April 14, 2020 5:28 PM PDT
riding down the expressway, took my foot off the highway peg & set it on the foot board. something felt weird. look down, there's my shift linkage (with shaft) just laying there. how i didn't lose it somewhere on the road, I'll never know. piss poor design. I carry some tools with me, so I was able to put it back together. weird thing was there's a 1/4 inch screw that goes through lever and rides in a groove in the shaft. the screw was still in there, tight as hell. the shaft didn't look particularly worn, but somehow it squeezed out past that screw. to think that's all that holds you shift linkage on is just stupid. rode from Tenn. to Ill. watching that damn shifter more than the road. anyway, put a new screw in, been okay since. it's just a regular hardware store screw. I think it only has to wear a tiny bit to be a problem. fyi, thought of using a hardened screw, but that might wear the groove in the shaft. easier to replace the screw every couple years. seems like a pretty sloppy design for a pretty important feature.
