scale

Ive got an old mtn bike with a long travel older rock shox judy and it is leaking at bottom right stantion. There is an allen head screw in the bottom of each leg. The right one has has a whole all the way through it and this appears to be where it is slowing dripping from. The other legs screw is solid. WHy would one be hollow and the other solid? Any good way to stop the leak? heck i dont want to plug the hole if it is a breather or somthing.

Wordbiker

It's most likely where your damping adjuster knob once resided.

If it's the right leg leaking, you probably have a damping cartridge leak and needs to be rebuilt internally. Have you kept up with the prescribed maintenance? Without specific information like the year of the fork or a picture so it can be identified...I can't offer much more help.

scale

the damping adjusters are on the top of the forks..not the bottom.

this is the little allen head bolt that goes up into the bottom near the quick release.

Wordbiker

Compression and rebound adjustments are both on the top of the fork?

I'm curious what year that fork is. In 2001 the Judy had a rebound adjuster under the right leg. Typically this knob has a small hex shaft that goes inside that hole and snaps on over the bolt. It also had a tendency to fall off. Again, a year for the fork, a picture or even a color would allow me to provide more accurate information.

Also, the lower fork section is the slider, the upper is the stanchion. Here's a helpful link.

scale

im guessing it is mid to late 90s. THe color is canary yellow.

Wordbiker

Which leg is the hollow bolt in?

scale

i believe it is the right leg. I have a small spot of oil on the garage floor under it ....

Wordbiker

Well, regardless of whether the hole is for adjustment or not, that's the damper leg. When disc brakes came on the scene, the damping leg was moved to the right to avoid braking heat from effecting the damping oil viscosity.

The sad bit of news is you're probably SOL for service parts. Fork manufacturers typically only support a product for 5 years...or until the service parts run out. You could call hippietech and see if they can do anything.

scale

i havent been on the bike but maybe once or twice per season for the last couple years so i know it didn wear out from use It probably wore out from lack of use. I cant figure what could be leaking in the fork. Ill give them a try.

Wordbiker

That's probably an accurate assessment.

Seals get old, dry out and crack after a few seasons. If the fork has seen light use and is in generally good shape, you may be able to find O-rings to fit it. It's the other specialty damper parts that you'd have trouble finding. You also may have trouble finding a service manual for it. RockShox site only goes back to 2001, but if you check some of the newer manuals out and it seems like something you can take on...go for it. Service generally consists of cleaning, then replacing seals and fluid.

cobba

Rock Shox Manuals: https://manualer.happymtb.org/rock%20shox/

bikinfool

Seriously that fork is ancient history, was not a great fork to begin with. Upgrade or frustrate yourself...

Wordbiker

Nice link cobba.

Dhorn33

I picked up a 95 Stumpjumper a couple years ago and it has an older Rock Shox Judy FSX - which should be the same fork you have but with carbon fiber lower legs. The internal were all shot but I found a set of Englund Total Air Cartridges online and I couldn't be happier. The air cartridges replace the elastomer stacks and the damper unit with air cartridges like some of the newer shocks use. They are super light, work well and were inexpensive. This fork is super lightweight - and it works good enough for me to save the hundreds of dollars on a new one! Do a search and check it out.

bassplayinbiker

The oil is most likely coming from the fork lowers NOT the damping cartridge. Without pictures I would assume its the Crush washer (rubber washer that goes between bolt head and fork lower) that has gone bad. The odds of it being an internal washer which has NOT been exposed to outside elements or sunlight are extremely thin.

Crush washers are a pretty easily attained item, your LBS should either have them or be able to get them.