Hey guys, been awhile. Have a pretty annoying problem that I can't seem to solve on my own without putting down lots of money. So my forks have been leaking oil for about a month+ now, and a few weeks ago I attempted to try and replace the seals. Everything went well up until I had to remove the dampening rod. I managed to loosen up the bolt on the bottom, and then from there I made that special dampening rod tool which was a hassle in itself since the manual doesn't list the specific sized bolt or socket that is needed to make it and hold it still. So I tried that, and the bolt wouldn't come out, it would spin but wouldn't actually loosen up, so I'm guessing Yamaha put some of that thread lock on it.
So here's the problem: I read that the only way to remove the bolt is by drilling it out, but I don't have a drill, so I decided to take it to Hinshaws Motorcycle (only motorcycle dealer/shop near me) to see if I could have them install the seals for me, but to my surprise when I brought them there, they said it would be $200, and then they noticed that I had some "pits" in my forks, along with some decent sized scratches on each fork tube, which are $211 each if you get them from Yamaha. This is my first bike and people keep telling me that I should just do the little patch jobs that I shouldn't put much money into it seeing as how I'll be leaving for the military sometime next year.
What do you guys think I should do? Find a way to get some new fork tubes for cheap (I know about Frank's forks), or just have them install those seals and hope for the best, maybe try to sell it? Is this bike worth all that? And I even tried that sealmate thing to try and get the dirt from under it but that didn't do much. As of now the forks leak a good amount of oil simply sitting in my garage on the bike.
Any help would be appreciated
