Posts
2782
Joined
11/17/2016
Location
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
US
Edited Date/Time
5/18/2026 9:56am
I've thought about this for years and was hoping you guys who do Suspension more than I do could chime in. I don't work on suspension a lot but recently friends of mine have been having me replace their fork seals. The WP Xact forks are so nice and easy to work on.
Dumb question but when you're replacing fork seals on a bike with spring forks that doesn't have a lot of hours, do you typically service the inner cartridge also even if it doesn't need it or just set it aside?
I guess my question is:
Is it a good practice to only service the outer tube if someone is paying you to do the work if they only asked for seals? Or should you service the whole thing for them every time?
Some carts are a bitch to service, changing seals and bushings... notably the Showa.
For sure change the oil, but unless they are leaking or show signs of wear...or some problem an oil change is it.
Now, if they have a lot of hours or used by a top pro, checking the shims, seals, orings etc at least on the base assembly and free piston.
Yeah I agree. Bleeding the carts are just so tedious to me. If it doesn't have a ton of hours and is only being serviced because of a leaking seal, doesn't seem worth it to me.
I've always wondered if it's just expected when taking it apart that you should service the cart also. But I don't think it hurts to only do the seals and outer oil.
Some customers want price and others want quality.
That cart holds the midvalve that has a huge effect on fork performance through a relative small volume of oil.
I wouldn't skip that step on my own forks ... typically I care about my customer's stuff better than mine and my advice reflects that.
But I get it; some shops don't mind cutting corners and some customers are none the wiser.
I find WP and KYB (majority) of carts easy to bleed. Perhaps it's time to revisit the procedure you're using?
Yeah I get you. Any tips on bleeding the inner cartridge on spring forks? Specially the Showas that have come on Hondas and KX since 2017/2019. I just follow the service manual and it seems to work fine. As long as the rod rebounds fully, does that mean it's bled properly?
Post a reply to: Spring and cartridge fork question