Fudged Fork...

sweatychef · 11-22-2007, 03:48 PM

Hi everyone!...I'm new to the thumper side and come seeking 650gs wisdom. My wife owns a 2005 650gs and recently had an accident(she O.K.)...however her bike and I have a very long cold garage date this winter.

Fortunately her bike sustained mostly cosmetic damage..but her lower right fork cylinder broke at the axle bolt hole. This is where my problem is...I'm having trouble separating the fork. My locate BMW dealership was kind enough to send me the fork schematics but they haven't helped much.

I know it's probably something simple like a twist here or a pull there...or I need a special BMW tool to get them apart. So far I have only been able to remove the fork oil via the bottom drain plug, remove the top piston ring pin...and now I'm stuck.

Trying to push the upper piston down far enough to remove the ring seal is beginning to make me feel like I'm in for a long night...

Any help would be appreciated.

Tempo · 11-22-2007, 04:25 PM

Did you read the FAQs? IIRC it should take 30-45 min to totally disassemble the fork.

sweatychef · 11-22-2007, 06:31 PM

Thanks Tempo...that helped explain the disassembling procedure which is pretty much what I thought. The damping rod & fork spring inside the fork tube seem to be stuck and are not coming out as easily as they should.

At least now I know I'm not a complete idiot!

BuckRider · 11-22-2007, 06:36 PM

There's a hex bolt on bottom of lower fork tube you need to loosen.

Mine was a pain, as it would just spin inside the tube, so I used a 3/4" (or maybe it was 1") piece of PVC water pipe to keep the insides from turning. I cut a length about 36 inches or something like that, take off the cap, remove the spring, and then send the pipe down the upper tube to engage and lock up the lower dampening tube.

I had also taken my forks out of the triple clamps and used the above pipe to hold up the fork - essentially I inverted the fork and used one hand to push down on the lower fork tube (which is now on top) down onto the PVC pipe, while I turned the hex wrench with the other.

I used the same setup to re-tighten the bolt.

I took my forks apart to put in Race-Tech emulators which I highly recommend.

The PVC is soft enough to not scratch the metal parts, and offers enough grab to keep the insides from spinning.

Sorry I don't have any pictures.

Woodsrat · 11-23-2007, 09:15 PM

'Nuther way to break the bolt loose is to use an air or electric impact wrench. I leave the spring and fork cap on and break the bolt loose before I do anything else.

11-22-2007, 03:48 PM	#1
sweatychef ^OP My boots got soup in em Joined: Apr 2006 Location: Fracken GPS Oddometer: 18	Fudged Fork... Hi everyone!...I'm new to the thumper side and come seeking 650gs wisdom. My wife owns a 2005 650gs and recently had an accident(she O.K.)...however her bike and I have a very long cold garage date this winter. Fortunately her bike sustained mostly cosmetic damage..but her lower right fork cylinder broke at the axle bolt hole. This is where my problem is...I'm having trouble separating the fork. My locate BMW dealership was kind enough to send me the fork schematics but they haven't helped much. I know it's probably something simple like a twist here or a pull there...or I need a special BMW tool to get them apart. So far I have only been able to remove the fork oil via the bottom drain plug, remove the top piston ring pin...and now I'm stuck. Trying to push the upper piston down far enough to remove the ring seal is beginning to make me feel like I'm in for a long night... Any help would be appreciated.

11-22-2007, 04:25 PM	#2
Tempo Stumptown Native Joined: Oct 2005 Location: Oregon Oddometer: 684	Did you read the FAQs? IIRC it should take 30-45 min to totally disassemble the fork. __________________ I miss my '07 KTM 640 Adventure

11-22-2007, 06:36 PM	#4
BuckRider Beastly Adventurer Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Madison, CT Oddometer: 1,540	There's a hex bolt on bottom of lower fork tube you need to loosen. Mine was a pain, as it would just spin inside the tube, so I used a 3/4" (or maybe it was 1") piece of PVC water pipe to keep the insides from turning. I cut a length about 36 inches or something like that, take off the cap, remove the spring, and then send the pipe down the upper tube to engage and lock up the lower dampening tube. I had also taken my forks out of the triple clamps and used the above pipe to hold up the fork - essentially I inverted the fork and used one hand to push down on the lower fork tube (which is now on top) down onto the PVC pipe, while I turned the hex wrench with the other. I used the same setup to re-tighten the bolt. I took my forks apart to put in Race-Tech emulators which I highly recommend. The PVC is soft enough to not scratch the metal parts, and offers enough grab to keep the insides from spinning. Sorry I don't have any pictures. __________________ Am I really expected to put some bit of wisdom here in my signature space? Current Rides: F650GS Dakar 400 EXC

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11-22-2007, 06:31 PM	#3
sweatychef ^OP My boots got soup in em Joined: Apr 2006 Location: Fracken GPS Oddometer: 18	Thanks Tempo...that helped explain the disassembling procedure which is pretty much what I thought. The damping rod & fork spring inside the fork tube seem to be stuck and are not coming out as easily as they should. At least now I know I'm not a complete idiot!

11-23-2007, 09:15 PM	#5
Woodsrat Gone ridin' Joined: Apr 2006 Oddometer: 1,273	'Nuther way to break the bolt loose is to use an air or electric impact wrench. I leave the spring and fork cap on and break the bolt loose before I do anything else.