Front Link Bolt?

[Tbone]

On my way to work today and noticed the front link motor bolt fell out.

Parts listing says this is part of the center tie bar assy, bolt part # CA0015.02A8. No washer shown in the diagram. 5/16-18 Flange head. Anybody know what length? Think I might be able to find one of these. Twin Motorcycles says 5/16-18 X 1.25, so I will go with this size.

 

[Tbone]

Found a 1.25 Grade 8 and Washer
I think this might be a permanent fix?

 

[Pushr0d]

Looks good - you might (if you didn't already) put some blue lok-tite on it so it doesn't a) seize in the aluminum threads, and b) be less likely to repeat what the original bolt did.

 

[Pitcherman]

Looks like it should be fine. Depending on the conditions you ride in I would consider something with a little better corrosion resistance for the long haul, but I'm just more picky than most.

 

[34nineteen]

Looks good - you might (if you didn't already) put some blue lok-tite on it so it doesn't a) seize in the aluminum threads, and b) be less likely to repeat what the original bolt did.

If you decide to do that, be sure to install the motor side first, then the frame side.

Per the service manual:

CAUTION
When reinstalling the tie bar, first mount to engine and
then to “V” bracket in order to prevent damage to
threaded area of crankcase.

 

[Cooter]

^^^Yep.
I'd be more worried about boogered threads in the aluminum from it being loose long enough to fall out:distrust: Unless they look perfect, it's a great time for a heli-coil to reinforce them before they just pull out completely and do this again.

 

[Tbone]

Excellent info. I found myself pulling on the muffler to get the hole to line up, would have been better to do what the manual says and thanks Cooter. I have an hour commute to/from work so thought it would be best to have a bolt installed there for the ride home. Funny thing is when I got home I found the bolt laying in the driveway. Also my battery died about half-way home from work? not sure if it was a coincidence. Checked the connectors and cables from the stator to VR since they are on the same rail as the tie bar and did not see anything broken or un-plugged. Charged the battery after I got home and the bike started just fine and was charging between 13.8 and 14.6 volts. Let it set overnight and started it a couple of times with a few mile test ride to get gas, and it restarted fine. Also idled it for an extended time. Everything seems ok? It has a lion shorai battery in it and I use a shorai charger, it is a couple of years old so I am taking it back to Cyclegear to get it tested. Not sure how a lion battery behaves when it is going bad, but when the battery died on the road it dropped off pretty quickly. That would be an advantage to an AGM battery, at least you have some power to get somewhere. Shorai battery has a 5 year warranty, so hopefully I can get a new one, and help eliminate the battery as the "problem". Was reading that Shorai batteries do not have an on-board BMS so they can get out of balance in their cells, unlike anti-gravity lion batteries which have on-board BMS and keeps the battery cells balanced all the time. They recommend shorai batteries be connected to a shorai charger frequently to charge and balance it. Sorry for the ramble............something might be relevant.

 

[Cooter]

A VR can work intermittently when dying. Especially when it's cold. I would but a voltmeter on it and ride a full circuit to work with an eye on it, before condemning the battery.

 

[Tbone]

Have ECMDroid reading it between 13.8 and 14.6 volts while riding. Meter shows the same when bike is stationary.

 

[Tbone]

Well CycleGear does not have a load tester and they do not do load testing for lithium batteries? They had a small tester called a Sentry, may need to get one of these, and they check the balance of battery as one of the criteria that it needs to be replaced is > 1.5 volts. So I did not get a new battery. Also it is a LiFe battery, not sure what that matters. Fully charged it is 14.4 volts, if it drops below 12.8v, you have to use the shorai bms charger to get it recharged and balanced. He said it is possible, but Not likely, if I was messing with ECMdroid, changing settings on my IEV, reading dtc codes, etc.... leaving my key one for too long, could have dropped the voltage too low, i.e. <12.8 volts, and after leaving the bike setting could have drained the battery especially after starting the bike, too much to recover, not likely though. I think he just said that to make me feel better, and it worked, so he did a great job with that. More likely the bike stopped charging for some reason? After the BS that made me feel better, he said to check the voltage immediatley after riding with key off, the closer to 14 volts the better the charging system is performing with a good battery. Before starting the bike check the voltage again. Should know how long it takes with the bike not running, for the parasitic draw to drain the battery to 13.1volts. This would be the maximum time you can go without a Shorai charger, would be better to have one, to re-charge the battery. I have only ever put a Shorai charger on this battery. Will see how it goes and keep track of the voltage over time after riding it. Am I rambling again? hopefully will help someone else and probably should have known this info over a year ago when I switched to a lithium battery.

