SW-Motech installation notes

[AprilIan]

Note: this is a duplicate of my post in the classified section.  I felt that my problem with the bars bore entry into the main discussion section.
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I installed the SW-M0tech engine crash bars today.  the bars are nice and go on easily.    However, the bolts are crap!!!!! I snapped two and almost snapped the third.  the nuts were soft enought that they were deforming!   I ended up making new bolts out of 7/16 threaded rod. 

If you have a set of the suzuki case guards bolts (2 bolts and 2 nuts) that are left over from something (like you've replaced the guards due to a broken weld on the crash bar that I hear about), I'd like to buy the bolts and nuts.

Pleas email me at ian doht ellis aht bestbuy doht com
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[Kerry]

Did you use a torque wrench to tighten the nuts on the new engine mounting bolts?  This is more of a SW-Motech "quality assurance" question than an investigation into your technique.

If you used the same amount of torque that the manual lists for the stock mounting bolts, and the new bolts snapped ... that's obviously not good.  But if you happened to exceed the torque numbers "for good measure" or whatever, then the jury is still out on the bolts they included in the kit.

Either way - good info!  Did you end up using threaded rod from a home center, or from some other source?

[AprilIan]

I used a Sears dial torque wrench ( 1 year old).  The wrench worked fine before this, it also worked fine later when I reinstalled the stock bolts and also when I installed the threaded rod. 

The manual torque is 60 to 72 NM.  I couldn't get it up to 60.  I usually set the wrench on the low end first.  That is why I concluded the bolts and nuts were too soft.

I bought the rod at NAPA and the shouldered nuts (they spread the force better and are the same as are on the stock bolts) from ACE hardware.

That does not mean that all SW-Motcech bolts are bad, just the batch I received.  Interestingly, the threads were not clean on one of the bolts and I had to chase them before installing the bolt.  I wonder if the soft material and the poorly cut threads are connected.

[Kerry]

Thanks for the reply.  Details are good! 

[AprilIan]

I am getting great communication from Twisted Throttle

Here is the pertinent part
"After speaking with SW-MOTECH, we have found that they are shipping us bolts that have been tested to be stronger and not break like you said.  It appears that there may have been a bad batch made on one production date. "

They are providing new bolts.  I suggest that if you bought and installed SW Motech bars sourced from Twisted Throttle over this winter, that you dismantle one (or more)of the bolts and see if you have deformation in the bolt or nut.  I don't think this is an immediate safety concern, but the noise of one bolt snapping in a tight corner would have a tremendous pucker factor rating   also, the handling might suddenly change from the bolt breaking.

Things to look for:
thread spacing stretched below where the nut has been attached
bolt bent at the point the nut attaches
flat portion of the nut (that rides against the crash bar) deformed and looks like a car lug nut
nuts that don't spin freely on the bolts  (If they feel like nylocks, that is going to require more torque to get the same level of clamping on the nuts)

AAAHHHHHH, vindication that I'm not inept with a torque wrench!

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

Glad to hear they're taking care of you.. hoping mine get shipped without the bad batch of bolts.. sometime in the next 2-3 weeks.. bastages!

[Alphamazing]

Hmm.. I got mine in November, but they shipped out to me almost instantly (6 days!). I think mine were made before that batch. Sweet. Might as well check them out anyways though.