I have fixed one with wire on the side of the road.

 

I had to do some roadside "engineering" on my 03 Road King about 75 miles into the middle of no where. If a fella wanted to upgrade to the heim joints what would he need to do so? I have an 09 Road King now with the stock shifter linkage. I want to change to the heim joints but don't know what sizes or anything like that.

 

Ball end shift rods are great but if you occasionally peal back the rubber boot and add a drop of oil, you won't have the failure.. I have an 02 RKC with over 70K on it and it's still using the original rod. Will probably replace it with SS, as the plating is looking kinda dingy.

Another thing to check is the shift arm on the tranny and shift levers. Make sure they are tight..

 

The heim joints are female and are 5/16"-24. You can buy one right hand thread and one left but most folks just go with 2 right hand threads. You can also use your stock rod to mount the new joints or buy a new chrome one.
Harley sells an already made up one for about 80.00. Or you can order/buy the heim joints for various places and the rod also.


https://www.mcmaster.com/#rod-end-bearings/=17v6v0r

 

A friends SE Deuce came standard with tie rod ends. His bike has over 100k with the originals.

http://partsfinder.onlinemicrofiche....TER%20ASSEMBLY

 

I installed a heim joint linkage the day after I bought my bike. Compared to stock, it is more robust and provides firmer feel at the lever.

 

I replaced mine, too. (shown here) I kept the OEM joints and put 'em in my saddlebag for the day when I come across some guy out on the road who has had his fall off.

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