Suspension Fork Seal Driver (Previous Generation)

A suspension fork's dust seal — the wiper that keeps grit off the stanchion and oil inside the lower leg — only does its job if it sits square in its bore. Push one in by hand, or tap it with the wrong tool, and it goes in cocked: it binds the stanchion and weeps oil past the lip. This is the previous-generation Unior 1702 fork seal driver — the reinforced-plastic tool that seats the seal straight, using the fork's own bushing as a guide. It still does that core job well, and it's now on clearance as we move to the current model.

How the two-step seal driver works

The 1702 is a two-step driver moulded from reinforced plastic (composite), not metal — and the plastic is deliberate. It won't nick the new seal it's pushing or mark the aluminium lower-leg housing it registers against, the way a steel socket or a screwdriver can. The tool has two ends doing two jobs: an open working nose the dust seal slides onto and that drops over the fork stanchion, stepping up to a solid, oversized flat top you strike with a mallet.

Set the driver into the top of the lower leg with the seal on its nose. The fork's bushing guides the driver so the seal enters square, not cocked. Tap the flat top with a soft (plastic or rubber) mallet, working around it evenly, until the seal sits flush with the top of the lower leg — and no further. There's no built-in depth stop, so drive the seal home but stop at flush rather than sinking it too deep. A driver matched to your stanchion does this cleanly, where an improvised socket or screwdriver tends to cock the seal or nick its lip.

Sizing — the previous-generation 5-size range (incl. the combined 35-36 mm)

Fit is by stanchion diameter: order the driver that matches the number stamped on your fork's stanchion (not the seal's inner diameter). The previous-generation 1702 covers five sizes — 30, 32, 34, a combined 35-36, and 40 mm — which spans a wide range of Fox, RockShox and other modern forks. Each driver is cut to a single stanchion size, so a 34 mm driver won't fit a 36 mm fork; buy the size for each fork you run. On this generation the size is printed on the body in white.

The 35-36 mm driver is a previous-generation size that covers both stanchions with one tool. The current model splits those into separate 35 and 36 mm drivers and adds 37 and 38 mm, so if you need one of those exact sizes, that's the version to buy.

Previous vs current generation

This is the previous generation of the 1702. Unior has since updated the tool: the current Suspension Fork Seal Driver laser-etches the size so it stays legible for years, is optimised for the flangeless dust seals common on newer forks, and comes in eight discrete sizes (30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38 and 40 mm). If you want the latest version — or a size this range doesn't cover — buy the current model. If your fork is one of the five sizes here, this previous-generation driver seats your dust seal square just the same, at a clearance price while the last of the old stock lasts.

Both generations are manufactured by Unior d.d. in Zreče, Slovenia. New to lower-leg service? Our guide to servicing your fork's lower legs walks through where the seal driver fits in the job.

FAQ

Is this the current model? No — this is the previous generation of the Unior 1702 fork seal driver. The current model is laser-etched, optimised for flangeless dust seals, and comes in eight sizes; you can find it as the current Suspension Fork Seal Driver at /products/suspension-fork-seal-driver-1702. Buy this previous-generation driver if your fork is one of its five sizes and you want the clearance price.

What changed in the new version? Three things. The current 1702 laser-etches the size marking, so it stays legible for years where this generation's size is printed. It is optimised for the flangeless dust seals common on newer forks. And it splits the ladder into eight discrete sizes — separating the combined 35-36 mm into its own 35 and 36 mm drivers and adding 37 and 38 mm. The core job, seating a dust seal square off the fork's bushing, is the same on both.

Which sizes does the previous generation cover? Five stanchion sizes: 30, 32, 34, a combined 35-36, and 40 mm. Match the number stamped on your fork's stanchion, not the seal's inner diameter. Each driver fits only that one stanchion size. If you need a separate 35 or 36 mm, or a 37 or 38 mm, those sizes are on the current model rather than this previous generation.

Will it fit flangeless seals? It seats a standard fork dust seal square off the fork's bushing and handles typical flanged seals cleanly. The redesigned flangeless optimisation is the headline upgrade on the current 1702, so if you specifically run flangeless seals on a newer fork, the current model is the surer choice. For most forks that take one of these five previous-generation sizes, this driver installs the seal without trouble — tap it home with a soft mallet and stop when the seal sits flush.