Hey all, wondering if anyone can help with rear fender removal. I have an 09. Does anyone know what size the torx bolts are? Also, are there rivets I have to remove? I need to get the fender off to have it baked and power-coated. Please help. Thanks all!

 

The bolts are T45 you also need a 1/2" socket/wrench to remove the rear lights.

 

Thanks. Upon further research, this looks to be more involved than I'd imagined. I was hoping it was just the 4 bolts plus one under the seat, but this doesn't appear to be the case. If I can figure out how to tackle this (I have VERY little free time in my life), I intend to make a video. Thanks for the info you gave me. I love the sissy bar and plate relocation on your 48. I've been planning something similar. Thanks again!!

 

There are plastic inserts on the sides of the rear fender that are pop rivited in place, with metal washers on the plastic side to help prevent pull outs of the rivits. The left side houses the swing out license plate & light and side reflector, and the right side just the reflector. On the inside of each plastic piece are hold down tabs and troughs that keep your rear light wiring out of contact with the rotating rear tire. There is also a mud guard that is rivited to the front of the rear fender to help keep debris and water from slinging onto the rear of the motor/starter/etc.

You could paint the fender without removing these plastic pieces but I think it best to remove them and reassemble everything after painting.

Some of the fasteners are tough to get to but one thing you have going for you is the year Sporty you have. The '09's have the ECM mounted in the rear fender, so you can simply take off the seat and carefully remove the ECM from it's plastic cradle, then remove the cradle and have easy access through the fender to remove the front [side] fender bolts and front attachment bolt.

The rear lighting might have you scratching your head. The lights are held on by what amounts to a hollow bolt [pedestal] with threads; this hollow "allthread" fastener screws into the fixture, then the opposite end goes through the frame extension, the fender, and the fender brace [which connects both sides together]. The inside nut can be hard to get to but with patience it can be done. It might even be so tight as to cause the hollow bolt to unscrew from the fixture itself, in which case everything will come apart in your hands.

I would suggest disconnecting the lighting at the harness under the seat to allow yourself some slack in the wiring as you mess with it, as there is NO SLACK in the wiring as it passes from the light fixture, through the frame extensions, through the fender and ultimately along the inside of the fender insert on it's way to the harness connector under the seat. You could very easily stretch, pull out, or cut the wires if you're not careful so take the extra time to unhook the harness connector to save yourself any hassles down the road.

Just so you know, the Users Manual suggests removing the rear wheel entirely for rear fender removal, if that's any indication of the intricacy that may be encountered while doing the job.

I replaced the rear fender on my '09 Iron without removing the rear wheel, but it was tedious at best. Putting the bike up on a center lift helps a little bit by causing the rear wheel to sag some, affording you more hand room under there. And make sure when reinstalling the fender that the wiring is securely in place, or else you will be doing wiring repair in that area!

Have fun.

=8^)

 

I took mine off my '08 in about ten minutes. Didn't use a jack, didn't remove the rear wheel. Everyone said it would be impossible but it isn't. I've done it twice now. Getting to some of the inside nuts through the ECU hole makes it easier. But I also did my Street Bob the same way in the same amount of time and it doesn't have a fender ECU. This is actually pretty simple, some of the stuff in there may make it seem more confusing but upon further inspection, it is not.

 

UGH!!! Thanks folks.