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I have a '19 Low Rider and after buying some forward controls, realised that the mid controls are part of the frame. Does anyone know of any kind of work around without butchering the bike? I don't want to be cutting parts off the bike, but would like some forward controls as the mids really kill my knees..
I have a '19 Low Rider and after buying some forward controls, realised that the mid controls are part of the frame. Does anyone know of any kind of work around without butchering the bike? I don't want to be cutting parts off the bike, but would like some forward controls as the mids really kill my knees.
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Actually, they are bolted to the frame... two bolts each foot peg bracket. They can come off easily without "butchering" the frame..
Here's the online parts pic. It shows the two bolts per bracket...
Last edited by hattitude; Apr 26, 2025 at 01:39 PM.
Actually, they are bolted to the frame... two bolts each foot peg bracket. The can come off easily without "butchering" the frame..
Here's the online parts pic. It shows the two bolts per bracket...
Thanks for the reply. It looked to me like the left hand peg mount was part of the frame, because it's not the same as the diagram that you have posted, but perhaps the mount is bolted from the underside. Will check that out.
Last edited by Ozharleyguy; Apr 26, 2025 at 11:25 AM.
Reason: More info
Here is my 22, with HARLEY FORWARDS....Bolt right on.
i will say this, this being the first harley i have ever bought with mids....i wasnt ready for the oil leak that came about,
at about 4500 miles ( forwards installed when new) i had the case hole for the shift shaft start spitting oil....the internal side of the cases, have a FLAT GASKET, not an o-ring. that gasket shifted and allowed oil to pass and get sucked out by passing air flow. when you do swap, find something .490" diameter and make a dummy shaft to keep that gasket centered.
Thanks for the reply. Yeah, I'm going cold on the idea because of the drama of removing the shifter shaft and plugging the cases. Nice looking scoot there.
Here is my 22, with HARLEY FORWARDS....Bolt right on.
i will say this, this being the first harley i have ever bought with mids....i wasnt ready for the oil leak that came about,
at about 4500 miles ( forwards installed when new) i had the case hole for the shift shaft start spitting oil....the internal side of the cases, have a FLAT GASKET, not an o-ring. that gasket shifted and allowed oil to pass and get sucked out by passing air flow. when you do swap, find something .490" diameter and make a dummy shaft to keep that gasket centered.
That gasket is called a "Tower Gasket" #63869-06. That should not shift once the outer primary cover is properly torqued to the inner primary housing. It also should not leak.
That gasket usually has an adhesive on one side, so it doesn't move/shift during install of the outer primary cover. I suspect it was misaligned when initially installed, and took awhile for the leak to start/show.
It's pretty easy to pull the outer primary cover, replace that tower gasket, and reassemble the outer primary cover with the proper torque procedure (sequence). If you want to, you could also put a small dab of RTV sealant on the tower gasket during reassembly, for piece of mind. NOTE: You can often reuse the outer primary cover gasket a couple times if you don't damage it during cover removal.
Last edited by hattitude; Apr 28, 2025 at 08:51 AM.
Thanks for the reply. Yeah, I'm going cold on the idea because of the drama of removing the shifter shaft and plugging the cases. Nice looking scoot there.
Just FWIW...
Removing the shifter shaft and plugging the hole in the primary cover really isn't very much drama on this M8 model...
On the Twin Cam Dyna Low Rider, you needed to remove the primary cover, primary internal components, and the inner primary housing to remove the mid shifter shaft (#2 & #8 below, were one piece). Even that wasn't hard, just time consuming, and cost some gaskets and primary fluid. Many thought it was too much drama, and left the mid shifter shaft in place.
My OCS wouldn't let me do that...
If you pull up the install instructions for your M8 Low Rider forward control install, you can see the shifter shaft is three pieces; front shifter rod lever, shaft, and foot shifter. It can easily be removed with the entire primary case intact... It shouldn't take but 10 minutes with the right tools. And as I said in my post above, the tower gasket will keep the inner primary from leaking if it was installed correctly. The primary cover plug will dress the hole in the front. The hole in the rear primary housing is usually left open, because it's not seen (and normally doesn't leak).
Good luck with your decision...
Last edited by hattitude; Apr 28, 2025 at 09:05 AM.
doing the swap is very easy, there is nothing to plug. as mentioned, my gasket STILL HAD the adhesive...but over some miles it did shift slightly. i cannot speak as to why...but i do know how i am keeping it from happening again/
my new outer primary, 1. wont have the tower hole, 2. will be gloss black...the inner will get the tower epoxied to prevent oil leaks. it can always be drilled out if ever needed.
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Forward Controls
