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Slightly bending brake and clutch lever for comfort


theroamr
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Anybody remove them and put a torch to them and bend an inch or so purposely. Reason I’m asking finding adjustable levers for the super tenere is hard enough and then there from China which takes nearly a month. Don’t wanna spend $ 200 either

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52 minutes ago, theroamr said:

Anybody remove them and put a torch to them and bend an inch or so purposely. Reason I’m asking finding adjustable levers for the super tenere is hard enough and then there from China which takes nearly a month. Don’t wanna spend $ 200 either

Personally, I would keep looking/spend the money. Taking a chance that your clutch lever may fail will likely make every ride less enjoyable; the possibility of the front brake lever becoming inoperable is, to me, at least, unacceptable.

My two cents . . . 

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i've seen some bent down to match but  in the main force direction for adjusting. not sure if the torch would help.

you could swap the perches with something with adjustable.

wouldn't a set screw between the lever and it's stop let you adjust the distance just with more effort than a dial?

 

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6 hours ago, theroamr said:

Anybody remove them and put a torch to them and bend an inch or so purposely. Reason I’m asking finding adjustable levers for the super tenere is hard enough and then there from China which takes nearly a month. Don’t wanna spend $ 200 either

Please remember that these controls are basically your lifelines! Why would you willingly (potentially) compromise them? Just sayin'.

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Can you find an OEM bend one for cheap? If so buy it as a back up, toss it in a bag on the bike, torch and bend away. I’d start with the clutch first and see how it holds. If all goes well move onto the brake. An extra clutch lever won’t take up too much space in a bag and shouldn’t be took hard to swap out on the side of the road. I’m pretty sure I bent a clutch lever on a quad years ago and did exactly what you’re thinking of doing. I remember it being just fine. 

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Heat it with a plumbers torch and bend it gently. If you aren't going far with the angle, then it will be fine. It sees very little stress. 

It may look like shit when you are done. Also, take it off the bike and clamp it into a shop vise or clamp onto a steel surface. 

Lastly, easy on the gas. A little heat goes a long way with aluminum. 

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21 minutes ago, theroamr said:

Yep that was my plan with the torch and vice. But I finally found a set on eBay. I haven’t been on eBay in awhile. Amazon is where all my purchases happen

I don’t really do eBay anymore either. Amazon isn’t very good for some bike parts. Amazon gets way to much of my money.

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I wouldn't do this. I'd imagine bending them would make them weaker. I also don't recommend cheap levers, even though I'm using an ebay set right now on my bike (I liked the color 😂). 

I was at an OR thing up at bike night years back on my old vmax and some chick who was in front of me at the light (forget which of you sammich makers it was) stalled as soon as we pulled away from the light, not even 1mph yet. I grabbed my brake lever and it fucking snapped right off and my feet were still down so no rear brake and I ended up dumping it over... No damage to the bike other than the lever, it had highway pegs that caught the fall... Super embarrassing lol.... Could have also been way worse if that lever snapped at a different moment than it did. All I did was grab it and it snapped right off at the base. Long ride home without a front brake too lol

 

*oh, and the levers on that were cheapo bike master from IP. I replaced them with OEM.

Edited by Steve Butters
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Now wondering what was I thinking... I've straightened a few from the 60s, by just putting them on a block of wood and hitting them with a big hammer. None of them ever broke. But I wouldn't overdo it, there are limits. I think it would make a big difference whether it was cast or drawn/forged/machined. Cast will break without much help. That bike master lever was probably cast. Yes, castings will break just yanking on them with your hand. It only requires a weak spot, like one little flaw in the casting grain of the metal.

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