Tour Cut Short By Shifter Bolt Breakage

[BuckeyeBiker]

Well my first tour attempt on the TT did not go so well.  My wife and I have spent the last couple months planning a five day tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway with my parents and my brother and his wife.  We left my house on Friday, September 1st in the remnants of Hurricane Harvey.  Three hours into our ride across West Virginia on US 33, we stopped for a break at the tiny town of Normantown, WV.  As we were pulling away from the gas station, I shifted from neutral to first and felt a nice pop.  The shifter bolt and its threads decided to part ways.  There was no cell service in Normantown, so the proprietor, Fred Blanks, went out of his way to allow us to use the services of his store.  We tied up his internet and land line searching for a U-Haul truck and trailer to get the bike back home.  In the meantime, he fed us and sheltered us from the monsoon rains.  If you are ever through there, give the man some business.  I got the pleasure of having my father ride behind me on my brother's 1996 Goldwing for over 100 miles, while we located the truck and trailer.  24 hours later and $800.00 lighter in the pockets, our tour was over and the bike was delivered to Motohio in Columbus, Ohio for service.

Gotta say, I am not overly impressed with the durability of this machine.  I just spend a small fortune on the 40,000 mile service.  I have owned more than 20 bikes at this point in my life and have toured 36 of the lower 48 states, so I am not new to the game.  I have never had a problem like this.  I have read the thread on the shifter bolt.  Touring bikes must, above all, be reliable.  I am not sure this model is after looking over this forum.  That being said, until this point I have loved the TT.  It handles like no other bike in its segment.  I sold a Concours14 a few years ago that I bought new.  The C14 would not keep up with a TT on a tight road, despite it's much more powerful engine.  The suspension on the TT is simply the best stock suspension I have ever experienced, and is better than a few of my RaceTech modified bikes.   I so badly want to be able to trust this bike!!

Frustrated in Ohio.....

[Bludy L]

Sorry to hear about your issue. I hope it is resolved soon.

[ShaunDW]

Also sorry to hear about your problem.

I too am concerned about the shifter bolt (and, to a lesser extent, the brake pedal bolt). Having also read the threads on this topic I have taken to disassembling the relevant parts at least once a year to give the bolts a good clean and grease. I am not sure whether the issue is a structural weakness, or caused by corrosion (a design weakness), but I can at least protect against the latter.

Of course, this will not protect against damage from a low speed drop but I have heard that the R&G bars help here.

[2slowTrophy]

I had a gas station drop on my Trophy and had read here that the bolt may brake , so I replaced my shifter bolt.
I made sure I grease the bolt  aerosol penetrating grease
 Such a small thing to mess up a nice trip

[PhilInAthens]

Well; I guess I have joined the 'shifter bolt broke' ranks. Down shifted to first, and pop.  Fortunately only 8 miles from home so I was able to make it home in first gear.  I am sure I sounded like, and looked like, a very over powered moped.  Sure seems like a defect deserving Triumph to stand behind their product and recall these things to have hardened bolt installed.

I am like BuckeyeBiker; I have ridden many bikes over the years and never had this sort of stupid $hit happen while on a ride. Grrr...   

On the trailer and off to the shop today. I guess I'll get new tires and 20K maintenance done too while I am there. 

[1675]

I'm going to do a few jobs on my bike this week and am seriously considering replacing the original lever pivot bolt with an M8 cap head

[BuckeyeBiker]

Sorry to hear about your breakdown.  The fix ended up being over $200.00 by the time the mechanic got the broken bolt out of the frame.  The bike is in the shop right now for a service and I am going to have them change the brake side just as a precaution.

[earthman]

Originally Posted by 1675

I'm going to do a few jobs on my bike this week and am seriously considering replacing the original lever pivot bolt with an M8 cap head

But how would that prevent a possible breakage of the thread/bolt in the first place??