SacramentoMike
Not Safe For Work
On the way to NAFO I dropped the bike in a campground dirt road turnaround attempt in Nevada. The mirror started wobbling, though I was able to use the mirror and aux light mounted thereon to complete the ride. Today I pulled off the dash panels for the first time to see the damage. Of course the bracket holding the mirror (cast aluminum) is snapped right in two. ugh.
Looking at it, the prospect of fixing it is horrible. The mirror is mounted on a ridiculously complicated bracket that would require a LOT of disassembly. Not sure I'm up to it. I found a thread from an Aussie FJR site with the same problem, and the fellow was able to do the work himself, eventually. Very daunting. Here's a link. As he says, "To replace the cast aluminium assembly, I am going to have to dismantle the entire fairing, screen, lights, and instrument cluster. It's going to take days of work." He did do it, though.
The weak and very brittle part, believe it or not, looks like this:
Among other thoughts I have on this, one very uncomfortable one is that I think I can expect to break this part again, in the likely event of another zero-speed drop. My appreciation of the design, in this case, is limited.
So the question for the forum is this: what are the chances of making a repair by a welder while it's still mounted on the bike? It's fairly accessible, and the break is clean. I don't know welding, but I am told aluminum is weld-able. I could pull the gas tank, and shield any nearby wiring, etc. If I could find somebody who would be willing to do it this way, any thoughts about the likely outcome? Removal and replacement, either after a welding repair or with a new part, would certainly be a LOT of shop time, and I'd be damn nervous about starting on it solo. (Look through the linked post above if you don't believe me.)
The first pic shows the crack, as well as showing that the two parts fit together fairly well, if welding is a possibility.
In this one, I separated the two parts just to show the break more clearly. Guess it's 2 or 2-1/2 inches long. The piece is only about 1/4" thick. NOT likely to survive a drop unscathed.
Looking at it, the prospect of fixing it is horrible. The mirror is mounted on a ridiculously complicated bracket that would require a LOT of disassembly. Not sure I'm up to it. I found a thread from an Aussie FJR site with the same problem, and the fellow was able to do the work himself, eventually. Very daunting. Here's a link. As he says, "To replace the cast aluminium assembly, I am going to have to dismantle the entire fairing, screen, lights, and instrument cluster. It's going to take days of work." He did do it, though.
The weak and very brittle part, believe it or not, looks like this:
Among other thoughts I have on this, one very uncomfortable one is that I think I can expect to break this part again, in the likely event of another zero-speed drop. My appreciation of the design, in this case, is limited.
So the question for the forum is this: what are the chances of making a repair by a welder while it's still mounted on the bike? It's fairly accessible, and the break is clean. I don't know welding, but I am told aluminum is weld-able. I could pull the gas tank, and shield any nearby wiring, etc. If I could find somebody who would be willing to do it this way, any thoughts about the likely outcome? Removal and replacement, either after a welding repair or with a new part, would certainly be a LOT of shop time, and I'd be damn nervous about starting on it solo. (Look through the linked post above if you don't believe me.)
The first pic shows the crack, as well as showing that the two parts fit together fairly well, if welding is a possibility.
In this one, I separated the two parts just to show the break more clearly. Guess it's 2 or 2-1/2 inches long. The piece is only about 1/4" thick. NOT likely to survive a drop unscathed.