Mirror mount threads stripped, what to do?

[Billyboy]

Like the title says, my right mirror mount threads are stripped. Is there a way to glue the mirrors on? (JB weld?) Drill and tap?, but I'll need bigger mirror bolts. Or should I replace it with the parts bike brake lever?

What is involved with changing levers? Will I have to remove the throttle and right switches?

[lhanscom]

JB Weld will work. If it's not completely stripped, you could possibly get away with using plumbing tape on the threads. That said, if you have the lever, it's not hard to swap them out, the hardest part is bleeding your brakes afterward, and if you're careful, that won't be to bad either. If you have a single bolt holding the lever, you'll have to take out the 2 screws in the switch assembly, the throttle tube and switches will then come off, loosen the lever, and take it off. You'll have to swap the brake line, to the new lever. If your parts lever has a good light switch, I would suggest unplugging the switch in the headlight housing, instead of taking the switch off the lever, as it can be a pain to adjust properly. Then just bleed the brakes, and put throttle and switch assembly back on.

[Basket Case]

I wouldn't recommend doing any permanent attach stuff on those. I would say check for a new mirror... it shouldn't be too expensive, and a lot easier than trying to re-thread everything.

Levers are pretty simple to remove. The brake lever is a single nut/bolt. The clutch lever is also a single nut/bolt, then disconnect the clutch cable.

[Billyboy]

Thanks Luke. I think I'll replace the lever.

Basketcase, It's the lever threads that are stripped. The mirror threads are good.

[Basket Case]

Ah. Well, that makes things easier

You could also look into a helio-coil (sp?), but, again, the work isn't worth it for the cost of a new lever.

[Jethro]

I'd JB Weld the mirrors in, then when you need to replace the mirrors, change out the lever.

[Billyboy]

What's a heloi-coil?
The cool part is that my parts bike is loaded with good pieces. I'll use a lever off it.

[Billyboy]

I'd JB Weld the mirrors in, then when you need to replace the mirrors, change out the lever.

You think like me. I'll scratch me head at it after work and see what seems easiest.

[Basket Case]

I guess its HeliCoil... knew I had the spelling off.

Here's a basic look at how it works. Basically, you're drilling out the stripped area, and insterting in the coil to make it threaded again.

http://contractorstools.com/helicoil1.html

[Billyboy]

That's a neat idea.

[Basket Case]

It works great as long as there's not a lot of torque involved. I've seen it used on the track for those pesky easy-to-strip aluminum frame spots that hold on bodywork.

[Planecrazy]

Another interesting option is HTS-2000 ---> http://aluminumrepair.com

There is a pretty good video on the website that shows how to use it to repair stripped threads. It is apparently stronger than aluminum, but with a lower melting temp, so it lends itself to all sorts of repairs that would be difficult to do any other way.

The only downside is that for this repair you would want to remove the bad brake lever anyway, to avoid melting any plastic or rubber parts near the repair area.

There was another GS'r who used an earlier version of this stuff to repair (actually replace is a better word) broken fins on his head and block, and unless you were REALLY looking carefully at the pics you couldn't tell there was ever a problem.

I have some but only recently bought it, so I don't have personal repair experience with it yet.

Regards,

[tconroy]

Like the title says, my right mirror mount threads are stripped. Is there a way to glue the mirrors on? (JB weld?) Drill and tap?, but I'll need bigger mirror bolts. Or should I replace it with the parts bike brake lever?

What is involved with changing levers? Will I have to remove the throttle and right switches?

What about a small helicoil would that work?

[beby99]

Always thought…but never tried. What if you put JB weld in the stripped hole and greased the threaded bolt. Thread the two together and let dry…I'm thinking, once dry the JB will not stick to the grease and you'll be able to back out the bolt keeping the threaded JB in place……Just thinking out load.

[Road_Clam]

Like the title says, my right mirror mount threads are stripped. Is there a way to glue the mirrors on? (JB weld?) Drill and tap?, but I'll need bigger mirror bolts. Or should I replace it with the parts bike brake lever?

What is involved with changing levers? Will I have to remove the throttle and right switches?

Get yourself an M10X1.25 Helicoil repair kit. They are expensive, but FAR cheaper than a new m/c assembly.