ok, was trying to install some aftermarket mirrors on my 13 bob, and on the master cylinder side i goofed the bolts up. when i was installing, it seemed very difficult to get the retainer piece cinched up to the bottom of the hand brake assembly, and while i was holding the mirror and cranking on the bolt, not only did i start to strip the bolt edges, but i completely twisted and ruined the mirror stem. so, i figured worse case i can just run 1 mirror, but as i was checking the threads on the inside of the retainer i noticed they are all but ruined. i have no damn clue what happened, so that leads me to two questions. first off, does anyone know what the inner thread sizes are? i was looking at the specs from the ebay page i got the mirrors from and it said the bolts were 8mm on both ends. is that the correct size, because now reflecting back, i feel like the damn bolt was slightly too big, or it was metric instead of standard. anyone know on that? also, since i all but ruined the retainer does anyone know where i might find a new one? do most hardware stores carry that sort of thing or will i have to special order that bolt? if you need a reference to the part im talking about, its on page 7-35 of the service manual and it is part #11. i'm stumped on this one, and i'm kinda irritated and i now have a turn signal hanging that i can't reattach...even without the mirror. help please....thanks in advance.

 

The turn signal fastener is 5/16". You said the mirror you bought is 8mm.

5/16" = 0.3125". 8mm = 0.3149". They are very close and easily confused, but the threads are completely different.

You can get fasteners with either size at local hardware stores.

 

thanks for the info...thats what i figured happened. i guess what irritates me at this point is that when they first shipped the mirrors, then never included the "harley posts" to connect them to my bike. i notified them, then they claimed to have sent the "harley posts" two different times, and almost three weeks later and opening a dispute with ebay i finally got the part i needed to put them on my bike. apparently, these weren't "harley" ones, or they would have been 5/16. did they use to be 8mm or something?

 

ok, a little update. none of the hardware stores around here have those fasteners, however, the one hardware store told me to just get a tapping bit and rebore the fastener for the 5/16. well, it worked and the fastener is no longer jacked up and was able to be re-used. i basically had to leave the right side mirror off and get a long 5/16" screw so i could at least hang the turn signals back, otherwise i wouldn't have been able to ride my scoot. anyway, here is my new dilemma. i ruined the other mirror, and i was thinking of ordering another set since they were fairly cheap anyway. my issue is, the company will send me another 8mm bolt that has one end that goes in the mirror stem, the other will go into that fastener i just re-bored. so what do i do? is it possible to get an 8mm bit and bore the 5/16 and turn it into an 8mm? other than that, i feel like i have to try and get a bolt with an 8mm connector on one end for the stem and a 5/16 on the other end for the fastener. i'm not a hardware store employee or anything, but i have to say that bolt doesn't exist. any thoughts or ideas on how i can accomplish this fellas? thanks in advance.