No.

You need to drop the forks out of the trees, pul the springs out and let the forks sit over a drip pan for a day or so to get all of the old oil out.

I refilled mine with Dexron ATF, feels better than the factory fork oil ever did.
-WD

WD wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:



Seems that some tubing & a vac pump would make drawing the oil out easy enough. That should get 80+%, then, a long piece of tubing attached to a blower should be able to blow the remaining oil uo the inside of the tubes. Some mopping out with non lint type rags on non marring probes, say, wooden dowells, slotted to accept rags, tied with soft brass. I bet I could empty the forks & never drop them off the triple tree & be done in way less thaN a day. But, I do have a compressor. I can make a vacuum on tubing by running a piece of 1/8th tubing thru one wall, & pointing the exit out of the larger tubing, when the air leaves, it creates a low pressure area in the tubling, creating a slight suction.

bill67 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

There is no bottom small screw like on older bikes...

barry68v10 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

Gotta get a manual, Dude...but I got pictures.

Personally, I don't take short cuts or try to save a buck with fluids.  Therefore, I wouldn't use ATF in my bike or the ones I repair.  I can just imagine what a customer would think, if I did that too.  I go by the book.

I recently changed the fork oil in my spouse's bike.  It was interesting because the factory "fish oil" that came out was a different color in each fork.  Must be different sides of the assembly line

Anyway, the book says 441 ml per fork and that you should measure it after pouring it in (75 mm from top of fork tube).  The is a special tool to do that but I used a pair of calipers, and found there wasn't much difference.  

The trick would be to just work out all the old oil as best as you can...it'll be real close if you do.  Stand the forks in an oil pan (yes, remove the wheel first) and go do something else for 15 minutes.  Good enough.  Add oil and start reassembly...

In this photo, I show the old oil.  Compare that to how the new fork oil looks...and yes, the forks do feel better.



And to round out this discussion...check your springs.  Chances are that they will be in the service limit because there is about 1/2" of tolerance (see the upper right corner?).  Make sure to install the wider spaced coils first on reassembly.

Hope that helps...now go to Amazon and get a manual

I let mine drain overnight because the oil was really contaminated. A lot of fine particulate matter in it. The more of that that came out, the longer the fork assembly will last. Mine also had what looked like manufacturing debris in the oil, some aluminum dust and a couple steel chips.

According to the lubricants rep that serviced our shop, Dexron ATF and 15 weight fork oil are the exact same thing. Fork oil just costs more. He did caution against using Type F ATF or the older Chrysler ATF, as they will dissolve the lower oil seals (incompatible rubber formula).

With both the book and the rep saying ATF is acceptable, I figured it was worth a try. Mine will be getting a springer or girder front end in the next couple years anyway. It will be interesting to see how the forks hold up with an ATF fill versus the factory fork oil. For the time being, they are working better than new.
-WD

No more leaks. I didn't change upper or lower seals, so must have had something lodged in there that came out during the fluid change. I'm not going to sweat it.
-WD

bill67 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

Clymer says that?  Cool.

It only takes a couple hours to do.  No big deal if you have a manual.

I looked at the issue of a drain screw when I did my spouse's bike.  Nothing big.  Drill bit, a 4mm tap, screw and fiber washer...

But then I didn't do it because it would need to be a complete disassembly.  Be best to wait until I need to change the slider bushings...