Has anyone had the stock CVO cover pop the center out of a new K&N filter? I swapped the paper filter out for one and after a week it fell off next to my leg on the interstate. I called K&N and verified I had the correct Part # for 08-later touring. They want me to send it back with a new one on the way and do a little testing for them with a grease pen and my cover. No charge to me and I’m glad I didn’t drop the cover.
I haven't had that experience personally, but several folks on this site posted about the same thing shortly after H-D changed the CVO covers from the old round center section to the new rectangular center section. I hadn't seen any postings about that for quite awhile, until this one of yours.
Did the weld on the nut fail, or did the metal end plate break near the nut? If the end plate broke out, that is usually caused by excessive movement and vibration. The use of the current version CVO cover can cause that, and in fact H-D warns about that possibility in the verbage with the SE air cleaner kits they sell. They recommend replacing the CVO cover with one from a standard model with the round center section. I know there are quite a few on this site still running the CVO cover without a problem, but if it were me I would take steps to make sure that cover to filter fit was improved to prevent what happened to you. Having the A/C cover fall off while riding is not only expensive, it can be rather dangerous for not only the rider but for anyone following. If you use the site search and type in "center nut", you will see a listing of some of the previous posts concerning this same problem.
When you get the new filter, place it into the cover (off the bike) and line it up with the center hole. Make note of how the end of the filter does not touch the cover all the way around like it does on the old style covers. If you want to make sure you don't have a repeat problem, you need to provide additional support between the cover and the end of the filter to eliminate any rocking or movement.
Jerry