Over the winter having my fork oil changed to a heavier blend, due to the short rebound on chieftain forks,.

 

me on my 14 Chieftain. Right fork started leaking at 7000 miles. over a year old and I had to pay for it. Replaced both while it was down. Not thrilled but what is a guy to do.

 

First thing to do with leaking fork seals is go get yourself some 35 MM film or other thin/flexible plastic. Run that down between the leg and the seal and work it around. This may dislodge any bugs, crud or dirt that could be causing the leak. Do this before you replace and you may not have to replace.

 

Yep, my 14 chieftain with 11,xxx odd miles has it's fork seals weeping , Indian says that they will pay for the seals but labor is me, not happy with them on this. how is it normal wear with this few miles??? I argued that other makes don't have this kind of wear. so I am going to go as long as I can then put them in, my dealer gave me the seals seeing Indian bought them.

 

Leaving dried up bugs on the legs will reek hell on the seals, no matter the miles.

 

The Chieftain has bug deflectors built into the fairing, that is not the problem. I too had mine replaced at 18,000. They seem to be OK now at 42K.

 

I had my leaking right fork seal replaced at 7,000 miles on my 2014 Chieftain. The dealership replaced it for free. The warranty covered everything. Are leaking seals a normal thing? I do live with potholes in NYC.

 

It is unusual to replace fork seals with low mileage. I've had bikes with 60,000 miles and never had an issue. Actually, in 48 years of riding, it's the first time I had to replace fork seals. They covered it under extended warranty ($50.00), but I have friend who had to have seals replaced, and Polaris would not cover it, stating that it is a wear item. Seems to me that it is a bad batch, or inferior quality seal.

 

Are the fork seals replaced at the 10,000-mile service? I don't have my manual handy right now. Also, I've read that since fork seals aren't covered by warranty, that we should not to have this done at 10K and to just let them go until they leak. It makes the service a bit cheaper and you're not out anything anyway.

 

Fork seals are only replaced if leaking. Not done with replacing fork oil.

 

Morning Folks,
I took Chieftain #873 in to Black Gold Indian of Odessa, Texas, for several warranty jobs at 45,000 miles. The left fork seal was leaking a little (not much). They rebuilt both fork legs, including new bushings and all seals, under warranty and only charged me for the cost of new fork oil. I was pleased and surprised by this as, at 45,000 miles, I would expect new seals to be part of regular maintenance, let alone replacing the bushings. I feel I've been treated very well at Black Gold Indian and I didn't even buy the bike there.
--- Randall

 

It happens.

Some people get too wrapped up about service. One of the reasons I became a mechanic because of how expensive it was to pay to have it done. Most bikers had to do their own work when we rodeold Harleys, because there was a need for regular adjustments on the road. We didn't go to shops all the time. We fixed and serviced ourselves.
Service is something that just needs to be done to keep your bike in good, safe, running order.

 

And there's always the guy that has that part in his garage and will put it in after a beer filled weekend,lol

 

Fork seals are only replaced if leaking. Not done with replacing fork oil.

True....Mine leaked, and replaced for free...............

 

me on my 14 Chieftain. Right fork started leaking at 7000 miles. over a year old and I had to pay for it. .

What happened to your 5yr Warranty? Others had it done!

 

That depends upon your dealer.

 

Are the fork seals replaced at the 10,000-mile service? I don't have my manual handy right now. Also, I've read that since fork seals aren't covered by warranty, that we should not to have this done at 10K and to just let them go until they leak. It makes the service a bit cheaper and you're not out anything anyway.

15,000 mile service - to change the Fork Oil - not necessarily the Fork Seals.

 

me on my 14 Chieftain. Right fork started leaking at 7000 miles. over a year old and I had to pay for it. Replaced both while it was down. Not thrilled but what is a guy to do.

You were ripped off. Warranty should have covered it. Mine were.

 

I had mine replaced at around 20,000 miles under extended warranty, however, a few months later, they would not cover it under warranty for a friend of mine. Told him that it is a "wear item". This came from Polaris, not the dealer.

