Find a Distributor
Contact Us
The world of two-wheeler sport moves fast. When every split-second counts, SKF understands the importance of staying on the pace of technology and innovation just as much as our riders do.
Here you can read the latest technical news about our products for two-wheelers, and stay updated with successful riders using SKF parts on tracks and trails all around the world.
Our new Dual Compound fork seal kit, recently launched at the EICMA show in Milan, is the ground-breaking result of ten years of expert technical development.
The solution was driven by a need for a fork seal that could deliver improved contamination exclusion and optimized friction and stick-slip. Several innovations were deployed to achieve this, including:
In testing against competition, the performance of the SKF dual compound solution was clear. Water ingress was reduced by more than 40%, dynamic friction was cut in half and static friction was lowered by over 60%. Together, these results point to a fork seal kit that delivers lower contamination for the internal fork mechanism, along with a smoother ride and better suspension performance.
If you'd like to learn more about the new technology behind our Dual Compound fork seal kit, you can take a closer look here.
The innovative Dual Compound fork seal kit was launched to critical acclaim at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy on November 5th 2019.
Developed by our team of experts, the kit is made up of two completely redesigned seals that combine two new compounds with improved sealing lips. Together, they deliver improved protection against contamination, better riding comfort and more reliable suspension performance in all types of environment.
The new fork seal attracted plenty of interest from the attendees at EICMA, not only from a technical perspective, but for its styling, too. We also received positive feedback from the global distributor network for the innovation and entrepreneurial approach of this launch.
You can learn more about the new technology behind our Dual Compound fork seal kit here. And if you weren't able to visit EICMA, take a look at the short video and photos to get a flavour of the show:
The long and well established technical partnership with WP Racing just entered a new season and will hopefully result in outstanding achievements as in the past few years. Ranging from the MotoGP circus to the MXGP arena as well as AMA Supercross and Rallye Dakar - all forks produced by WP Racing are equipped with SKF fork seals.
These state of the art suspensions are used by the Factory teams of KTM and Husqvarna. Meeting the high expectations of both Factory riders and amateurs, SKF fork seals are the Ready to ride companion.
SKF has repeatedly been nominated to equip RockShox fork applications with seals that are exactly tuned to customer’s high performance requirements. The RockShox MY2020 fork 35 long travel will be fitted with a newly designed fork and cartridge seal, providing lower friction and boosting the overall performance of the front suspension system. The seals have specifically been designed to meet the tough requirements on robust sealing performance and improved friction.
Only a rider can truly understand the finer points of handling and feeling on any type of bike. Whether it’s the racing lines of cornering on a road-bike or the quick reflexes of downhill mountain biking, there’s no substitute for the actual experience.
That experience is what helps SKF develop high-performance fork seals that are used and trusted by riders all over the world. Our two-wheeler team, based in Italy, are all passionate about bikes and spend their spare time on downhill and road biking events using the products they’ve developed. So when the team are talking to riders and customers, they can fully understand what the requirements are and the difference our fork seals can make to the riding experience.
There’s a famous English saying: ‘from tiny acorns, mighty oak trees grow’. And thanks to one SKF employee, that can certainly be applied to our innovations for two-wheeled vehicles.
The story began in 2008 when one of our experts in Italy wanted to solve the noise and vibration issues he was experiencing whilst riding his motorbike. Just two years later, not only had he developed SKF fork seals for solving his issues, but he’d already started to branch out into MTBs, too.
A chance meeting with an MTB suspension specialist at the EICMA show in 2009, combined with a common relationship with the distribution partner InnTeck, led to the specialist SKF team taking their motorbike innovation into the bicycle sector.
As the team explains: “It didn’t take the suspension specialist team long to convince us to enter the MTB market. I knew we had the expertise and addressing the seal requirements of MTB manufacturers and aftermarkets with a distributor of InnTeck’s calibre and international reach onboard seemed like a good idea. Within just one year of that initial EICMA meeting, we had established our MTB seals project.”
Just over a decade on, and that initial enthusiasm has led to more than 22.5 million SKF seals being sold for cycling since supplies commenced in March 2011. Why? Because our MTB fork seal kit has been developed to provide low friction during operation and maximum ground contact to deliver the ultimate in riding feeling.
Not only are our fork seals relied upon by amateur riders, but they’re trusted by the professionals, too. More than 70% of championship cyclists now use SKF seals in their competition races, and at the Olympic Games in Rio in 2016, both the men’s and women’s cross-country MTB events were won on bikes equipped with SKF seals.
And all that because of one vibration problem on one man’s motorbike.