I have to replace the Cam Position Sensor on Blue Belle. The procedure seems straight forward for the sensor. What are my options after I drill the rivets out of the outer timing cover? I do not have the proper type rivets. Can I tap and screw the V2 cover back in place?

 

You can just use regular pop rivets.
I did on the last one I did.

That V2 cover is kinda thin and if you just punched holes in it then you would have extra holes that would look kinda funny.

 

The V2 cover has some type of coating on it.
I removed the coating with paint remover or something similar and then polished it with my drill buffer.
Looked fresh and new after polishing.
The V2 cover is rather thin. Maybe about half the thickness of a US penny.
I believe it is aluminum and more cosmetic than anything.
The rivets of the V2 cover are on the vertical and attach to another cover that will become visible once the V2 rivets are drilled out and thin cover removed.
Takes very little to drill those rivets.
This other under cover is the actual protective cover and is held in place with 2 phillips screws on the horizontal.
A 1/4 socket wrench with the correct phillips will make removal easier of this second cover.
I believe the second cover had some thread locker on it and required some warmth in order to loosen the phillips and not strip the heads on screws.
I mention the placement of screws just in case you decide to purchase some other kind of cover.
If you purchase some other kind of cover then make sure the holes are on the horizontal line and not vertical like the V2 cover. The other cover will replace the bottom protective piece and you can trash the V2 cover.
The blind rivets are just in case a part of the rivet decides to fall into the cup and cause a problem.
There is a paper type gasket behind the second cover that will be dust if original..Some folks replace it others do not.
Yes, you can tap the bottom cover and use some button head allen type screws if you like.
Alternatively a simple chrome dome kit from J & P cycle has the gasket,screws and cover for under $20..
FYI: I gave the dealer $2 total for 2 rivets and went the polish and re-install of original route.

 

FYI : Make sure to be 100% on wire placement in that triangle connector.
Also: a small allen bit piece cut to fit inside the little allen bolts (2 bolts?) by the exhaust pipe allow loosening of the triangle metal piece that holds cam wire under the cone without removal of pipe..

 

Thanks for the replies. IM as usual you are thorough. I'll tackle this over the weekend.

 

The Book makes a big deal about not using generic pop rivets. I have seen generic pop rivets come apart, as the warning in the book mentions, in non-HD use, and using those on something that gets beaten on by a Harley motor is just asking for trouble. If you don't have and don't want to source the correct rivet, then just use screws and rotate the plate 90 degrees, or get an aftermarket cover which will use screws with the plate rotated 90 degrees. I bought one of those generic chrome dome ones when I had to go in there last time.

 

Doc I had forgotten about that when I rebuilt the basket case.
Thing is I did get the HD rivets but the ones I got at the parts counter looked exactly like the ones I have in my rivet gun case.
I didn't use them because they looked too thin to get a good grab on the cover plate.
I looked at the picture in the FSM but the ones Harley gave me don't match the ones the book says to use.

 

I'm not sayin' the dealer ripped you off, but they are supposed to look like the ones in the book. The end that goes in is completely sealed. A standard pop rivet has the steel ball visible on the end. These have aluminum all the way around, sealing off the steel ball. You can buy them cheap from places like McMaster, etc., and probably get a whole bag or box of them for what HD charges you for two (of the right ones.)

 

To be honest I just used the rivets so that I could put the V2 back on because I thought Cowboy51 was gonna get the bike back and that was what he wanted.

I prefer the bolts myself.

 

Thanks to all of the replies here. Replaced the Cam Sensor over the weekend. She is all better now. I simply tapped the inner cover and replaced the rivets with stainless button head screws, and blue locktite.

IM thanks for the heads up on the inner cover and the Phillips head screws. I lightly tapped on an impact hammer, and they loosened right up.