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[3hawgs]

I have strongly been considering reporting this problem to the NHTSA but I don't want to be the lone wolf here. This is a very serious and potentially life threatening situation. When it happened to me I was decelerating from 65mph in 5th gear and was coming into a construction Zone with traffic barreling down on top of me when I realized the shifter was laying on the floorboard and I had no way to shift. Thank God I was able to cross over 2 lanes and coast down an off-ramp without getting hit.

You can fill out complaints for safety related mechanical failures and defects at http:// http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/. Having been in the auto and motorcycle business for 30+ years, there is no doubt in my mind that H-D should have a recall to inspect, tighten and/or replace the linkage. It makes me wonder how many poor souls that this may have happened to that never lived to tell about it.

Attached is a pic of the "hidden bolt" inside the inner front shift lever arm that I had to replace and red loctite back in place.

Hope this is what you are looking for.

John

[mr_magoo]

We are talking about 2 different things here.  Seems people are having trouble with the shift levers and also the shift shaft at the tranmission,  which is where I upgrade the allen head to a bolt with blue loctite.

[3hawgs]

Either way, the problem occurs on one or both ends of the linkage resulting in the same problem.

[ggraves427]

My friend just got back from Sturgis with 11 of his friends. Of the 12 bikes, three had the shifter fall off!

[Fired00d]

My friend just got back from Sturgis with 11 of his friends. Of the 12 bikes, three had the shifter fall off!

Just curious where all three models the same (Fatboy, EG, UC, SG, etc), and all three have same shifter fall off (front/back)?

 [smiley=pumpkin.gif]
Ride Safe,
Fired00d
 [smiley=fireman.gif]

[mr_magoo]

Do those guys ever bother to check there bikes over??  

[Ulli]

It is neither a problem of the linkage shaft nor of the heel shifter!
Its a pressure problem! All you need is a drop of oil between the head of the hex-bolt and the hole of the shifter (were the hex-bolt fits in).
Without this lubricant you cannot tighten the bolt hard enough. The pressure between head of the hex-bolt and the metal around the shifterarm hole, while tightening the bolt, will prevent the bolt to draw the two thights of the shifter tight enough together and hold it securely on the linkage shaft.
Try it, it will work!

Keep riding!

P.S. And when you loose the heel shifter, dont worry! You can keep on rolling by shifting up and down withe the toe shifter like on an Sportster!
I lost mine in France on an old Shrine- Electra Glide. Got home to Germany safely that way!

Ulli

[WFP]

Interestingly, my heel fell loose on the way back from the adirondacks...but it was odd.

I was coming off the highway, therefore down shifting with the toe shifter into first.  after the light changed, I tried to upshift into second but couldn't!  Pulled into the HD shop right there.  Before getting service, I took a look and yup, the heel shifter was on the floorboard.  Maybe the back of my boot was up aggainst the heel shifter as I down shifted on the ramp.

Funny thing is, for some reason, lately I have been mostly using the toe shifter and barely ever touching the heel shifter so for it to go first is interesting.

/Bill

[WFP]

 lunch today and the INSIDE side of the shifter fell off the spline shaft!!!

Should not be possible if properly installed...the bolt would prevent this.  I wonder ho long this has bben like this.

With my tool kit, I fixed it and properly installit in 10 minutes.

/Bill

[flhse]

My linkage fell apart in Iowa heading to Sturgis.

[WFP]

damn inner one fell off abain today!  Time for loctite...

I still ask how can this happen, the spine is grooved, the bolt was tight and sits in the groove...how can it slide off the spline???

/Bill

[Screamin]

Someone suggested to me, and I haven't tried it yet, to widen the gap on the shifter arms prior to putting them back on. Drive a wedge of some sort in it and then put back on. MIght help??  [smiley=nixweiss.gif]

[WFP]

Someone suggested to me, and I haven't tried it yet, to widen the gap on the shifter arms prior to putting them back on. Drive a wedge of some sort in it and then put back on. MIght help??

[WFP]

It is fun coming down from 70mph onto an offramp in 5th without being able to downshift...and worried the the shifter arms, spline and all, might fall out...

[UK Dave]

damn inner one fell off abain today!