 

Fork oil seals are like engine oil seals. They should not leak unless defective or damaged by outside factors.
The most common outside factor is dirt and bug guts, because the seals are constantly sliding on an exposed surface.
The occasional contaminant can get under a fork seal even if you keep your bike spotless.
The wipers above the actual oil seals are supposed to prevent this, but stuff occasionally gets past them.
Many fork seals are replaced when they aren't damaged or worn out.
The earlier post about using 35 mm photography film as a cleaner is a good tip. There is also a readily available tool called a "Seal Mate" sold in many dealerships which is similar material, You pull up the dust seal/wiper (easy to do), slip the edge of the tool between the fork tube and oil seal, and slide it around the tube and back out.

I have done this on more than a few bikes with leaky fork seals and cured the leak. Period. The Seal Mate was developed for dirt bike riders, since their forks are subject to a lot of dirt and mud. They work.

I just used my Seal Mate tool on my Chieftain with 11K miles 2 weeks ago. One tube had begun to leak a bit of oil. Not any more.
I did this on one of my exotic Italian bike when one seal started leaking at around 12K miles. That bike now has 25K miles and the seals are still original. I just changed the fork oil on that bike. I didn't replace the seals.

Decision on warranty coverage when called for depends a lot on who does the talking.... Most manufacturers will cover a leaking fork oil seal, but most seals replaced under warranty probably just needed cleaning. Good money for the tech though. Warranty doesn't cover cleaning.

 

You can also make this tool out of a plastic milk jug. I've never had a problem, but thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.


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Not a smart-ass question: Do any of you guys with fork seal problems trailer your bike? Many of the problems with seal leakage is due to the forks being overcompressed when being snugged down and then bouncing around on/in the trailer. Just wondering if this is a Chieftain-specific problem or if there's another common factor....

 

Compressing the forks does not cause the seals to leak. They are constantly being compressed as you ride down the road...even bottomed out if the bump is big enough.
The common factor is contaminant under the seal lips.

These fork oil seals are constructed exactly the same as seals on the transmission shafts, crankshafts, etc. of all engines/differentials/pumps etc. Seals that sustain very high oil pressures in some applications.

When a fork seal does need replacement it is because a seal lip has been cut, the internal circumferential spring compressing the lip has broken/failed, or the seal is just worn out (lots of miles).
Other things that can cause a seal to leak include excessive movement or deflection of the surface it is supposed to seal or damage or wear on that surface.

 

29,000 miles leaking right seal. Indian, well designed engine, transmission and frame. Lots of JC Whitney quality level parts surrounding it all.

 

Seal mate...good idea. I love this forum...learning a ton

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Mine were blown out when I took my 2014 Chieftain in for the 15k tune up. Shitty roads out here in Kalifornia.

 

No I do not own a trailer and even though I paid for the seals and labor it is water under the bridge now. Yes it would have been nice to get it repaired under warranty, in fact the dealer filed for warranty and Polaris denied it. My bike was at the dealer for 2 weeks due to all the rain we had and a 60 mile drive. They called me and told me that it was denied but discounted the bill. So dealer did the right thing and that is why I'm not upset about it, ride on. And that is why I drive the 60 miles instead of going to the dealer 13 miles away, they try to take care of the customer.

 

Just an FYI for anyone who's interested. The Seal Mate tool is manufactured by JSP Manufacturing for Motion Pro. It's sold under both company's names.

Carry on.

 

I have a left fork seal leaking on my 3 week old 550 mile Springfield. Will be calling my dealer tomorrow.

 

See if they will do both(left & right seals). Usually when one goes the other side is soon to follow.... Mine where 800 miles apart.

 

Milk jug plastic may be a little too thick !!!
35 mm film negative is preferred thickness, although I have used the corner of a business card in a pinch with good results.

 

Funny you should ask , I too am having to replace the fork seals on my 2015 scout with 32K . What is weird is that the scout has only one bushing instead of two. Is the Chieftain the same? every other fork I have ever seen has an upper and a lower but when I picked up the seal kit it only contained 1 bushing for each side . I asked them about it and they didn't have an answer. they printed a picture on the break down of the forks and sure enough only 1 bush. Odd