| Author | Message | ||
     Cygnus_x1 |
Out for a ride today, set the stand down as normal, and the bike fell over! Bolts were sheared right off  Zion Harley is a great dealer. I rode it straight there, and they sent me off on the bike of my choice. So I thought a V-Rod might be fun to try out  kinda lame for the money they want for them. | ||
| Speedstar |
That sucks! did the head of the bolt break away or what? Any damage to the bike or did you catch it in time? | ||
| Cygnus_x1 |
Yep, the head of both bolts snapped off. Just minor damage, scratched the hand guard, and rear peg. | ||
| Jackbequick |
Sounds like a glitch in the heat treatment process for the bolts. Heat treating steel requires two steps. The first step (hardening) takes it to the austenitic temp and leaves it hard (too hard) and quite brittle. The second step (tempering) is a longer heat soak at a lower temp and takes some of the hardness out leaving the bolt hard but less brittle (working strength). Plated bolts (zinc, black oxide, etc.) have the plating done after heat treating and a bolt that missed the tempering step or did not get it done right would appear the same as the ones that did. Jack | ||
| Odie |
My 12S side stand broke a few months ago. Seems to be a small problem with XB's here and there. I bought a two grade 8 bolts and fixed it myself. Works great again. | ||
| Thunderbox |
Sounds more like they were loose, which when taken up can increase inertial load on the bolts by up to 10 times (having to stop the movement of the machine). This frequently causes bolts to snap. This is not the first case of a loose kick stand bolt. Every person who has a Uly would be wise to check those bolts. This came out early on the badweb when the Uly was just out. Chances of one bike getting 2 bolts that are not heat treated is very unlikely. (not impossible) | ||
| Speedstar |
Good tip Odie. I may have to search for a couple of these bolts and switch it just to be safe. Where did you get them? | ||
| Odie |
Speedstar- got mine at Lowes. As the bolts were slowly breaking the kickstand itself actually cracked so I had to weld it also. This weekend I'll try to get a pic of what I did and post it. | ||
| Larryboy |
thunderbox nailed it. same deal on the klr footpegs,loose bolts that then snap. | ||
| Cygnus_x1 |
That coulda been it! Oh well I get to play with this! (why does it always seem more fun to ride someones elses bike around?)  | ||
| Chance |
DUDE! They sent you home with a V-Rod?! I say change your phone number and don't go back! | ||
| Cygnus_x1 |
 It sure looks pretty sitting there in my garage. (but like they say, "all show, & no go") That thing is heavy bottoms out on bumps, and every turn I drag my boots. Its fun, but hardly a replacement for bike that I can actually use! | ||
| Speedstar |
Odie - thanks for the help. I will check mine out and make sure they are still tight. Are grade 8 bolts hardened or any different than a standard bolt? Also, do you remember the thread and length? Thanks for the help. | ||
| Bomber |
grade 8 fasteners are made outa a different alloy that allows them to be hardened at a higher level (measured on the Rockwell Scale) -- standard hardware store bolts can range from grade 2 to 5 (5 being "standard) -- Grade 5s are likely OK in this application, if they never loosen, that is (smile) -- grade 8 won't cast much more, and will take a great deal more punishment -- | ||
| Jackbequick |
Speedstar - Here is a quick lesson on grades for steel bolts. The most common grades are 5 and 8. There are an awful lot of imported bolts on the market that are marked as one grade or another but will not the expected tensile strength requirements for their grade and size. I never buy bolts at places like Home Depot or Lowes except for the most ordinary and light duty use. I go to a Napa or CarQuest auto parts store and can generally find good quality grade 5 and grade 8 bolts there. If you want to see the difference, take 3/8"-16 grade 5 bolt from Home Depot and a grade 5 bolt from a auto parts store, clamp a grade 8 3/8"-16 nut in vise, put about 10 washers on the bolt and tighten it until it breaks. You can see and feel the difference. The fasteners used on the Buells are good, I'd be very careful if I replaced any fasteners to make sure that I use bolts of similar quality. Like many others I abhor the mixing of Torx and Allen head fasteners on the Buells, but I'm sure it was done to get grades and tensile strengths needed and also to get the specialty fasteners used. As an example, those case cover bolts with their special captive washers and in that grade are simply not easy to find. That bolt evolved to what it is to meet the conditions and needs of its use. I doubt that you could find anything off the shelf that would replace it as far as being as strong and sealing as well. Jack | ||
| Buelldyno_guy |
The attach bolts and the pivot bolt have both been known to fail or bend on the "ULY." We have had three so far and Buell/H-D Tech support is working on the issue. The rear attach bolt will snap and you will find the front one loose. On the bike with the pivot bolt sheared we removed the muffler and found both attach bolts loose and bent. I installed new hardware but added a washer and "Blue Locktite" as it looked to me like the fractures could have originated right at the last thread and shank. Tech support agreed to allow me to add the washers just in case the bolts were too long and had no stretch when torqued. ... They were loose on my "ULY" also, so it's a good thing to check now and then. ... You will all get a kick out of this the H-D Tech Support guy asked if I stepped on the LH peg to get on the bike? I answered "I am only 5'8" how else does one get on" He replied, "Well their not designed for that." I asked if he had ever even seen or tried to mount one, he had no answer. ... Have a Great Weekend. ... Terry | ||
| Chance |
Maybe it's not the bike that's heavy, but you. It's not a dual sport like your Uly, ya know...although, I bet you could do some nice sideways stuff in the dirt! | ||
| Cygnus_x1 |
I tried the dirt, and it kept bottoming out in the little pebbles. So glad to get the Uly back today! | ||
| Speedstar |
Thanks for the info on the bolts guys. I learned something new today. I will check mine when I get it back from the dealer. It is in for ECM fault, warranty replacement. |