 

[Cooter]

More likely the bike stopped charging for some reason?

That is my guess. An intermittent VR. They will run for a LONG time without charging, so you might have never known. My 'record' upset on my Buell is an hour and a half to get 80 miles and it STILL cranked over.

Why are you so focused on the battery itself? Is it because you don't understand them? Don't worry about how it produces electricity, the volt/amp requirements of the bike are the same and are easily tested. NO battery can supply voltage it doesn't have. 3 bikes (2 Buells) in my garage run Li-Ion batteries flawlessly.

 

[Tbone]

Why are you so focused on the battery itself? Is it because you don't understand them? Don't worry about how it produces electricity, the volt/amp requirements of the bike are the same and are easily tested. NO battery can supply voltage it doesn't have. 3 bikes (2 Buells) in my garage run Li-Ion batteries flawlessly.

What brand battery do you use Cooter?
Possibly I am over analyzing/obsessing because I am a knucklehead that has a Uly with an anti-gravity, and another Uly with a shorai. I am swapping batteries between bikes and seeing how well the bikes are charging them and how well the batteries are performing.
I am actually having a good time doing this and riding one bike after the other.

 

[Cooter]

The Buell/EBR both have Shorais. The EBR sits on the Shorai tender/charger because of parasitic draw and less frequent use, but the Ss will sit for much more than a month untouched and still crank up easily.

 

[Tbone]

Do you use store mode on the Shorai charger?

 

[Cooter]

Since it's on the EBR because of it's parasitic draw when I park it in the garage 'store mode' all I have to use. Neither battery has been discharged enough to need the charge mode, but the charger will tell you. It's written on the front.

 

[Tbone]

In Store mode the battery is float charged between %60(13.13v) and %80(13.3v) of a fully charged batteryView attachment 15756.
Unfortunately I have been using the "Charge" mode only, which charges the battery to at or near %100(14.34v).
Unfortunately again, it appears Charge Mode will not float charge the battery? so once it has completly cycled through a charge the battery just gets parasitically drained while on the bike, as I experienced first hand. Or is it possibe I have a bad battery since I have drained it a few times now?
Again things I should have known a year ago, Store mode would have been better, and as written in Fine print on the front of charger using "Charge" mode after Store is best. Thanks for pointing that out Cooter, where are my magnifier glasses?
Antigravity lithium restart battery has some features I like, low voltage protection, will not allow the battery to discharge below 13.1 volts. Built-in/on-board BMS so it is balancing whenever or however it is being charged. Also the CTEK charger is fully automatic, you just connect it, and it will charge then float the battery if you leave the charger connected with out touching a button. The Shorai requires a push hold then double pump........etc.
The Shorai battery is about $80 cheaper, and the charger is about $40 cheaper than the Antigravity battery and CTEK charger. I think I like the antigravity set-up better, and the cost of Shorai better. I ended up with both because my new to me XP bike came with antigravity battery and I bought the CTEK charger that was recommended. Just like with the Shorai battery I got the recommended Shorai charger.

 

[Barrett]

Why don't you 2 LoveBirds just call each other instead of these incessant PDA's?
To use a Japanese battery from an R&D outfit in Pelosi-Land that's manufactured in Hong Kong is completely un-American.

 

[Tbone]

Your right Barrett, we should buy American. What are the brands of Lithium batteries made in America? After briefly searching it appears most lithiums are made in China.

 

[Cooter]

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapie...thium-ion-battery-production/?sh=352244737867

A couple years old but still valid.

 

[34nineteen]

The older Antigravity batteries and other lithium batteries require a special charger designed for the lithium battery. The more modern, higher end batteries often (but not always) have circuitry built into the battery to allow a regular charger to be used.

If you're the only person working on the bike and are diligent about always using the correct charger on the battery you should be fine. However, if not...