fell over on a river crossing and bent my engine guard. My boot hits the guard when trying to shift. Should i remove it and try to beat it back in back in place to go with a used one?

 

A photo of the damage might help with the decision to repair or replace, but unless it is very minor I'd replace it because there is likely road rash too. And, once metal is bent it does not retain full strength. Being that it is a crash bar, I'd want the maximum support it has to offer in the event of another incident

If you decide to try and straighten it, you should remove it and use a press, not a hammer.

Paul

 

I’ve bent engine guards back before with a mallet, but it might also weaken the weldments at the attachment points depending on the severity of the bend. Without pics it’s hard to tell. Stock used guard might run you $100 shipped from eBay.

 

replace it, why risk that the next time you need it it folds on you

 

It folds even easier the next time. I wont get into the metallurgy. Best thing you can do, R&R... remove and replace.

 

I will also add, you will probably never get it bent back perfect. You might get close.

 

I bent mine back many miles ago and it's fine

 

I’ve done it twice. Once it worked, once I replaced it.

First the success story. On a dirt road, looking for a camping spot. As I passed a spot I looked back and at that moment, the front wheel hit a soft dirt divot. I was barely moving, but it bent the bar about an inch. Hard to even tell unless you were sitting on it and looking down. When I got home, I chocked the frame with a 2x4 and used gentle pressure and after a while, the bar was back, no visible stretch marks, no chrome cracks or wrinkles.

Second one was a bike I had just bought from a 90 year old man who started to fall over, and decided to stop riding. The bar was an original HD bar from the early 90’s. Chrome was cracked, left bar was pushed back almost 1-1/2”. I attempted a temporary fix uses the 2x4 and crowbar gentle pressure, greater pressure, as much pressure as I dared. Older Hwy bars were made of heavier, thicker tougher steel. I just replaced it.

I never thought of pounding it with a mallet. Nor will I ever think of that as an option.

I agree that bending steel could weaken it. I doubt that in the first case, it made any difference. In the second case, it might have. It was going to be replaced anyway, as once the chrome is cracked, nasty things will happen. Also, the weld was over 25 years old.

 

Hard to bend them back to where they look new or even right. If that doesn’t really matter to you, give it a shot! If it had to look right, replacement is the easiest route. They aren’t a terribly expensive item.

 

As cheap (all things considered) as they are, I'd replace it if it was bad enough to be bent the way you describe. Seems to me it did it's job.