CRF bad fork seal

[Thump]

I noticed oil on the ground under my '13 CRF250M and it turned out to drip from the left fork leg.
The bike has only 30K km on the clock so I am a bit disappointed; I didn't expect that.
There's no rust or anything on the fork leg so I believe the seal may have been torn when it was installed or it's a low quality part.
Has anybody had any bad seals on their CRF or is it just my bike
Anyways, I'm trying to get it fixed - are there any parts I need to order besides new seals and fork oil?

 

[Thump]

Just went to the biggest Honda dealer in town and ordered the parts.
According to them I need the seal and another part for each leg; total of 1,400B incl. fork oil.
But - they told me that they can't do the work because they aren't professional enough, so I have to ask around in town.

Honda's 250 and 300cc bikes are in a unusual situation - the local "Wave mechanics" say it's a big bike.
Big Wing says they don't service it because it's a small bike.

Something to consider before buying a 250/300cc Honda!

 

[Clarky]

Hi Thump,

I had the same situation with fork seals on my CRF250l. I used the opportunity to upgrade to the Ohlins front spring, if you ride offroad you will see a good improvement.

I had the work done at BNS Speed shop in Chiang Mai.

http://www.bns-speed.com

They did a great job, so can recommend them to do the work.

Also, after i discussed the leaking seals with a friend, he told me it was unlikely that the seals were actually leaking, in his opinion it was more likely some debris on the seal was causing the oil to pass..So if you want to try a quick fix, get a plastic bottle, cut the ends off, slice the side so you have a foldable thin piece. Smooth the edges with emery paper and then push the plastic between the seal and the fork. Pump the forks and if there is any debris, it should sort the problem...just make sure you don't lose any plastic inside


Good luck

 

[Gnasher328]

Seems a common problem with CRFs, the main Honda dealer in CM replaced both fork stanchions on mine under warranty so there might have been a mod involved.

 

[schrauberklaus]

Common Problem not only to CRF .
all USD Forks share this more or less .

Neoprene Fork Boots on mine from new to protect the lower fork , never a Problem in 35000 km.
Its just the road dust and dirt that move under the oil seal.

Fix it like Clarkys friend recomend , many videos on youtube how to do it .

 

[Gnasher328]

...tried the plastic bottle scraper trick, no noticeable difference.

 

[schrauberklaus]

works for me on the XR USD Fork a few times .
Guess the trick is to clean it befor the dirt wear out the seal .
Now since i use neoprene boots on all forks no problem anymore .

 

[Thump]

I don't think the plastic strip trick will help, I guess the seal is damaged, the bike is dripping oil just sitting there.

I'll ask around town when I have the parts; if the mech knows where they go that's a good start.

I'm not interested in upgrades but if I would have heard of neoprene boots (dust covers?) I would've given them a try.

 

[Lone Rider]

Yes, they are a kind of dust covers - have a look here for different types for the CRF250L: Honda-crf250l-fork-boots

 

[schrauberklaus]

The full lenght closed ones have better protection then the short quick install ones .
sometimes shops like burning or dirt shop have the acerbis brand .
Install them behind the stock plastik cover .

 

[Gnasher328]

Funny to think all bikes had fork gaiters then they became uncool. Not to mention fully enclosed chains - oh well, that's progress!

 

[schrauberklaus]

it was also once cool to ride with the hair flutters in the wind .
But protection is better then just cool looking .

And don't worry , neoprene Boots behind the plastic cover have some kind of bad ass look .

 

[Oddvar]

I had one fork replaced due to leaking oil seal by Honda in Chiangmai as a warranty after about 32k km(Under a year old.)
They replaced the entire fork.
At about 43k km Honda in Nan replaced both for about 300-400 bath.
Now at 75k km, no leak at all.

I guess I'm just lucky or maybe the CRF is a good bike despite being cheap and under powered.

 

[Thump]

I need only one new fork seal but I guess it's better to have them both done at the same time.

When I went to pick up the seals and the oil (1,400B) they told me that they could fix the forks, but they have to give them to some other shop which charges 2,000B.

I told them no way, after a lot of back and forth they suddenly came down from a total of 3,400B for parts and labor to 2,200B.

The bike is 2 years and 10 months old but has 30172km on the clock. Since it's over 30,000km I assumed the warranty won't apply.

 

[Thump]

I had one fork replaced due to leaking oil seal by Honda in Chiangmai as a warranty after about 32k km(Under a year old.)
They replaced the entire fork.
At about 43k km Honda in Nan replaced both for about 300-400 bath.
Now at 75k km, no leak at all.

I guess I'm just lucky or maybe the CRF is a good bike despite being cheap and under powered.

You must have been lucky! I got exactly 30,172 km on the clock, the bike is 2 years and ten months old - no warranty, I had to pay.

I've never been in the dirt, there's no rust on the forks, I cleaned it regularly.

