So the hole is drilled in the backside of the frame near that pinch bolt? I'm not understanding why they would drill a hole there?
So, long story short.
Doing a bit of maintenance on my bike, and after rotating the engine to replace intakes seals, rocker cover gaskets, and new fuel filters. The thought of doing the fuel pump no longer intimidated me.
I decided to go ahead and remove the swing arm. And when I did I found a lovely surprise.
Apparently one of the previous owners felt the need for more security of the swingarm axle. They drilled a hole right near the pinch bolt and put a larger washer that slightly covered the face of the swingarm axle.
I guess over time or from something else, it cracked.
The broken piece and pincher bolt still thread in and fit normally. But now I have this concern. I have ridden the bike for 2yrs before I just found this out (today).
Would figure, as I finally get my hands on some bigger task, this would happen. :)
So the hole is drilled in the backside of the frame near that pinch bolt? I'm not understanding why they would drill a hole there?
Can you post a pic of the actual damage?
If it's just a crack, any competent weld shop should be able to fix it for ya. You might be out and hour of said weld shops time/rate.
The piece broke where the previous owner drilled the hole close to the pinch bolt.
Wonder if I can just JB Weld this?
No, JB weld would just break when you tightened the pinch bolt. Have it welded.
Wow drilled right in the highest stress area. Probably would have been fine on the right side of the pivot hole. That is going to suck. I hate people sometimes. Good luck finding someone willing to weld that. It might be possible.
Well, at least you discovered it. I'm confident an experienced welder could fix that.
Good luck man, keep us posted!
My guess is the previous owner put the wood screw and washer in to hide the fact it was broken, and so you could not see the crack. There was no structural or safety reason for putting a wood screw in that part of the bike. ( Or any part of the bike for that matter.)
Looks like you will have to drop the motor out and take it to a highly competent welder. Have them clean the area and re-insert the broken piece with a shim under pinch point before welding. You may also want to have the swing arm pivot bolt installed for alignment, so the welder can tack the piece before burning it in.
Good luck.
Where are you located?
The weld is doable, but finding someone willing to do so may be a challenge.