It's very seldom that I'm impressed enough with a new tool to feel like I need to share it here, but holy moley, this little tool is a godsend. Maybe the motorcyclists here already know about this thing and I'm just that far behind the curve, but it's totally new to me.
This simple little tool is called the "Seal Mate". It is used to repair leaking fork seals on motorcycles. For those of us who have ever torn apart a set of forks just to replace leaky seals, this little guy is an answer to our prayers.
It works on the notion that fork seals really never wear out or get damaged, they just pick up pieces of grit between themselves and the sliders. I can't count how many seals I have replaced that came out looking brand new. Even more frustrating is when they start leaking again all too soon after all of that work. Well, no more - this thing will clean out that grit in less time than it has taken me to type this out.
Here it is:
Here is how you use it:
I've already used this tool on my 900 Super Sport that had a pretty bad leak on the left fork leg. I did this about a week ago. I've ridden it every day this week and it has not leaked again. Magic, I tell you, just magic...