The seals should last longer than that.

I didn't mind the "knocking" sound from the cams which it had from the start; after the 28K valve check the engine made "clicking" noise at higher revs, it sounds like a coffee grinder, and that's "normal".

It's a good bike overall but I had major problems getting the valves adjusted and now this - it takes the fun out of it!

Unfortunately I won't get much for it otherwise I'd put it up for sale.

 

[bsacbob]

The coffee machine sound is most likely the cam chain tensioner. Cheap and easy to fix.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[schrauberklaus]

Every Bike, Car , Machine is only as good as the mechaniks that do the maintanance .

Thats the weak point here .
I am at the rebuild of a factory what i had build 12 years ago .
12 years 24/7 produktion .
12 years zero maintanance , don't ask about the conditions .

 

[Thump]

The coffee machine sound is most likely the cam chain tensioner. Cheap and easy to fix.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

The clicking started after the second valve check at 28K and it is audible only at a certain rave range, I'd say from 7K on up.

The "knocking" was always there and I heard it first when I rented a CRF250L. It's maybe at around 5K rpm.

When I rev it to redline it, it first knocks, then is quiet again, then the clicking starts, which sounds like loose valves, all four of them, which can't be because they were adjusted and the engine ran fine ever since.

 

[Thump]

I had one fork replaced due to leaking oil seal by Honda in Chiangmai as a warranty after about 32k km(Under a year old.)
They replaced the entire fork.
At about 43k km Honda in Nan replaced both for about 300-400 baht.
Now at 75k km, no leak at all.

I guess I'm just lucky or maybe the CRF is a good bike despite being cheap and under powered.

I wonder how the dealer could replace the seals for that kind of money - I paid 1,200B for the seals, oil, dust covers and a whopping 1,000B labor!

Guess you're lucky!

The used seals look as good as the new ones and the fork legs have no rust or grooves.

I wonder if the problem has something to do with the installation at assembly.

- - - Updated - - -

 

[schrauberklaus]

Could be but not neccecary .
The XR frorks are made in Japan .
On one of the XR250 it start leaking about 2 years after i buy the bike .
replaced with local available seals from a bearing shop made by SKF (they Fit) and are cheap .
last about a year , then i replace them again and install neoprene boots
Since then no Problem .

Second Fork i buy neary brand new but second Hand and install it with neoprene Boots in my XL , never a Problem .

Third Fork in my XR 400 i buy with 7800 km and no leak , 1500 km later the left Fork leg was oily .
Clean it and install neoprene Boots , no Problem since .

Maybe the shop in Nan know about witch SKF Seal fit on the CRF and use this on for small money and your dealer order Honda Parts,
Maybe made in Japan and they are much more expensive .

The CRF is Build in Thailand but many Parts , mostly the small Parts that the CRF share with other models like shims and Gasoline Pump are made in Japan and this Parts cost much more .

 

[Thump]

Thanks for the info, Klaus.

Hopefully the new seals last for another 30,000km!

Next time I'll go for the neoprene ones.

It's just disappointing when you see cheap 110/125cc bikes doing twice the miles and having no problem with the seals.

I bought a Honda Wave 110 new in 2001, rode it for 70,000 km in nine years, and never had a problem.

 

[schrauberklaus]

You forget that most forks on small bikes don't use the Oil for dampening like the CRF or XR .
In an small Bike Fork there are no shims or Pistons that put the oil under pressure .
Only the Spring , and a little bit oil for lubrication .

And they have less then half the travel of the CRF fork and move all the time over the full way .
So its less likely that dirt build up on a part of the Fork that move in the seal just once a week or even less like on the CRF.

 

[Taninthai]

Can anyone give an easy to understand instruction on how much oil to put in each fork ....have ordered the seals from Honda and they claim to have the oil in stock at 100 bht per can and saying I need 5 cans.....

 

[bsacbob]

This is what Honda recommends, using a 10w oil. I would suggest fitting some neoprene socks at the same time mine have done over 30k km and no leaks at all.

fork oil level RIGHT = 122 mm
fork oil level LEFT = 38 mm
fork oil capacity RIGHT = 658 ml +-2.5
fork oil capacity LEFT = 683 ml +-2.5
fork oil capacity TOTAL = 1341 ml


Here is a simple video how to do it.


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[Taninthai]

^
Cheers I'd better go looking for a measuring jug.....I take it the mm measurement is from top off fork to oil level ....Yep getting the neoprene socks on order today convinced it's dirt,sand and dried mud has busted up the seals.

 

[schrauberklaus]

You will also need a fork seal driver , but thats the easy part .
you get it at most hardware shops from the blue Plastic Pipe shelf . Just buy the correct Diameter and split it in half .

And check the scale on your jug befor you use it with the fork oil ,500 ml or whatever messuring jugs seams to have here a +/- 10% tolerance,
to much for the fork