54 K MODEL Fork Seals

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54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby JohnF » Mon Dec 16, 2019 6:45 pm

Restoring my 54 KH and cannot find replacement seals for the top side of the lower fork legs. Parts books don’t call one out that I can find, but for sure there is one there. Can read “VICTOR” on the seal, no part number. Can’t find them ( two needed) even using dimensional searches on Timken/National or Victor seal catalogs. Tried upper leg seals for 72 XL which shows same fork tube size, but they are too large outer diameter. HELP!, what/where are folks finding the replacement seals?
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby wz507 » Mon Dec 16, 2019 8:01 pm

I think in general people are not using a seal in that application. I’m using a single lip metric seal 34 x 41 x 4 mm with no garter spring where the ID and OD both fit satisfactorily. Even though the seal ID is larger than the 33.4 mm fork tube it fits snug enough on the fork tube with essentially no stiction and would not want it any tighter.

LR Top of empty fork slider.jpg
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LR Top of fork slider with seal.jpg
LR Top of fork slider with seal.jpg (86.08 KiB) Viewed 13178 times

To assure the seal never moves in the fork leg I added a little micro-sized super glue filet around the top of the seal, and used a swab to remove any excess,. So even though it is secured in place it can be easily removed after the fact with a puller and any super glue residue will cleanup easily with acetone.

V-twin makes a seal for the 33.4 mm fork tube, but it only fits the ‘71-72 fork leg, which has an opening atop of ~ 43 mm vs the early fork legs at 41.3 mm, so will not fit in the early fork leg.

Hope this helps.

LR top of 71-72 slider.jpg
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Last edited by wz507 on Mon Dec 16, 2019 8:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby wz507 » Mon Dec 16, 2019 8:22 pm

One other thought regarding keeping fork oil in the early K/XL front end relates to the internal paper gasket at the bottom of the slider, which seals between the valve body and the weldment at the bottom of the slider to keep oil in the system. For a variety of reasons, e.g., corrosion in the bottom weldment from 50+ years of use/abuse/H2O contamination, gasket misplacement, gasket tear, etc, such paper gaskets have on occasion been known to leak oil. An easy option to solve this problem, without disassembling anything, is to install a Stat-o-Seal washer under the nut that secures the valve body to the bottom of the slider. The subject washer is made for sealing threaded fasteners in exactly such applications. All that is required is a thin AN washer fit between the nut and the Stat-o-Seal washer so the nut does not destroy the rubber seal when it is tightened.

https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/produ ... oduct=3245

Stat-o-Seal washer.jpg
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby Tim The Grim » Tue Dec 17, 2019 12:09 am

I made these aluminum inserts for mine.
The O-rings came from a HF assortment.

Image

Image[list=][/list]

Thanks for that bottom washer idea ! ⚙️
54KHK (Current Build),2013 XL1200V “72” Hard Candy, 97 Honda Valkyrie
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby curiousgeorge » Tue Dec 17, 2019 9:45 am

Nice o-ring setup Tim. Years ago I would take the 71-72 seals and carefully sand them down to fit in the earlier legs. I would sand with a mild bevel so I could tell when they would just start to drop in. There is more than enough rubber.
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby hennesse » Tue Dec 17, 2019 1:32 pm

The fork system needs to be vented to work properly. The fork tube caps have a valve and a little hole in the side to let air (in? / out?).

The 1952-1953 Ks used the stainless steel cowbell covers, and the top of the sliders were sealed with a felt washer, a steel retainer for the felt, and a rubber-ish seal, so nothing was getting in/out of there. There must have been a problem with the lack of ventilation, because in 1954, they changed to the rubber boots, and eliminated the felt and retainer, but kept the rubber seal. The upper retainer for the boot had two screw holes and a vent hole. Apparently this didn't completely fix the problem, because in 1955, they eliminated the rubber seal. Apparently this didn't completely fix the problem, because in 1957, they replaced one of the screws holding the upper retainer with a vent tube. That did it, and was the same through 1969.

forks.jpg
Fork configurations
forks.jpg (91.43 KiB) Viewed 13066 times


So the rubber seals are really only needed for the 1952-53 with the cowbells. This page lists some info/sources for 1963 Triumph seals:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=232&hilit=fork+seal&start=10

I found two different modern seals that can be bought from your local friendly bearing supplier for a few dollars each. I know I posted the info on the site, but I can't find it now. Since I moved earlier this year, there's a lot of stuff still in boxes, and which box has those seals? I will look for them and post the numbers.

---
In 1957, when they added the vent tube, they changed the 46007-54 Retainer Upper to 46007-54A. I think (but I'm not sure) that the -54 have the vent holes, and the -54A do not. So if you're assembling your front end from pieces, make sure your 1954-1956 has holes in the upper retainers, and your 1957-later do not. Can someone with a collection of parts double check this?

bootkit.jpg
Fork Boot kits
bootkit.jpg (105.71 KiB) Viewed 13066 times
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby EKHKHK56 » Tue Dec 17, 2019 3:45 pm

Yes to the Triumph seals!
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby hennesse » Tue Dec 17, 2019 5:21 pm

Stat-o-Seal - What a great idea!

The Stat-o-Seal looks like it is made by Earl's in Australia. Google: Earls 178005ERL and there's a hundred places to buy them. One place is Amazon, who charges more for the washers, but much less for shipping. Overall, they're cheaper!

I really hate paying $6.99 for shipping something that weighs less than an ounce!

Stat-o-Seal washer.jpg
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Re: 54 K MODEL Fork Seals

Postby wz507 » Tue Dec 17, 2019 5:33 pm

I believe Stat-o-Seals are made by Parker.

http://www.allsealsinc.com/statoseals.pdf
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