what oil for forks

[leerc]

im about to tackle the fork seals but have no idea what oil to use or how much

do u fill it right up etc

the seals themselves look pretty straight forward

[Le_Blur]

Which bike do you have and what forks are fitted to it?

[leerc]

vfr 400 nc30 1989 model,not sure what forks they are if im honest

[Le_Blur]

According to the Haynes manual, for a K (1989) model the fork oil level is 90mm. This is measured from the top of the stanchion with the fork spring removed and the leg fully compressed. It specifies 10w oil as standard. Just for reference, K models don't have rebound damping adjusters on the top bolts.

[leerc]

mines on a g i could have sworn g was 89

[CMSMJ1]

It is - K model is the bike model, not the year.

1989 NC30s are K models - they have different forks and shock and carb jetting to the LMN and so on later bikes..

[Neosophist]

Yep.

Go by the actual forks rather than the model year as they could be a bitsa.

Honda K model (1989) forks have one adjuster on the top. It's silver.

Honda L,M (1990+) forks have two adjustments on the top, the silver one and a smaller brass one inset into the silver one.

10 weight fork-oil is what you want.

K model forks are probably the easiest to do, I replaced both my fork seals in around 30 mins after removing them from the bike.

If it's your first time, take it slowly, make sure you have a tool to drive the new fork seals in. (drain pipe that fits good is ok)

Clean the stantions (chrome fork tubes) and make sure there is no pitting in the area that travels past the fork seal.

Use Genuine Honda seals, others are false economy.

[leerc]

it has a brass screw inside what looks like a ally nut (not a hexagonal shape has 2 flat edges) inside another ally nut

hope i havnt bought the wrong seals lol

[leerc]

the seals iv bought are some generic copy,paid £20 for the 2 and 2 dust covers

[Neosophist]

Sounds like later forks, NOT the 1989 model forks.

Early Forks:



Later Forks:



Seals are all the same I belive.

You really should have brought the proper Honda seals though, they are not much more expensive and last at least twice as long as the copies.