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About 4 weeks ago I bought a new Gas Gas 280 and so far I've managed a couple nice get-offs and ended up with not one but two good sized dings in the sliders. The second one is pretty bad and the seal is going to puke for sure. Is it possible to repair these? Maybe weld them up and then machine it back down or something.

Andy

Andy,

It really depends on how and where the dings were made. A glancing blow in a thick part of the lower tube may not have caused an internal bump inside the slider, which would be a problem. As your bike is new, I assume you mean the new lower tube, rather than the earlier Gas-Gas model slider. If it's the lower slider, you will need to remove the spring and slowly push the upper tube in and out to see if there is any binding (it can't have ANY sign of it) between the bushing (the Teflon coated removable collar at the end of the tube) and the internal wall. Then take the fork apart and very carefully inspect the Teflon coating on the bushing for any sign of seizure. There may be a few hi-tech suspension shops that could repair the slider if there is a problem, but it would probably be cost effective to replace it with a new one.

When you mean the seal is going to puke, it sounds like you are talking about the upper tube rather than the "slider", a term for the lower tube. For the upper tube, I agree that the super glue fix is good (clean the cut with Acetone first) and baking soda can be used as an accelerator for super glue from what I understand. Use 600 grit wet/dry on a square piece of bar stock to carefully polish the scratch in a crosshatch pattern. Run your fingernail over the cut to make sure there is no edge to cut the seal, you'll be surprised how sensitive a test this is. Ryan Young Products sells the flexible covers (made with a material like wetsuits are made from) that help protect the upper tubes. With those covers (which can take a surprisingly hard hit and still protect), you can leave off the upper wiper to further reduce "stiction".

Jon

Professional tuner and 'Trials Competition' writer Jon Stoodley has very kindly stepped up to the plate to answer your questions. If you're having problems, or need some advice just send an email to Jon. If it's something that could be useful to others, we'll post it on the site.
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