I was just wanting to change the oil. My seals are fine as far as I can tell. Nothing is leaking externally. Based on the look of the fork oil I removed (clean looking) my guess was that the previous owner had worked on them not that long ago, possibly right before I bought the bike.
The whole point of trying the 30 minute oil change (for me) was to keep the forks on the bike so I didn't have to battle the triple clamp bolts under up under the fairing. And because it was my first time dealing with forks myself.
I let both forks drain a long time. I did remove the cartridge and pumped out all of the old oil before reinserting it. If anything there was a small spot at the bottom of the fork near the drain hole and very light residual oil left the sidewalls of the tubes. I know these small amounts add up and will be added to the overall quantity of oil I add. I probably should have used some brake cleaner to clean it out properly, but at the time my reasoning was that I didn't feel that small amount would make a difference (as I am sure there is residual oil inside the cartridge as well). However, maybe I am wrong. My manual (1998-2001) states "Fluid Capacity 457ml plus or minus 2.5ml". I put exactly 457ml in using a syringe.
My real concern is whether or not oil is able to make its way into the cartridge if it wasn't pre-pumped in prior to the fork cap being tightened (creating some sort of air pressure issue?). I don't know enough about forks/suspension to know.