fork rebuild

My 82 xj750j has a pretty bad fork leak and it is getting onto my disc which will affect braking. So I'm going to rebuild both forks but the manual says u will need a special tool so the stanchion will not spin when removing the cap screw from the bottom of the fork. Any ideas how to get past this. I don't want to have to buy the special tool. Anything I can make or find in a shop or well equipped garage?

 

a spark plug socket will have a 19mm head on the top of it. Flip it over and put extensions where the spark plug would go.

Or do what I did and weld a bolt with a 19mm head to a piece of tube and use that.

 

Great. Thanks for the idea.

 

Threaded rod with two nuts locked together

 

Upside down spark plug socket worked great. Next question. Book says to put stantion in first with damper rod then slide bushing and oil seal on and use special tool to install it. I have the perfect size socket to tap/install oil seal in place. Can I do that first instead and then oil/grease the stantion real good and slide it through the oil seal or will that not work. I may not be able to find the perfect tube or pipe to use to slide over and around the stantion to install oil seal by the book. Thanks, Bill

 

Won't work like that, the slide bushing on the end of the fork tube is larger than the seal. You can use a piece of PVC pipe the right size to press the seal in place after the tube is in. PVC pipe and fittings are cheap.

 

Here is another question. I followed the manual to the letter. but when I came to the part about heating up the fork tube, my stantion slid right out on its own. No resistance. I gently pried oil seal out with out damaging the tube. The bushing is still in the tube in place. Is something wrong? If not can I install oil seal now since bushing is in place then slide stantion down through it. Not sure how heating the fork tube up and pulling on stantion is supposed to pop out bushing and oil seal since it a smooth surface with nothing at the bottom to pull up and out the bushing and seal. Thanks again. Bill

 

750 Maxim inner (chrome) tubes do not use a slider bushing on the bottom of the leg. The only bushing is the one in the top of the lower tube.....thus removing the inner tube will not pop out the lower tube bushing (as it would on models that use the bushing on the inner tube).

 

Thanks.

 

U just gotta love misinformation in a manual. Specifically stated to heat the fork tube and give a hard pull and bushing and seal assembly would slide out. And this info was in the chapter for xj750j. Lmao. Thanks guys for ur help. Bill

 

Chacal, can I then install oil seal first, lube with oil or grease and slide inner chrome tube gently through seal?

 

That will work, but you have to be very careful doing it that way so as to not damage the seal. Lube both the seal and the inner tube before installation of the tube thru the seal.