Front foot shift lever loose - fell down

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#11

10-13-2013 | 09:19 AM

TwoBlue02

Thread Starter

Road Captain

Joined: Jun 2012

Posts: 674

Likes: 57

From: Waxhaw NC

I am the OP. This turned out be a very easy fix. New shaft was $21.00. Parts guys gave a good tip which was to leave one of the levers on as a way to pull the shaft out rather than tapping from behind.

Just remember the order of which lever goes on first, as well as the proper angles.

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#12

10-13-2013 | 10:09 AM

o5ultra

Club Member

Joined: Mar 2008

Posts: 188

Likes: 0

From: illinois

it happened to me replaced the bolt with a shoulder bolt so the threads and the spline won't match and slide of from vibration also had the lever on the trans come off did the same thing have been an automotive mech for years and use the same kind of set up on steering shafts which us a pinch bolt also that is shouldered so far it fixed problem the old bolts were tight had to use a vise to loosen bolt total cost for repair was about 5.00

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#13

10-13-2013 | 10:15 AM

OwnerOfHarriet

Road Master

Joined: May 2008

Posts: 1,178

Likes: 5

From: Central Calif

yep had it happen -- seems to me on mine they bolt wasn't tight enough and the splines just wore out. I replaced the shaft and both stock shift levers -- made sure they were tight and haven't had a problem in 80,000 miles

but I do keep it checked -- remember T-klock

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#14

10-13-2013 | 10:34 AM

Uncle Larry

Seasoned HDF Member

Joined: Jan 2011

Posts: 149,392

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From: Southeast Michigan 15 Minutes East Of Hell

Quote:

Originally Posted by btsom

My toe and heel levers were loose from the factory, as was the arm on the transmission. The factory seems to use some sort of lock tite which makes tightening the bolts difficult, perhaps fooling some that they are tight. If you never have, check front and back levers for tightness before this happens to you. If PROPERLY tightened, the factory levers will go the life of the vehicle. The entire front lever/shaft assembly can be serviced or replaced without having to remove any of the primary case. Some people have removed the front shaft and drilled a hole in the shaft support tube and installed a grease zerk. Years ago, the factory put zerks there.

The shift rod ball joints are notorious for failing somewhere around the 30,000 mile mark. Numerous "war stories" have been written about coming home from a trip with a cable tie holding things together. Either do a pro-active ball joint replacement or change to heim joint rod ends. My parts guy found the heim joints and the different mounting bolts and spacers needed to make them work. Apparently the heim ends came from the factory on one model or there was a kit he knew about. Sorry I don't have the parts list any longer or I'd post it.

"If PROPERLY tightened, the factory levers will go the life of the vehicle. " ... While it would be nice to believe this it isn't true. There was a design change to address this issue ... It was a common problem on the older scooters especially ... I've ran into several riders who've had the same issue on O.E.M installed levers ... I remember on my 1992 FLHTCU replacing the original one then some time later doing it again ... The last replacement ( from H.D. ) had a bigger boss for the shifter shaft to locate in and a larger diameter pinch bolt.

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#15

10-13-2013 | 10:42 AM

harleyflyboy

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Joined: Aug 2008

Posts: 1,807

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From: TEXAS

Blue Locktite.

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#16

10-13-2013 | 03:57 PM

motolocopat

Road Captain

Joined: Mar 2009

Posts: 689

Likes: 5

From: Glen Rose TX

At some point don't we have to assume responsibility for performing basic maintenance tasks.... like tightening up shifters occassionally??

I think I have had to do this on every motorcycle I've owned for 40 years now

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