Maybe there's another fix, but I'm wondering if there's something I can spray into my turn cancel button to get it to work more freely.  I don't want to use something that will mess it up of course.  I thought I'd ask before I start spraying WD40 (probably OK, but effective for long?) or graphite or something even heavier.

Its operation requires me (1) to be sure the button is centered as it sticks to the side I was signalling and is picky about its centering when I need to (2) push pretty danged hard for a little plastic piece.  I don't know how much of this it will take.

Thanks,
Mike D.

PS:  If an OEM or aftermarket replacement will work VERY well out of the box, I don't mind going there.

the least expensive / easy way around this is...

remove the 2 phillips head screws from the switch on the bars. *you will see the screws when looking from under the hi/low beam // turn signal switch housing.

be careful here and pay attention on how the choke cable is connected / routed so it doesnt come back to haunt you!

clean each part and use some wd/40 or white lithium grease to lube the moving parts. if you use wd 40, wait for it to dry before reassembley.

once the lube is added, do your best to move the parts just like they would be if you were riding.


*** you might have to remove the bar weight and grip to do this ***

hope it helps!
chris<pixelmonkey>

Well. I had a similar problem.. mine would cancel ok, but then it wouldn't pop back out so that I could use the turn signal again... I'd have to try and pry it out with my fingers while riding, which is pretty tricky with gloves on...

So I took it apart, sprayed it w/ WD40 and that worked for about 2 weeks. Then it started doing it again. Took it apart again and this time actually paid attention to what what causing the difficulty. If you look into the mechanism that moves around when you move the switch, there is a single phillips head screw that I backed off about half a turn. Sprayed it w/ WD40 again and that was about a month and a half ago. I suppose there is some risk of the screw backing itself out all the way now since it isn't tight, but it hasn't so far, and it isn't getting any looser or more wobbly, so I think I'm ok...

Anyway, that's my experience with the turn signal switch being troublesome. Good luck.

trey

*edit* oh yeah, you shouldn't have to remove the grip or bar end.. just remove the two screws holding the assembly together all the way and the switch gear will disconnect into two parts.. Just pry them apart and you can see what I'm talking about.

Trey and Chris,

Thanks so much for the first-hand advice.  The sun's out, so today might actually be a good day to try to fix it AND ride it.  I'll report back how it all goes.  We're not that far apart.  Maybe you'll see me!  (OK, that's a stretch.)

Best regards,
Mike Dougherty
Weatherford, OK

looks like peidmont / kingfisher would be around the 1/2 way point...

i know of a great little restraunt in akarche!


keep in touch! if the weather is nice this coming weekend i might be up for it!
chris<pixelmonkey>
Stillwater, Oklahaoma

Hey that would be cool.  We could trade bikes and see if there's any difference.  I might be able to get some non-GS riders and we could really have some fun.  I'll just have to convince the wife unit.

Later,
Mike D.

Quote from: geekonabikeHey that would be cool.  We could trade bikes and see if there's any difference.  I might be able to get some non-GS riders and we could really have some fun.  I'll just have to convince the wife unit.

Later,
Mike D.

a friend with a kawi lives in peidmont... he might be up for a ride... *given he isnt working*

i'll check around and see if anyone else from stillwater wants to get away before finals begin.

chris<pixelmonkey>

Or maybe after finals if you're still up for it.  Our finals begin Thursday and run until the next Wednesday.  The following Thursday is freedom day for me.  Are you going to be gone right after your finals?

BTW I wimped out a little.  I did get it apart enough to see the metal Y (more like U with a handle) attached to the signal, and gave it a squirt of some really nasty contact cleaner followed by some Tri-Flo (I think), which might not be the best for contacts but is a better lube than WD40 I think.  Maybe a bad idea, but it (and a slight loosening of that one screw) works well enough now that I don't have to watch it so much to be sure I have it just right before I cancel a signal (I just push and look for the flashing idiot light out of the lower corners of my eyes to see if it's still blinking).

I noticed the extra spray just came out some holes underneat that switch assembly.  I wonder if a couple squirts of, say, WD40 into those holes periodically would also keep this problem in check.

FWIW I also did my first kerosene chain cleaning (made a BIG MESS!!), and in fact my first bike wash (using HondaBrite left over from my CB250 days, Orange Blast, two buckets of car wash, and water and a garden hose), and then a chain lube from some clear spray I got at a motorcycle shop ("Safe for O-Rings").  Then I did a grocery store run (took the scenic route) and the bike looked really good in the parking lot lights at night.  Someday I'll query the list or database on how hard it is to take off the chain, and then maybe I'll really soak it in kerosene, and maybe even soak it in lube though I think the latter is overkill.  But a clean looking chain (and sprockets) would do a lot for the bike's image I'd think.

This is me avoiding grading exams.  Back to the grindstone.

Thanks for the help.  I'll be more ambitious if I have to take the button apart a second time.

--Mike D.

Oh yea that stoopid switch assy gets crudded up every 6-7 years ... and that mofo is the most complicated POS in this bike ... open it take it apart and clean the living daylights out of it... yea lots of sand and dust and crap will come out ... then 6-7 years later boom you have to do it again ... makes you want to buy a Harley and never ride it and keep it in the garage and polish it ... just that switch cleaning ... Whihc is why I recomend synthetic blinker fluid and changing it every 30,000,000 blinks ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Guys, we really need to get Srinath a job.  He has too much time on his hands.

I mean.....uhm.....

HEY SRINATH,

Good to hear back from you buddy!  

