Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Jun. 15th, 2007 02:26 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
grindmonkehThe rear brake light on the bike has been stuck on, and the service guy I talked to said that I'd probably have to rebuild the master cylinder to get the brake lever to seat properly on the switch that turns it off. Instead of paying them $60/hour to do it (for what's likely a 2 hour job), I opted to do it myself and borrowed a service manual from my co-worker Virgil who is also motorbike monkey. So, I've been poring through the procedures and exploded diagrams for the last hour and a half making notes of the parts and tools that I'll likely need for the job when I took a break and did a google search for recalls on the year and model of the bike...
Harley-Davidson Model:
Sportster 1200R Recall Date:
06/02/2006
Potential Number of Units Affected: 9506
Manufactured:
Defect Summary:
On certain motorcycles, the front master brake cylinder assembly had been built with inadequate lubrication on the secondary cup. This could cause the sliding resistance of the piston to be excessive, which in turn could cause the return of the piston to be slow upon release of the brake.
Consequence Summary:
The piston may not return completely. If this happens, the rear brake light could remain illuminated which could cause a crash or injuries.
Corrective Summary:
Dealers will rebuild the master cylinder.
So I have that resolved as soon as I can get an appointment instead of a crash course in braking systems. In the meantime it's a minor nuisance as I have to use a finger to keep the brake lever pressed all the way forward to keep the brake light off. I know that this is probably even more exciting to read about than it is to hear me babble about. A couple of guys at work really like to babble with me, but I'll bet to everyone else it's like listening to the people who talk excessively about their children or fucking Shar Pei named Skeeter.
Now this is something that was not only missed by the techs during the 1000 mile service/inspection that was just done by the dealer, but the service rep was also aware of the recall at that time. He mentioned it and when I asked for specifics he said, "there's a recall but I wouldn't mess with it unless I was really bored on a rainy day, and we don't have the parts to fix it anyhow." And as if this wasn't a monumental indicator, at the same time they performed the 1000 mile service/inspection they had to replace part of my rear brake light because it was BURNED OUT. The service manager was considerably humiliated and pissed at the same time when I recounted this for him. He said that there was no way a bike with a failing braking system should have gone out the door, and that they have the parts to perform the recall maintenance readily available. He booked me an appointment asap to get the master cylinder fixed, and upon my request they refunded me a lot of labor.
I think I'm going to start servicing my bike myself.
Harley-Davidson Model:
Sportster 1200R Recall Date:
06/02/2006
Potential Number of Units Affected: 9506
Manufactured:
Defect Summary:
On certain motorcycles, the front master brake cylinder assembly had been built with inadequate lubrication on the secondary cup. This could cause the sliding resistance of the piston to be excessive, which in turn could cause the return of the piston to be slow upon release of the brake.
Consequence Summary:
The piston may not return completely. If this happens, the rear brake light could remain illuminated which could cause a crash or injuries.
Corrective Summary:
Dealers will rebuild the master cylinder.
So I have that resolved as soon as I can get an appointment instead of a crash course in braking systems. In the meantime it's a minor nuisance as I have to use a finger to keep the brake lever pressed all the way forward to keep the brake light off. I know that this is probably even more exciting to read about than it is to hear me babble about. A couple of guys at work really like to babble with me, but I'll bet to everyone else it's like listening to the people who talk excessively about their children or fucking Shar Pei named Skeeter.
Now this is something that was not only missed by the techs during the 1000 mile service/inspection that was just done by the dealer, but the service rep was also aware of the recall at that time. He mentioned it and when I asked for specifics he said, "there's a recall but I wouldn't mess with it unless I was really bored on a rainy day, and we don't have the parts to fix it anyhow." And as if this wasn't a monumental indicator, at the same time they performed the 1000 mile service/inspection they had to replace part of my rear brake light because it was BURNED OUT. The service manager was considerably humiliated and pissed at the same time when I recounted this for him. He said that there was no way a bike with a failing braking system should have gone out the door, and that they have the parts to perform the recall maintenance readily available. He booked me an appointment asap to get the master cylinder fixed, and upon my request they refunded me a lot of labor.
I think I'm going to start servicing my bike myself.