Hard to explain but the near the turn signal bolts are slight indentions that the fairing brackets set in. When you leave it all together it takes a little pressure to pull the brackets apart to clear the forks, so it just sets there. I've done it once this way and I now prefer just to remove the entire assembly one piece at a time to access the bar clamp and wiring.


Jace

 

TAKE THE FENDER OFF!!!! I had mine covered too...had to get a new one. Costly mistake to save the trouble of 4 bolts.


As far as the fairing, look where the top bolt goes in, there is a dog ear on the forks that the frame of the fairing hangs on. It WILL come off if you lift it and tilt it to far. What happens is that when you lift and tilt the bottom actually moved in towards the tank and the top stays hooked on to the tabs. I would recommend taking the tank off too, made it easier to work on the second time I had to mess with the apes. If I had to do it again I might do what rv7garage did, just take the whole thing off. I am not sure if it's worth the effort as with leaning the fairing forward you can access everything.


Also, be sure to take pics of your cabling with the switch covers off, that part is not in the video online or in the service manual and I screwed up the wiring doing it wrong. It was my first time...got it fixed for $28 bucks and taking the whole thing apart again.


You will need to take ALL the plugs off the wires, be very careful...they can be damaged.


Make sure when you put the throttle side back together it's spins freely. One that has a little resistance going to 0% may have a lot more when the temps change *(i.e. sticking throttle). I tightened the switch covers first, then the brake and that seemed to do the trick but not 100% sure if that works every time.


Those are the tips from someone who paid to fix the mistakes. Don't be me.

 

Thanks Scott. So you are saying to lift the fairing from the tabs and swing the bottom in and rehang on same tabs. Makes sense...one video showed the guy placing top 2 bolts back in finger tight to prevent falling off. I like the idea of tilting it vs. removing so I can install bars and check the angle and clearances when the fairing is back in place. I only want to do this once so once the bars are correct I will torque the riser clamp. Does the stock clamp hold sufficiently or do you recommend something like the Gorilla clamp with set screws?

 

Both the top and bottom are hung on a tab or dog ear, you only lift far enough to get the bottom loose, the top should never come off the tabs. If you can tilt and put the bolts back in that would work. I didn't do that hence I had to buy a new front fender. On a good note, I found a perfect, no scratch paint matching on ebay for under $200.





I snugged the clamp bolts, maybe good to torque but since these are in aluminum they are not going to be gorilla tight, I just use my best judgement on that and made sure the bars wouldn't move after. I went ahead and changed the riser bushings as well, no reason not to since you are already there.

 

I just lifted and tilted the fairing forward, as in the video. It will make you wonder if you're going to break something, but it is no problem. (Think how uneasy you were about the first time setting the bike on the jiffy stand.)

As a side note, when you sit on the bike to set the angle you want, check for clearance with the fairing on. I set mine where I liked them and the followed the video and reinstalled the fairing. The clutch and brake master cylinders wouldn't fit. Had to remove the fairing again and pull the bars back a bit.

Take your time and good luck. You'll be very satisfied at a job well done!

 

Thanks everyone for your answers and suggestions. I have ordered 12" LA Choppers Twin Peaks along with Namz wire extensions for the switch housings and poly bushings. Best deal was online (Ebay) Eastern Performance Cycles. Waiting for delivery now and warmer Canadian weather to tackle this job. Next up after this is the 21in MadWheels Reinforcer!

 

Search on YouTube for install video there is one about 45 minutes long that was a great help. I installed 10" Mayhem bars and the video is pretty much step by step. I want to call it Ride it Wrench it.

 

Mine fell and crushed my front fender. I'd take it off if I ever do it again. Pics in the link below.

 

This video was extremely helpful to me. He walks you through the process step by step.

 

Just be careful and support the fairing when you do, I had mine leaning forward and it fell forward and dented my front fender so I had to paint it.