Set out to change my clutch cable. A curse upon the house of whoever designed the thing that you have to pull the exhaust to get to the clutch cover. Found this when the heat shields came off:



THe clamp was broken, too. Guess I'll dig out the buzz box and burn a stick on the bracket ( I disconnected the ECM and the battery). Wants a new clamp, though. Wouldn't trust a weld on that.

The break in the clamp was half rusty and half clean, so there was a flaw in the metal there. Got no idea how the bracket got broken.

Maybe the tapping I've been trying to trace will go away when all that's fixed.

 

Probably just metal fatigue. It happens. Especially on stuff that vibrates. Hopefully it fixes that pesky tapping!

 

Yup...heat and vibration are tough on our shiny metal things. As long as the bracket is available you should buy a new one....welds hate heat and vibration too.

 

That's one bad thing about them rubbermount Harleys, they're hell on exhausts.

You can weld it, but it'll probably crack right at the weld where the metal becomes more brittle from heat. I'd recommend a set of short shots, to minimize leverage on the engine mounts for the exhaust.

And it'll sound cooler.

 

So tell us exactly what aftermarket exhaust your using.

 

if the weld was half rusty and half clean would leave me to believe the weld itself was not that good. The rusty part probably had no weld, and the clean part is where the weld failed. I would not hesitate to use a mig or tig weld in that area.

 

Stock Road King exhaust, with SE touring mufflers. No weld on the clamp, just a single piece in a loop.

 

Maybe the tapping is coming from the top end & not the bottom?

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That bracket appears to be plated, and the metal is probably brittle. I'd only attempt to repair it if I couldn't find a new one.

 

What the heck is that cut off braided line for? A breather hose? Looks like it's just blowing oil all over your frame and wiring. Nasty.