Hey hey, it's been AWHILE since I've been on this site!
Anyway, I had a set of '82 GPz750 forks apart a month or so ago, and I told myself I would remeber which way all the pieces went. Obviously not the case, as usual.
I can't remeber which side was 'up' for the plastic 'piston ring' at the top of the damper rod. I do have an inclination that it was the left picture, with the 'cutout' areas (there are 4) facing down. I assume it is an oil wiper or control ring, and it's orientation may not even be that significant. I remeber the comparable component in my 550 forks not having an obvious bias, as it was a solid ring (except for the split to intall/remove it). However, I like to do things right.
If anyone has any idea, or has seen something similar that would indicate a reason for installing it one way over the other, please let me know! Thanks.