Rear brake missing bolt; dangerous?

[deanzat]

I just noticed this missing bolt. I need to commute on this bike, and the shop won't be open until Tuesday. The brake doesn't jiggle around or anything, and I just took it around the block and it seemed okay. For all I know, it's been like this for weeks.

But, am I merely tempting fate? Is this more dangerous than it looks, for a couple of days riding? Thanks for any advice/info.

http://www.pbase.com/deanzat/image/56005504/original.jpg

[riderR1150GSAdv]

Since it is the rear bolt on your GS that's missing, it looks like that maybe you should swap the the front bolt that's still there to the rear location. This way the caliper isn't forced up and away from the final drive in the back, but down in the front onto the final drive.
Personally I wouldn't ride like that at all and wait till the dealer is open. YMMV

[deanzat]

Thanks. I did switch the bolt to the rear, in case I have to ride on Tuesday. There is another shop that is open Monday, but it's not a BMW dealer. I'll give them a try tomorrow, and maybe I'll get lucky; I'm sure some of the bikes they carry use Brembo brakes...

Thanks, DZ

[cruisin]

Any good nut/bolt specialty shop should be able to match up exactly with the other one if you take it in. Or show up at their door with an allen wrench handy to remove once you get there. I use Fastenal for most of my needs in nuts & bolts. They are a national chain that stocks a lot of metric stuff and for about 1/3 the cost at a BMW dealership.

[PGlaves]

That is a common metric bolt - available at any decent Ace hardware or other good hardware store. Any foreign car dealership service department also ought to be able to match that bolt from their parts bin.

I wouldn't ride the bike without it - but that's me!

Paul Glaves

[cjack]

I wouldn't ride the bike without it - but that's me!

Paul Glaves

Not to mention that you have extra bolts with you...

[Rich]

And after you find yourself the correct bolt, round up a good torque wrench and tighten it properly to make sure it doesn't happen again.

[deanzat]

And after you find yourself the correct bolt, round up a good torque wrench and tighten it properly to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Yes, I've always wanted to buy a torque wrench, but you're addressing someone who has turned nearly every conceivable tool into a flying object at one time or another. When the kids were little, my wife allowed me to build them a play structure in the back yard, but only while she took them out of state for a week. I can't throw a circular saw that far.

For added perspective on my ignorance and incompetence: I just looked at some old photos and the rear brake has been tilted forward, gouging into the driveshaft cover, since at least November. I heard strange noises under heavy braking, and always assumed I was pressing on the cell phone in my jacket pocket.

As I understand it, a torque wrench will allow me to see exactly how much I have over or under tightened something, in the event that the item breaking or falling out doesn't convey enough information? DZ

[Xaque]

...the rear brake has been tilted forward, gouging into the driveshaft cover, since at least November...

:uhoh
(Note to self: Make sure to check rear caliper during light/horn/tire pressure pre-flight check)

The torque wrench will allow you to tighten the bolt to exactly the "tightness" that BMW Motorrad has decided is proper to keep it in place and do it's job the best. 99.9% of the screw/bolts/etc on the bike have torque values associated with them.

(If a bolt is too loose it can come out from the vibrations of the bike, if it's too tight it can damage the bolt or parts and lead to a failure)

A note, the BMW MOM and other motorrad literature lists torque values in nm's and not ft/lbs... so either get a wrench with capable of those measurements, or get good at conversions...

-Xaque-

[PUDGYPAINTGUY]

Perhaps a tube of blue loctite then...you can't take an eye out unless you a really good shot that way...lol

[GSfornow]

After you replace that bolt you may want to take a little time and check out the rest of the bike for other disasters waiting to happen. I found my kickstand very loose on just such a check. There never seems to be time for preventive maintainence but we always manage to make time to fix machines after they break. ;)

[username]

deanzat - when's the last time the bike was in for service?

thanks for sharing your situation - it's a good learning experience for me.

[deanzat]

deanzat - when's the last time the bike was in for service?

thanks for sharing your situation - it's a good learning experience for me.

The last full service was in August; they did a 6k service before I bought it. Since then I've had a fuel hose replaced and a techlusion unit installed. It's about ready for a 6k service, which I was planning to schedule over the next week or so. What shocks me about this is that I didn't notice it for at least three months, but then yesterday it was just so obvious. Last week I WASHED the bike and didn't notice! Needless to say, I'll never NOT notice my brakes again... DZ

[riderR1150GSAdv]

[QUOTE=deanzat
For added perspective on my ignorance and incompetence: I just looked at some old photos and the rear brake has been tilted forward, gouging into the driveshaft cover, since at least November. [/QUOTE]

OMG :jawdrop
Well now that we all can poke some fun at your mechanical skills, :stick please have the rest of your bike checked out before you hurt yourself. :deal

[deanzat]

Okay. Thanks to Industrial Bolt of Ventura, I've got new bolts and some backups too, all for a dollar.

Put them in and all seems well, but I'm curious whether loctite is a serious option for this sort of thing. For the moment I just put them in as tight as I could with the big allen wrench.

Thanks, DZ

[1flyer]

For the moment I just put them in as tight as I could with the big allen wrench. DZ

That was a joke. Right?

[cjack]

That was a joke. Right?

Actually, having put things together before torque wrenches were invented, I have noticed that the short handles on the BMW tool kit supplied tools were just about right for hurting your hand when you had the bolt or nut tight right. Not so on drain plugs...they should be not so tight as that.
Also, I have never seen anyone use locktite in one of those caliper bolts and I think with those short handled allen wrenches 40Nm is just about where your hand hurts when tightening.
I remember once I had occasion to retighten the head bolts on my R75 in the field once using the short open end wrench from the tool kit. When I got home I checked the torque and it was just about 26 Ft Lbs.

[deanzat]

That was a joke. Right?

No joke; just using the tools at hand. I'll ride over to the shop today and let them check my work. DZ

[kbasa]

No joke; just using the tools at hand. I'll ride over to the shop today and let them check my work. DZ

Those bolts only get like 44 ft. lbs. or something.

[cjack]

Those bolts only get like 44 ft. lbs. or something.

It's more like 30 ft lbs. That would be about 40Nm.