So about 2 years ago I had the seals on my front forks replaced as they started leaking, I figured 8 years for a set of seals isn't too shabby. Just over a year later the left fork started leaking again (just me or is it ALWAYS the left fork?), I tried cleaning out the seals which helped for a while (several months) before the left fork leaked again. After another year or so of this both forks are leaking, sometimes quite a bit so I stopped by a repair shop to get their 2 cents.

The inner fork tubes are scratched up to the point that the mechanic says that he would not recommend replacing the seals as they will just fail quickly again. They recommended that I check out race tech's replacement tubes and that I also replace the bushings. I'm waiting to hear back from race tech but I'm starting to wonder how much it will end up costing to repair my current forks versus what replacements are.

So... does anyone have recommendations for reasonably priced replacement forks for a 2008 zx14?

I found that only OEM seals last all those aftermarket seals are junk on OEM fork tubes !!!

Keep an eye on Ebay for used Ohlins. Pay half or don't buy. I'd probably just just buy new Ohlins'. Couple thousand but what ya gonna do? The stockers are worn out.

I have had crappy luck with aftermarket seals myself. Only OEM now.

Well, if the inner tubes are damaged it wouldn't matter what brand of seals that were used as the tubes will damage the seals which will cause them to leak.

So far I'm coming up with a couple of different options here:
1. Pickup used OEM forks off of ebay
2. Buy replacement inner tubes (so far I can only find a set from China off ebay as no one else seems to sell them)
3. Buy aftermarket forks

The problem with #1 is that its hard to tell the condition of the used forks, am I just throwing my money out the window? I've got stiffer springs in my current forks so even if the forks off ebay aren't leaking I'd still get new seals put in as I would swap the springs over (and at that point its almost no expense to put new seals in.

Option #2 is still pretty expensive, probably more than #1 however at least I know the condition of my current forks but then there's the question about how good are Chinese ebay tubes?

Option #3, I'd LOVE to pickup a set of Ohlins forks for the bike... if they cost around $1000, but at $3000 CDN to be quite frank, I could sell my bike as is and between the #3k for the forks and the proceeds from the sale of my bike I could almost buy a new motorcycle for the same price, which is ridiculous!

option #4?

Fork Tube Rechroming & Reconditioning

REFURBISHING AND RE-CHROMING OF MOTORBIKE FORKS

* Last updated by: piken on 6/8/2018 @ 9:01 AM *

piken, that's a great option thanks! The scratches, in my opinion, aren't that bad as I can't feel them with my finger but only when I run my nail across the fork you can tell where the scratches are.

However, Option 5 occurred to me this morning, Cory with 402 bike used to part out rolling zx14 frames, sure enough he has 2 sets of forks $525 shipped is a reasonable price for a set of brand new OEM forks. This way I know the forks are in good condition and the only caveat is I will want to swap out my springs at some point but I'm hoping that is something I can easily do myself during the winter.

http://www.402bike.com/

I swear I don't get any kick backs from Cory... although I wish I did :D
This is I think the 3rd time I've ordered stuff from him and the previous 2 times have been a really good experience so I'm not worried about buying these.

only caveat is I will want to swap out my springs at some point but I'm hoping that is something I can easily do myself during the winter

Best time to do the springs is when you already have the forks out.

I would pick up a used OEM set off ebay or wherever, easy decision. Should be a lot available for little $s. If concerned about them put new seals on what you get used before installing on your bike...would be much easier and then you are good to go.

Is there any guides on how to swap the springs out? Does it require any special tools, can it be done easily without damaging the seals (how much of a breakdown of the forks is required)?

I got the shop to install the springs when I was getting new seals put in.

Not that hard. Just need to get the caps off and back on.

Once the caps are off you can change out the springs.

A couple of handy tools for around $40-$45 +/-

If you pull spring up and let the oil drain off before removing the
spring you can probably still use the same oil without measuring / changing

Fork spring compressor $20+/-

Moton pro fork rod tool $25

ebay - Traxxion Dynamics Fork Spring Compressor Kit

Ebay listing

Damper Rod Bleed Tool by Motion Pro

amazon