AJS & Matchless Owners Club

Hello,

I've unscrewed the slider extension from 1 of my 2 forks (the second is still stuck on), so, with some mechanical help, I should be able to grab the slider in one hand (marked in red) and the metal inner tube in the other (marked in green) and pull them apart, correct?

The only thing that gives me pause is the metal piece that doesn't look like what I think should be an oil seal. Is there some other part that needs to be unscrewed?

Thanks for any help!

H Chris.
It can be a struggle to remove the stanchion from the slider. A puller can be devised.
Much has been written. Here's just one of several articles in the Archives:

http://archives.jampot.dk/technical/Sus ... y_1966.pdf

and browse the 'Technical Articles' here

https://www.jampot.com/article_showall. ... nical+Tips

Thanks! I'm off to wrestle with it!

That looks to be the oil seal. Puling them apart can be a pig and messy.. i have applied some heat to the aluminium stanchion and then jerked hard . There is a rebound spring to compress. Good luck.

I recommend this oldie from cbranni - which resurfaces about every 5 years and is therefore due again!
viewtopic.php?t=10328&hilit=removing+fo ... stanchions
'Going in from below' as it were.

Attacking from on high with some scaffolding tube over the upper end of the stanchion and using a typical fork puller to wind the stanchion out / slider off is good too - as explained in one link put up by Spriddler.
The 'small hydraulic jack and two sets of yokes or a dummy' route is more of an ask I reckon unless the whole front end is coming apart.

But the time-honoured 'yank me hard against the buffer spring' does usually work after a bit - sometimes with some gentle heat.

'Going in from below'
Even though you know what's coming... It always makes me jump when it all pops out!

Thank you for all the help!

I made a wooden clamp (drilled a 1 1/8" hole through a piece of 4x4, cut it into 2, then clamped it around the stanchion with c-clamps) and cut a 1 1/8" hole through a piece of scrap hardwood (put that against the slider top), and put my wife's car jack between them. It eventually worked, no bent metal! Also drained the oil from them first, no mess.

For me dismantling was quite straightforward, only made it once though. Stanchions clamped in the vice between two pieces of wood to save it from scratches, then smacked the slider dowenwards until they eventually separated. The tricky part was to fit the assembled legs into the fork bridge including outer shrouds etc. Evntually managed with the help of hose clamps, but some paint scratched and a lot of swearing. The drawbar tool made from scrapped top nuts would have been a great help I imagine.

Yes... See "Going In from Below"
Best advice I have received about these forks..
Make the special Pusher plate once, have it forever... takes only a few minutes to strip the forks then, no heat or grunting necessary, and not fighting the rebound spring.
Cheers Gray.

Will the “Going in from below” method work on 1948 forks without the damper rod? I haven’t stripped the front end yet so I don’t know if there is access front the bottom.
Cheers
Doug