broken side cover stud

[Jfixit]

I was silly enough to break off the little plastic stud on the left side cover that goes through the rubber gromet. This is the cover that the handle to boost the bike in the centerstand goes through on an 03 RT. Is there a fix or is it buy a new one? Will it hurt to ride the bike with it broken off? Thanks.

[ltownsend]

Mine broke off about 15,000 miles ago. I can't say that I've every experienced any pain from the incident, except perhaps the initial mishap. My finger healed pretty quickly. So, does it hurt? Yes, it did when I broke it, but it hasn't since. (Smart ass is my middle name--just ask my dearly departed father. My side cover has never fallen off from loss of this piece of plastic.) Loren

[manicmechanic]

No promises, but maybe a dose of JB Weld might work. It did on a K11LT I had.

[rs36vh]

I have a 2000 rt , I also broke off the plastic stud, if you still have it carefully drill through the center of the stud and bracket and put a small screw with nut #6-32. Then be sure and keep them lube with die electric grease. Keep the screw head on top of the stud.

[SNC1923]

I did this and bought a new one.

A week later a buddy of mine glued it (not sure with what) but it is as good as new. It can be fixed with an adhesive. DON'T buy a new one.

[Jfixit]

Thanks for the feedback, I'll try some sort of an epoxy repair, I like the screw idea but doubt my ability to drill straight enough to do it right, If all else fails I'll find out for myself if it will stay on without the stud. Thanks again, It is still amazing to me how fast you can get intelligent and expierenced responses on this website.

[cruisin]

Both of mine were broken when I purchased the bike used. I drilled out the remaining portion of the old pin, (but not all the way through the cover) leaving the square base intact. Then I used some plastic tubing from the top "spider" of a swamp cooler. That stuff is very tough and exactly the diameter needed for this application. I then used a flaring device and heat gun to make one end larger to go into the grommet. Once I had cut one end of that to fit the angle at the bottom and get the proper length, I glued them in place with J.B. Weld. I finished it off for durability by gluing a 1/4 x 1" stainless steel pan-head bolt (cut to exact length) into each tube. The head of the bolt was just a tad to large for the receiving holes so I ground it down enough to fit snugly but not too loose. This has held up since November of 2001 and over 71K miles now. I won't clutter things up here, but can send pics if you want.

btw--if your username is accurate, this should be a piece of cake :thumb

[Oldhway]

If you use a mixtrue of crazy glue and baking soad it will be as good as new. Fixed mine that way. This is a trick I learned back in the early eighties that no one seems to have discovered. Use a slow set up crazy glue mixed with baking soda to form a paste. Put it at the break and build up around it as well. Works great and is dirt cheap.:thumb

[Mr. Frank]

Mine's been gone forever. I think a dealer wrench broke it. Because it's on the side with the handle, you are unlikely to lose it.

[Seeker]

Mine are broke also, I would attribute it to a design flaw, I don't miss it at all.

[jurive]

I repaired mine with PVC pipe cement. Worked great!! :thumb It's been holding for 2 1/2 years. made a very strong repair.

[jfsheehan63]

I was silly enough to break off the little plastic stud on the left side cover that goes through the rubber gromet. This is the cover that the handle to boost the bike in the centerstand goes through on an 03 RT. Is there a fix or is it buy a new one? Will it hurt to ride the bike with it broken off? Thanks.

I just did the same thing to the right-side of my RT. Just get a tube of super glue and glue the broken piece, if you still have it, back on. It worked for me.

If you lost the broken piece, it's either run without it or buy a new cover. :type