Rattling shifter
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Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 11,615
Likes: 50
From: Baton Rouge, LA
Rattling shifter
The shifter on my '07 SG rattles too much, mostly when cold. I have a Kury heel-shifter-eliminator spacer and have shimmed it with HD wheel-bearing shims to make it as tight as possible. Alas, it isn't tight enough and still rattles a bit.
When I owned my '96 RK I bought an "E-Z Spacer" spring-loaded shifter spacer, located between the toe shift lever and the outer-primary cover, but I haven't been able to find these for an FLH. This did a good job of reducing the rattle on that bike. Another one is the Stevenson--sold through CCI, et al--which appears to be nothing more than a spacer with a spring (convex) washer.
Has anyone found a good solution for rattling shifters? Keep in mind that I have removed my heel shifter and have a custom shifter rod with two heim joints.
When I owned my '96 RK I bought an "E-Z Spacer" spring-loaded shifter spacer, located between the toe shift lever and the outer-primary cover, but I haven't been able to find these for an FLH. This did a good job of reducing the rattle on that bike. Another one is the Stevenson--sold through CCI, et al--which appears to be nothing more than a spacer with a spring (convex) washer.
Has anyone found a good solution for rattling shifters? Keep in mind that I have removed my heel shifter and have a custom shifter rod with two heim joints.
Last edited by iclick; Jul 13, 2009 at 10:10 PM.
Intermediate
Joined: Jun 2009
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I had the same problem even before removing the heel shifter. After removal of the shifters I removed the shifter shaft from the primary cover and coated it with heavy grease. During reassembly I kept the stock spacer but was able to remove some of the free play from the shaft by squeezing the shifter and the shifter lever together before tightening. I capped the stub with one of HD's chrome caps. I think the grease more than removing the slop between the shifter and shifter lever took care of the rattle.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 28,568
Likes: 3,957
From: Vermont
Mine don't rattle. I also have a custom linkage with heims. However, remember that I didn't use a shift end cap, but instead I use a spacer (mom's stolen wind chime piece) and inside that I have a piece of rubber hose that I cut a little longer than the anodized aluminum piece and I pushed the shifter on tight so that the rubber is cushioned between the shifter and the case.
Tourer
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 287
Likes: 18
From: Bartlett, TN
I recently got an anti-rattle kit and now I can't remember where I got it. EZ Brake I think is where it came from.
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Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2005
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From: Baton Rouge, LA
I think that's the one I had on my old RK, called "E-Z Spacer." How does it work?
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Road Warrior
Joined: Oct 2006
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From: San Antonio, Texas
So is the only solution to this to "squeeze" the primary between the shifter foot levers and the inner, front lever that is hooked to the front of the shift rod? I've had the assembly apart, greased it and squeezed things as tight as I can, compressing that rubber piece and it still rattles. At least I know now what the rattle is, but it drives me nuts sometimes. I was going to try and see if some sort of shim could be used between the shift shaft itself and the primary pivot it rides in. Not sure how much room there is in there. Hoping a beercan would work 
I also thought about drilling and putting a zerk in the primary pivot point - that way I could grease it every couple of days to sotp the rattle. That's about how long the last grease lasted before it started rattling again.
What exactly do the aftermarket pieces y'all are talking about do? Do they eliminate slack between the shift levers and primary?
I also thought about drilling and putting a zerk in the primary pivot point - that way I could grease it every couple of days to sotp the rattle. That's about how long the last grease lasted before it started rattling again.What exactly do the aftermarket pieces y'all are talking about do? Do they eliminate slack between the shift levers and primary?
