Almost to be expected.

The other day I was examining the fork axle caps a little closer when I noticed a hairline fracture on one of them. You can just about see it in the photos below.

Now, this really is a tiny, contained fracture that you might not even notice if it were on your bike, riding regularly. And it probably isn't a problem... but now I've seen it and I can't just ignore it. I know the proper thing to do would be to replace it and if I find new-old-stock parts I will. You see, the caps you can buy new from all the usual suppliers are newly machined from solid billet and just look...too shiny. They're excellent quality and I would recommend them to anyone, but having seen them on other OIF machines I personally find them a bit of an eye sore. So, I'll start looking for NOS replacements and see what's what.