! it IS NOT there for damping. I think
if you've filled the legs up with oil your getting a hydraulic lock and I'm suprised the fork seals aint blown out. So take it to a dealers or an independent and get it sorted leave theis sort of job to those who know.

Aye up Dave wakey wakey. Lubricate what springs? There is only one and it's on the shock that you were telling the lad about

Oil is 0.47 litres in each leg. BMW said use their fork oil but I used Automatic Transmission Fluid.

 

[davegs]

Bong!

Forgive me I'me talking like a pratt (normal behaviour with a shortage of alchohol!!) sme applies if you've filled the legs.Oil there just to lube the sliders no springs, I must have a drink!!! and get back to my knitting,

 

[Uncle Crumpet]

So what is the best oil to use in BMW forks?

 

[Uncle Crumpet]

I replaced the fork seals on my 2002 r1150gs and the front seems to only move the shocks over moderate bumps and sits solid on normal road bumps(unless I'm putting power down and then you can see movement over bumps)
I undid the shock and the wheel seems to slide up and downwithout resistance when on the centre stand

I also had to much oil in the shocks and drained it till the level is as high as the fork brace not sure if its too low or high & causing this

any ideas or is my shock dead ?
cheers
JOhn

Your shock will never wear out usingj the method you have described,as it's not doing anything!

 

[Steptoe]

:I also had to much oil in the shocks and drained it till the level is as high as the fork brace

That is far too low. Fork leg contains 470cc of oil.

Did you undo the bleed screw on top of the fork leg when replacing the slider/fork tube.

A picture how to on [URL="http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=97873"]Changing fork seals[/URL]

 

[Johnwhit]

thanks for the reply's guys, I think my babble may be confusing the forks & the shock.
I was wondering if my shock needs replacing but having read the replys I am thinking I have taken too much oil out the forks and they arnt giving any hydrolic damping, I did set the bleed screw as per the guide, with the bike on the centre stand and the bleed screw put in place with the sliders at 'rest' but messed up on reading the quantity of fork oil to put in ( I put in 495ml in each) after thinking thats what the guide said, (should have checked) it then leaked out past the new seals so I drained the oil as explained above thinking its not that important as long as its not to high & causes hydolic lock on the sliders.
I will drain the tubes and put the correct volume of oil in and see how it goes.
as usual, thanks to everyone for the help
safe riding !!
John

 

[Fanum]

thanks for the reply's guys, I think my babble may be confusing the forks & the shock.
I was wondering if my shock needs replacing but having read the replys I am thinking I have taken too much oil out the forks and they arnt giving any hydrolic damping

The forks don't give any appreciable hydraulic damping......that job falls purely to the shock absorber that mounts to the telelever arm (which in effect is a kind of swing arm)

The oil in the forks is just there to stop the inner sliders rattling in the outers (and making the steering knock as a by product), or seizing up and stopping the sliding so the telelever can transfer the dive into a 'dip' of the whole bike.

You could remove all the oil and just replace with a heavy grease temporarily, and it wouldn't affect the damping.

 

[Comfy Old Boots]

So what is the best oil to use in BMW forks?

BMW fork oil.

 

[Mzokk]

If the forks are still stiff after all that check that the telelever ball joint isn't knackered from a dunt in the past or wear, as they can get notchy and need replaced. A knackered one will restrict the movement of the front shock.

 

[Shep]

Had to do a double check to see if this was posted in the 1200 section

 

[Johnwhit]

dont want to open a can of worms here (or oil LOL) but if the oil isnt also for a dampning effect why does BMW say to fill to 470ml as a much smaller volume would work to lube the sliders and my bike deff has a different feel with me messing with the level of oil in the sliders, I would be thankful for Any one who knows the black art of suspension to add a bit of wisdom to this post ?????

 

[Fanum]

, I would be thankful for Any one who knows the black art of suspension to add a bit of wisdom to this post ?????

Forget the word 'suspension' in conjunction with 'forks' when you're talking about a Telelever BMW........the forks have nothing to do with suspension, they are there only for steering.

The suspension part is done by the telever swingarm and shock attached to it.

There's an animation online somewhere which shows it all happening , but I need a wee so I'm not going to look for it

 

[Timolgra]

dont want to open a can of worms here (or oil LOL) but if the oil isnt also for a dampning effect why does BMW say to fill to 470ml as a much smaller volume would work to lube the sliders and my bike deff has a different feel with me messing with the level of oil in the sliders, I would be thankful for Any one who knows the black art of suspension to add a bit of wisdom to this post ?????

The amount specified allows the top bushes to be lubricated.
Did you take not of Steptoe's advise above re. bleeding the fork?

 

[Timolgra]

.......the forks have nothing to do with suspension, they are there only for steering.

.......

 

[Comfy Old Boots]

Did you bleed the sliders of air when you replaced them John? Too much air would make the front hard. I know this, because it took me three attempts to get it right.

 

[Johnwhit]

I bled them under zero load on the centre stand, I will try again with the correct amount of oil and see how it goes , I think the oil does act as more than just lubricant in the sliders and I have it too low now, Its the only thing different than before, I may be wrong (its never happened before but law of averages dictates it will happen sooner than later and this may be the time LOL)
John

 

[Comfy Old Boots]

I was thinking about this. If you have wrong amount of oil in the forks, you also have the wrong amount of air. Different amounts of air will compress differently. Ie to little or too much depending on the amount of oil! Good luck with it!