Problems shifting - Lube shifter and brake pivot

[trikepilot]

New twist on an old problem so to speak.... I was doing some last minute pre-hab work on Fancy for the TAT and decided that I might as well grease the shift pivot bolt even though I had just done it at 800 miles ago during an oil change. At that oil change, I noticed that the pivot bolt was not easy to get out of the hole on the shifter to clean and lube it. But I managed to complete the task as I have done dozens of times before.

Now yesterday... I could not get the bolt out of the shift lever. I even took the whole thing off the bikeand put it in my vise and tried to "persuade" it with my rubber dead-blow hammer. Not a chance - it did not budge no matter how hard I hit it. I was leery of trying the regular steel-headed hammer as I did not want to fubar the threads and be without a shifter the weekend before a 5000 mi offroad ride.

Interestingly... once I had attempted to drive the bolt out with the deadblow, the bolt would no longer turn in the shaft until I but the allen socket back in and tapped in back in. Then it would pivot without issue. Worried that I would do more damage and be left with no shifter, I put it all back together and decided to reassess in the AM. As I threaded the bolt back in and wound it tight, there was an obvious "eccentric wobble" that confirms I have bent that bolt. I musta really wanted that downshift?!!

So this morning I called the dealer here and the dealer where I am starting the TAT journey and, of course, neither had the parts in stock. So I ordered them online and had them shipped to WNC where I will layover for a few days after the NC leg. I am gonna replace the shifter and the bolt at that time and then pound out the old bolt and carry the old shifter as a spare since the OEM shifter does not have a folding tip and might get damaged "when" I drop the pig.

Looks like I will rely on luck and some periodic WD40 application to get me thru the 760'ish miles of the NC TAT.

 

[Cycledude]

Mine seemed to be working fine but I took it apart to grease today, the only bolt I monkeyed with was the Allen head bolt that goes through the shifter, man it unscrewed very hard all the way and had me worried that I might be heading for big trouble ! But after it was out it screwed in again just fine, I just used some plain old farm grease from my grease gun. There wasn't much grease left in the shifter pivot after 28,000 miles but i guess it was enough for it to work fine, since it's so easy to do I will probably regrease it again next year.

 

[Juan]

Just taken apart the shifter pivot for greasing (first time). No grease at all after 28,000 km.

I cannot find anything in the Service Manual that indicates thread lock for the pivot bolt. I'm wondering if there was thread lock before, as the bolt was pretty much hard to unscrew all the way out.

Should I use thread lock?

 

[hogmolly]

I would use blue thread lock. I did so on my shifter pivot. i didn't have a service manual when I did my shifter pivot but I think it is good operating procedure. Both BMW and Harley use thread lock on their shifter assemblies.

 

[tomatocity]

If I remember correctly 'thread lock' is already on the pivot bolt. On my 2012 I added a dab, on my 2015 I did not. No problems.

 

[outdoorsntn]

Just finished lubing both the shifter and brake pivot bolts. Shifter bolt was dry but brake pivot bolt grooves only had a little residue of lubricant remaining. Oh Golly Miss Molly (sometimes I crack myself up), what a difference the Moly Paste made on improving shifting. Bike is a 2013, had 6K miles when I got it a year ago, has 10K miles now, and this is the first time these bolts have been lubed since new. Piece of cake job and makes a huge difference for those who are wondering "Hmmmm, should I take the time to do this?" Pic of dry shifter bolt before cleaning it and the Moly I picked up at the local Yammy dealer. Appreciate all the tips and motivation on this topic. And the service manual I have for this bike that I keep meaning to read more, yeah, I'm reading it more.

 

[Checkswrecks]

::008::

 

[mrpete64]

grease fitting "close up" photos

Since I am blind in one eye and can't see out of the other could someone take some "close up" photos of the grease fitting that is described in this post?
I would appreciate it very much. I assume that I would just go to a car parts place and ask for a grease fitting. What size do I ask for?
Thanks for you help.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Re: grease fitting "close up" photos

Since I am blind in one eye and can't see out of the other could someone take some "close up" photos of the grease fitting that is described in this post?
I would appreciate it very much. I assume that I would just go to a car parts place and ask for a grease fitting. What size do I ask for?
Thanks for you help.

Photo from AVC8130 shows it. You will need to drill and tap threads into the shifter.

 

[snakebitten]

Wicked foot-pegs!

Those are TBDBITW foot-pegs.

 

[mrpete64]

Thanks!

 

[cavenger]

Been trying to remove the shifter bolt with a 6 MM Allen key, no luck. Just sprayed some liquid wrench on it. That thing is in there tight and I don't want to strip it. Any other advice?

 

[jbrown]

Mine was secured with a locking compound like loctite. So try undoing it when the motor's hot, or add a little heat with a heat gun or propane torch (at your own risk!).

 

[cavenger]

This does not seem right. I get almost zero traction with a 6 mm. There's a nub inside and it doesn't go deep inside. Not sure if you can see it.

Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

 

[OldRider]

Double up on it. Use the allen wrench along with a pair of channel locks on the outside edge.

 

[limey]

Try heat then give it a wack with a hammer and a punch .

 

[cavenger]

Guys I have tried everything with this thing. I am convinced the bolt is stripped. ARGGGHHH! I cannot believe I stripped this bolt. This looked so easy. It is lefty loosey, right? Knowing that this thing is stripped and the threads are torn to hell. Do you guys have any advice? Should I go buy some larger Star sockets and tap one in and see if that works? I know this is a sticky but fair warning to others that this bolt can be stripped by an allen tool.

 

[limey]

Guys I have tried everything with this thing. I am convinced the bolt is stripped. ARGGGHHH! I cannot believe I stripped this bolt. This looked so easy. It is lefty loosey, right? Knowing that this thing is stripped and the threads are torn to hell. Do you guys have any advice? Should I go buy some larger Star sockets and tap one in and see if that works? I know this is a sticky but fair warning to others that this bolt can be stripped by an allen tool.

Yes anticlockwise to loosen. Is this the first time you have tried to remove it? If so I don't think the threads will be striped. I would leave it and go order a new one. Then drill out the head remove the linkage then try it with a small pipe wrench or vice grips with heat. Give it a go with a chisel.

 

[dell835]

Probably just boogered up the Allen Head - The threads are probably fine.

 

[cavenger]

Probably just boogered up the Allen Head - The threads are probably fine.

Yes, you are right, the Allen head is not grabbing. Sorry that I worded that wrong. Still not exactly sure the best thing I should try. Drilling scars the crap out of me.