fork top circlips

[thrang]

Got bored this afternoon and decided to strip a pair of forks I've had kicking round the shed for a while. The little circlip that sit above the the top plug went down when I compressed the plug jamming against the fork tube wall... Hummmm and seized it... this has never happened to me before although I think I did read something about it in the BMW Club mag donkeys years back. Any ideas about how to free it with out resorting to the angle grinder?

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

So you are saying that the circlip is rusted (frozen) in place?

[Justin B.]

The circlip seats into a groove inside the fork tube.  I usually enlist one of the kids to hold the "plug" down a few inches and give the clip a rap with a hammer assisted screwdriver.  This has always caused it to rotate inside the tube to where I could get some pliers on it...

[thrang]

When I pushed the top plug in it took the wire clip with it jamming both about two inches down the tube. I tried heating the tube and spraying a good load of WD40 down and am hoping it might pop out on its own over night, but I'm not holding my breath as its is well and truly jammed.

[Justin B.]

Try as I suggest with the screwdriver, the clip should rotate - especially now that it's out of it's groove...  But, I suppose if you can't get at the clip at all...Maybe take a metal bar, center it on the plug, and give it a good smack with a 5 pounder...

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

I cannot imagine what has caused it to jam that far in, against that spring pressure.  If the springs are intact, you have them working on your side.  

I assume you have exhausted all of your awl possibilities?

[thrang]

Tried the screwdriver... all I've got is a wee bit (say a 1/8 inch) of the clip standing proud and the tube is not wide enough to get a pair of vice grips on it? What happened was when the plug went down against the spring it took some of the clip with it...  as I  don't know where the fork came from as I was given them I'm guessing this is probably due to rusting as the other side was pretty corroded

[thrang]

All except the grinder, from the other springs condition they are well knackered but the tubes are straight  so I don't want to cut them as a spare set of forks is not to be sniffed at

[Bob_Roller]

Any way of removing the service screw from the top and install something on the way of a slide hammer automotive dent puller in the hole and 'coax' the offending part back up?

[thrang]

I've stripped the fork from bellow, and have found a long piece of threaded bar which should fit through the oil filler hole, and am going to try winding it out in the reverse of the way you would fit a cars steering bush. Don't know if it will work but worth a try as I don't want to trash the fork leg but with the selection of bits I've got in my shed I can afford to scrap the leg if I have to, (the forks off Bimbo1 are good) so I've got a set if I need to replace the ones on the new beemer.

On the topic of Bimbo1 a mate of mine who works at the engineering department at Sunderland is going to smuggle the frame into the shop there and do what every they do to discover how bad the crack on the head stock is, and let me know if the frame can be safely repaired.

Cheers for the advice folks, and if you ever take a trundle up to the English Lake District pop into the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel in Gt Langdale and say hello. PS if you want to book in for the night we offer secure parking for bikes.

Tony

[nhmaf]

If the threaded rod pushing from the bottom doesn't do the trick, maybe you can
find yourself a spring hook at your local hardware store and go at it from the top
again ?   I am thinking of something like these:
http://www.crawfordtool.com/springhooks2.html

I used to have some of these hanging about my garage, but cannot seem to find
them at the moment..

best of luck !

[thrang]

I got it out with the threaded bar and a lot of swearing... But I ended up putting a bit of a divot in the top of the tube in the process... Ah well you can't win them all and I may be able to turn the top off the tube square but if not its no great loss.

Cheers for the advice folks.
Tony

[Bob_Roller]

If the damage is on the inside, and not in an area where an o-ring sits, I don't think it will be of too great of concern.

[thrang]

It's just a mil or so dent in the top of the tubes which I had to file back to get the plug out. I reckon two mil off the top shouldn't make any great difference to the legs (I'll have to turn the other one to match) and should be well above the circlip grove.