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Disclaimer: I already know JohnJzJz is gonna yell at me for this. lol Luckily I have thick skin (and a thicker skull).
Finishing up my 68 FLH rebuild. Had a Bendix/Zenith on it w/ steel cable. In stationary storage for years. Cable has permanent bend in it, vinyl/steel cable housing is crushed in spots near neck. Even after cleaning, rebuilding, relubing, etc. internal throttle and pump are not working as smoothly (or safely) as I need them to for this to be a daily driver. Jumping to a Super E and want to "upgrade" to external idle/throttle cables for convenience/ease of upkeep. Two questions:
2) Stock buckhorns I believe are 1" but have a 7/8" right side grip width to accommodate the OEM throttle slider mechanism. Will I need to order new bars to accommodate the 1" grips, or modify the current bars/handles in any way to allow for the proper operation of the Super E dual throttle setup? Of course, I understand that if I order new bars it could impact the cable lengths. Plus, the stock buckhorns are individual bars, and most aftermarket handlebars would require being hacked in half, properly knurled, and drilled to accept the stock-style buttons and switches. Since I was thinking of adding mini-apes anyway, if such modifications are needed for a dual-cable setup now might be the time to bite that bullet too.
Any pro-level wrencher insight here would be amazing. Thanks in advance!
Remove the bars complete and buy the short stand offs and a set of dresser bars that fit your idea then the throttle with one or two cables then the grips and cables -
put all the stuff you remove pack some white grease on everything - and wrap i it up - when your gone and the bikes ends up in a family members Hands hopefully he will re install the real stuff and throw the goofy **** away
As someone that just replaced his throttle cable over the winter, two things:
1- If the cable is run to the wrong side of the front trees, the trees will pinch it against the frame, causing the "kink" you are discussing. My throttle cable was run in the nacelle from the right side to the left side, then getting pinched. The cable is supposed to stay on the same side as the throttle and carb, the right. Once routed correctly, the pinch goes away.
2- I have the stock internal throttle with a modern cable attached to it to then attach to my S&S. Not a hard install, after finding my kink issue, I just needed to determine the right cable length and order from J&P. Basically you install in backwards with the "L" adjuster at the carb instead of the handlebar. Takes a little customizing, but when done appears stock and John does not yell at you.
If interested, I can research what length cable I ordered, then recommend one 2" shorter.
Billy is using the original bars and the throttle receiver needs to be a early adjustable distributor type as it pulls the original one on the bike pushes
using a pull you can replace the carb with any modern one but will need to feed a braided throttle cable in side the original one or replace it totally like billy did
As someone that just replaced his throttle cable over the winter, two things:
1- If the cable is run to the wrong side of the front trees, the trees will pinch it against the frame, causing the "kink" you are discussing. My throttle cable was run in the nacelle from the right side to the left side, then getting pinched. The cable is supposed to stay on the same side as the throttle and carb, the right. Once routed correctly, the pinch goes away.
2- I have the stock internal throttle with a modern cable attached to it to then attach to my S&S. Not a hard install, after finding my kink issue, I just needed to determine the right cable length and order from J&P. Basically you install in backwards with the "L" adjuster at the carb instead of the handlebar. Takes a little customizing, but when done appears stock and John does not yell at you.
If interested, I can research what length cable I ordered, then recommend one 2" shorter.
Thanks Architect. I'm sure I wasn't clear earlier, it's not just a pinch unfortunately. The cable sleeve itself is crushed a bit because it was originally routed too high and got caught between the neck & frame stops. it was original to the Bendix when it was installed ('71?) and after sitting for years dry and untouched ('86 to '20) the throttle cable took on a natural bend that's not cooperating with the sleeve now that it's routed right. Add that to the accelerator pump sticking, the throttle return not returning anywhere close to idle, and a screw that keeps self-loosening on the right side of the fuel-side butterfly assembly, we have a recipe for nonsense. Like John said, I'm gonna keep all those parts wrapped clean in a box and will look at adding them back in when I do my "mostly back to original" restoration in the next few years.
After thinking on it overnight, I'm going to order a set of 14" minis. The bike still has such a high-a$$ pogo buddy seat that in all honesty will just make a set of mid-size apes look like some raised beach bars. I'll extend the wiring on the original style starter, horn, and hi/lo units, and drill the proper screw and routing holes to avoid installing any switch housings. Plus, it will give me another chance to address the turn signal switch issue I've been dealing with (see my past posts on using a temporary three-way toggle because the replacement switch I ordered went full clown mode). I'm going to marry that setup with the S&S Super E and a set of 48" cables. They may be a bit long, but after measuring the 42"s might be a little snug. Of course, this means I'll have to give the +6 clutch and brake lines some playing time too.
John would get along well with my dad -- also committed to keeping it original. After letting it collect dust for 34 years, it does actually pain me to remind him that the guy paying for everything gets to make the final decisions lmao.
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Throttle/Carb Conversion Question
