'84 FXR - bent frame
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4th Gear
Joined: Apr 2011
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From: Union, OR
'84 FXR - bent frame
Anybody have experience straightening frames? Mine is bent -- pretty sure -- on the left upper rail that holds the rear fender. Right behind the seat it measures 7.5 inches between the top rails, and at the tail end it measures 7.0 inches. Also, w/ the wheel still in the swingarm, there's 0.5" less clearance on the left than on the right, from the rail to the wheel. Swingarm bushings are tight.
It's possible I bought it this way (have had the bike for about 7yrs now), and I've typically had trouble fitting the rear fender in the few times I've painted it. But I never noticed this before.
Just laid the bike down (fool pulled out from a hwy off-ramp & didn't stop -- until he was right in my traffic lane. I was doin' 55, managed to swerve around the front of his rig and not hit him head on, but the gravel in the center egress lane got me.) The bike skidded down the hwy on it's left side, but the damage wasn't near enough to bend the frame. Primary case took most of the skid. It was in disassembling it for new sheet metal (and lots of other stuff!) after this wreck that I realized this frame issue.
So -- I think I ought to be able to bend it back -- maybe cold, but surely w/ some heat. Anybody ever tackled anything like this? And, are there specs for frame measurements to be had anywhere?
Any help at all will be most welcome!
Mike
It's possible I bought it this way (have had the bike for about 7yrs now), and I've typically had trouble fitting the rear fender in the few times I've painted it. But I never noticed this before.
Just laid the bike down (fool pulled out from a hwy off-ramp & didn't stop -- until he was right in my traffic lane. I was doin' 55, managed to swerve around the front of his rig and not hit him head on, but the gravel in the center egress lane got me.) The bike skidded down the hwy on it's left side, but the damage wasn't near enough to bend the frame. Primary case took most of the skid. It was in disassembling it for new sheet metal (and lots of other stuff!) after this wreck that I realized this frame issue.
So -- I think I ought to be able to bend it back -- maybe cold, but surely w/ some heat. Anybody ever tackled anything like this? And, are there specs for frame measurements to be had anywhere?
Any help at all will be most welcome!
Mike
Last edited by MPCannon; Jun 17, 2011 at 05:26 PM.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,289
Likes: 22
From: Beautiful Downtown Burbank
If its just the fender strut, you should be able to add some heat and straighten it. Be careful not to put heat forward of the strut. You dont want to loose the temper of the frame.
When it comes to the frame datum points, I wouldnt have a clue where to find those
When it comes to the frame datum points, I wouldnt have a clue where to find those
Thread Starter
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4th Gear
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
From: Union, OR
OK -- was able to put together some creative blocking and rigging, and use a hydraulic spreader (porta-power) so as to put the pressure on the bent rail, and not the opposite side. I spread it about a 1/4" at a time, then let the pressure off, and it'd spring back about half of that. So, about 4 applications of that, and it's back to where it should be. All the mesaurements I can possibly think of check out just fine!
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84, 84fxr, bent, bentframeharleydavodson, dyna, fender, fenders, frame, frames, fxr, glide, harley, harleydavidson, motorcycle, straighten