Hey I put the stock bars on the bike you sent me, oh, four months ago or so.  Remember?  Better than the (albeit very shiney) replacements that were on there but I might go find something else, so that my wrists will feel even more "neutral."  In fact a Victory Eight Ball seemed to work for me, but somehow I doubt those bars will work the same on the GS.

BTW, is Honda blinker synth as good as the 'zuki stuff?  Maybe Mobile-1 has something.

I guess I need to give more attention to my own day job.  Sigh.

Later,
Mike D.

Wrists ... natural ... I belive you said the code for ... Srinath 2 weld bars ... nothing else feels right on a 90-00 GS ... I have tried it all ... Buy one and get a 4 weld free ... muhaahaahaahaahaa ....
Cool.
Srinath.

Remind me what is the link where you were describing and selling the bars?  I might be game for a set.  --Mike D.

OK I have to search for it myself...
2 mins...
Cool.
Srinath.

OK this seems to be the best link I found... The 4 welds are SV ones, and I have the last 3 which I believe I wont be selling any more of, They do fit a GS, and the 2 weld ones are the GS ones. Try them on and see ... The 2 weld bar is going to need some light sanding at the spot where switches go on etc - its ~ a hundredths too big ... The 4 weld is probably going to need duct tape at the spot where it has switches ... its ~ 100th's too small ... The powder coating is unpredictable in thickness, I started with 7/8th and got too thick, I tried a coouple 100's under and got too thin ...  :x
http://www.gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=11953
Cool.
Srinath.

Don't mean to threadjack (tho looks like it's been done already) but:

1) Srinath, I'm having second thoughts about your bars. Not that I don't want them, I'm just not sure which ones. I too want a comfortable position; would the 2-welds or the clip-ons be better for that? (01+)

2) After I gave my bike to a shop for carb cleaning, when it came back the choke lever was sticky, it didn't want to move smoothly. It's not as big a problem as turn signals, since choke use is rarer and I've been doing chokeless warmups lately, but it's still annoying. (And distressing, since it only happened after the carb maintenance -- did they mess up my bike? Grr, I'll do it myself next time...)

OK choke lever, many places it can bind, of course if they sprayed carb cleaner in the choke assy, you might want to spray some sliicone in there now, cos they could have well washed off the lubricant that was in there. Of course the lever and the cable are also worth looking at ... kinks in cable = binding too.
The bars ... OK 01+ I have not got a set that will work. 04+ pretty much the same as 01+ .... Now yes I said natural etc etc for the bars to him, but hey I know him from before ... and the savage mailing list etc ... and he was even then tap dancing around what bars to get ... The 90-00 bars I have are very evolved and near perfect. The clip on's will also let you with the same correct angles etc for the wrists to be comfy in ... with the limitation being the bike itself... or to put it in other words ... the bike is going to pretty much dictate where the bars can be and at what angle ... I make a set for the 04+ or 01+ and chances are the clip on's will be identical to that in the end position of your hands ... you follow ... I just think ... on a 01+ there is a lot fewer positions the bars can be in, and the 2 weld bars if I make them, will end up being just like the clip on's for final hand position. So I think clip'ons might be the best for an 04. Nothing to gain really with a 2 weld type. Also I like the clip on's for their failure limitation ... though the 2 weld ones are so strong they most likely will survive a crash ... OK within reason.
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: miloDon't mean to threadjack (tho looks like it's been done already) but:
.
.
.
2) After I gave my bike to a shop for carb cleaning, when it came back the choke lever was sticky, it didn't want to move smoothly. It's not as big a problem as turn signals, since choke use is rarer and I've been doing chokeless warmups lately, but it's still annoying. (And distressing, since it only happened after the carb maintenance -- did they mess up my bike? Grr, I'll do it myself next time...)

FWIW when I put my turn signal etc. assembly back together my choke stopped moving so well, I think similarly to your situation.  I think I overtightened something, or put it back together wrong.  It still works but is a pain.  When I'm next motivated I'll try to do something about it.  One screw under the controls holds a flat metal doo-hicky which holds in a spring and a little white plastic piece 'round abouts (maybe left of) the choke lever (from memory here).  I probably put it together wrong.  Maybe your guys did too.  Uncool.

--Mike D.

Yeah, uncool indeed. No more getting ripped off by shops, one way or another. I'll take a look at the choke this winter after exams are over -- along with my new shock, new pegs, new mirrors, new bars (cool S. I'll go with clip-ons), new fairings and maybe a valve adjustment -- man, I'm gonna have a whole new bike come March...

Quote from: geekonabikeOr maybe after finals if you're still up for it.  Our finals begin Thursday and run until the next Wednesday.  The following Thursday is freedom day for me.  Are you going to be gone right after your finals?

all test for my classes will be complete before this week is over.  

i'll know more as the week winds down.

out to do a 5:30
chris<pixelmonkey>

Quote from: miloYeah, uncool indeed. No more getting ripped off by shops, one way or another. I'll take a look at the choke this winter after exams are over -- along with my new shock, new pegs, new mirrors, new bars (cool S. I'll go with clip-ons), new fairings and maybe a valve adjustment -- man, I'm gonna have a whole new bike come March...

It is nice to take care of so many things at once (or in close temporal proximity).  Like you said, feels like having a new bike.

My point on the choke cable was that it probably was not a big costly mistake they made, if any.  It's just tricky to put it back together, and if they don't bother to work that cable before and after they might not realize they screwed it up.   I need to redo mine, or experiment with that spring and plastic piece to get it right.  I'm not above squirting some graphite lube in there to free things up.  Maybe send some cable lube down there too.

Later,
Mike D.