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Spannering Your Own Bike...

Discussion in 'Mechanical' started by Roadwart, May 19, 2014.

  1. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    ... is not for me.

    After its service they said the fan wasn`t cutting off once the temp had dropped again & said it was a symptom of blocked airways between the radiator fins & its just needed a wash with a soapy sponge so I decided to have a go tonight.

    Had to remove both side fairings (10 bolts apiece, 1 of which was hidden behind a rubber flap), both halves of the belly pan (4 bolts & a latch each), the inner fairing surround, the plastic radiator mesh & a central guard (which I assume is designed to cut down the amount of crud thrown up by the front wheel & doesn`t!) just to get to the radiator! Radiator washed with soapy water & rinsed with a garden hose as per the dealer instructions, dried it off & started the reassemble. All went well until a captive nut clip

    captive clip.jpg

    fell off & I noticed it was slightly bent, stopping the bolt reseating correctly. Over an hour I struggled with this one bloody clip which turned an hours job into a 2.5 hour ordeal!


    Things I learnt from tonight foray under my bike

    • These clips are the spawn of Satan as once bent they are pigs to get back into the correct shape.
    • The bits of the fairings you don`t see are surprisingly sharp!
    • Captive nut clips should all be consigned to "Room 101"
    • A centre stand, although better than a sidestand is no match for a bike lift
    • I hate captive nut clips!
    • The fan only cools the bottom half of the radiator (The bit that gets all the road grime in it!)
    • Did I mention my loathing for captive nut clips?
    How some of you guys can do this sort of thing "For fun" is beyond me. I`m not knocking anyone but I can think of MANY more fun ways to spend 2.5 hours of my time. It ALMOST makes the cost of replacing the rad every so often worth it.
     
    Last edited: May 19, 2014
    deano81 likes this.
  2. deano81

    deano81 Secret prototype +

    Messages:
    1,348
    I wouldn't say I enjoy it, but I sure as hell enjoy spending the money I saved not paying some tard I mean mechanic to do something pretty easy :thumbsup:... and your doing it wrong anyway, take a leaf out of toms book and replace all those silly fasteners with duct tape... much easier to remove and refit after :D
     
    megawatt, BlackHornet and Roadwart like this.
  3. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    I suppose, like anything, its always gonna be easier the second time once you have worked out all the pitfalls associated with the task.
     
  4. BlackHornet

    BlackHornet Look before you turn Staff Member Moderator +

    Messages:
    7,985
    in fairness I use zip ties for replacement fairing clips rather than duct tape, I find it damages the paintwork less when removed.
    Oh and the hornet has less fairing to worry about it's only the R6 and most of the time that's been dropped before I have to worry about removing any fairing :giggle:
     
    deano81 likes this.
  5. lammyR6

    lammyR6 Moderator Staff Member Moderator + Site Supporter

    Messages:
    5,554
    Ooooh I agree about those blooming clips!!! Replacing the mirror on my Divi is easy as.......until you get to the last two bolts on the fairing which are held on by those :mad:. A few choice words were said over the half hour it took me just to get that bit back on!
     
  6. deano81

    deano81 Secret prototype +

    Messages:
    1,348
    even better , get abut 10 years of road crud, water and road salt onto those clips and you wont have to worry anyway, they will be so corroded that you cant undo them and they have to be cut or drilled out :D
     
    ro06k5, megawatt and Roadwart like this.
  7. fzr-paul

    fzr-paul Race Rep +

    Messages:
    460
    Sometimes it is easier to pull an entire engine than all the silly trim bits. That said my TZR and blade are so easy to pull apart. Some of the more modern stuff looks like a horror story to just get under the plastic!!
     
    deano81 likes this.
  8. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    It certainly is Paul. It doesn`t help that the bolts are all different lengths so you REALLY have to keep a track of what one went where.

    Well this is with the main side panel removed & the belly pan dropped. There`s still the louvred insert, the radiator mesh behind that & the surround you can see behind the front wheel to remove JUST to access the front of the rad.

    IMG-20140519-WA0000.jpg

    The view from the other side prior to removing the rad covers.

    IMG-20140519-WA0002.jpg

    I didn`t take any more pics as I was starting to get a bit hacked off by this stage & just wanted to get the job done so I could have my dinner.
     
  9. megawatt

    megawatt World Superbike +

    Messages:
    5,039
    Really it,s all a question of cash Paul. Would you sooner pay a "technician" 30 plus quid per hour to do a simple job, or learn to do it yourself? It does get easier the more you do it.
     
  10. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    Oh I appreciate that the first time is always the worst as its done "blind" & the time taken will drastically reduce the next time but if, as the manual says, it should be part of the routine maintenance, they could have designed the access a bit better for the novice wrench wielder. Not to mention site the fan at the highest point & not the bit that will be prone to blocking from grime.
     
  11. r1jay

    r1jay Race Rep +

    Messages:
    316
    i know a very good technician thats always willing to help out ;)
     
    lammyR6 and Roadwart like this.
  12. Blade rr6

    Blade rr6 World Superbike +

    Messages:
    759
    Just rip it all off and mat black it!
     
    Roadwart and megawatt like this.
  13. Fergy

    Fergy Secret prototype +

    Messages:
    1,688
    Personally if something that takes me four hours to do and a technician an hour for £30 then its worth it because that gives me an extra three hours to do something else :)
     
    Roadwart likes this.
  14. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    The bit that REALLY annoyed me is they took it apart to service & told me the fan wasn`t cutting out but didnt give it a clean while it was in bits!
     
  15. Carnage

    Carnage Race Rep +

    Messages:
    775
    i usually blow compressed air through the rads each time i clean the bikes, seems to keep em clog free as the shite doesnt seem to get a chance to build up
     
    Roadwart likes this.
  16. Roadwart

    Roadwart Administrator Staff Member Administrator +

    Messages:
    6,720
    Thats a good idea Pete! Thing is, this bike seems to still have a clogged rad so once its out of the garage I`ll have to give it a PROPER clean unless they are kind enough to do it for me (As if!) :)
     

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