1986 200x fork rebuild

[83_200e_rider]

Had my 200x up on the stand overnight and looked at it the next day and there was a decent size spot of oil on the floor leaking from the fork seals. I'm going to try to rebuild them myself, I have the manual and it doesn't look to hard to do. I haven't opened them yet to check the service limit of the springs but I'm assuming they're going to be out of spec. I was thinking about putting progressive springs in. What are the advantages of the progressive springs? And how do you run it with oil or no oil?

[Dirtcrasher]

It can be done yourself but you may find it a bit challenging based on your post, no offence intended.

They must be completely taken apart everything has to be spotless. Deep in the tube always has the most gunk built up in there.

Seals have to be driven in; Most of us have homemade driving tools made from pipe. It's all done in a specific order.

Since there is no compression or rebound adjustments, the only upgrade you can use are prog. springs. They replace old tired springs and are supposed to be "progressive" in compression but again, you can't dampen the oil without getting into some custom modifications that aren't too cheap.

You have the manual, but there are tips and procedures that may or my not be perfectly clear. Just as an example, I place a ziplock back over the top of the tubes and slide the seal greased up over that to avoid any sharp corners or knicks that can damage your new seals.

A slight bend in your forks can make them leak as well.

Try to find some youtube videos on fork seals replacement, your Honda forks are like many other models so it will give you an idea of how challenging or easy it is. There may even be a thread here, try a search at the top of the page.

As well as what weight oil for your weight and type of riding you do etc etc etc.

Not too difficult but it would help to watch someone do a few sets.......