Changing fork oil 78 GL1000

[JamesSomers]

Hey gang, I want to change the front fork oil on my 78 as per the 24 months/24,000 mile routine maintenance section of my Haynes guide, and I see that most posts on here mention replacing the seals when changing fork oil. I have no leaks that I see, do you still suggest I do so, or would you suspect that a flush would just be fine? I've got my Bel-Ray 5w oil in hand and a bit of motivation so I don't really want to wait on ordering seals. Thanks all!

[dingdong]

Just me. If not leaking I wouldn't replace. I have purchased new seals before that leaked and I had to go back with the old seals. You haven't lost anything but your time if later you have to re-do.

[JamesSomers]

Thanks, this is kind of what I figured. Don't fix it if it ain't broke mindset. Perhaps I'll find time to do the fork oil change tomorrow, providing I figure out how to do so.

[scotterichmond]

PM sent.................................

[JamesSomers]

So I have reviewed the Shop Manual and want to just clear up one thing. I do not need to remove everything if I just want to change the fork oil correct? Just a simple oil change is what I'd like to do. Let me know if this will be ok. Thanks everyone!

[scotterichmond]

drain ,flush, refill
flush is optional to some

[Fred Camper]

you can drain maybe 85 percent of the oil. If that is good enough for you, then refill. Most folks want all the oil out and dis-assembly is not that bad as long as your fork seals are good and you are careful not to damage them.

[JamesSomers]

Great, thanks again guys. Seals seem good, so I'm going to just drain and refill for now. See where that gets me.

[Fred Camper]

I would try that too. As long as the seals are good, no reason to tear it down and risk a new fork leak.