PS lock nuts.............
on the inside so you don't see em.
on the inside so you don't see em.
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Mailman’s Suzuki C50 Boulevard
- Thread starter Mailman
- Start date
Well that sucks. 
Dang Bob, why are you getting those type of vibrations to lose and crack your adds.
I had thought about that, the lens does not come off though. It is a glued together housing , sort of like a new headlight.
I don’t think it’s bike vibrations so much. I tend to ride two lane farm roads and back roads as much as possible and they tend to be rather rough and cobby at times.
If that was Chinese hardware, it's quiet possible. I've seen some that's prolly wouldn't even make Grade 3. I think I'd look somewhere like Bolt Depot for some M8.8's or M10.9 .
Strangely enough, my '05 H-D Road King has never had anything vibrate loose in the 50k miles I've put on it. Every time I go on an overnighter or once a month, I nut and bolt it. Nothing has ever been loose. I guess some engines vibrate at just the right frequency to shake stuff loose, but I'll leave that theory to the forum members that have an actual engineering background.Today I took advantage of our beautiful weather and took a half day ride, 180 miles all in. I rode to Gila Bend , if Arizona had an armpit, Gila Bend is it.This ride was most definitely not about the destination, but rather the old two lane highway to get there. It used to be the main highway but it was bypassed years ago by a great big super slab, so now almost nobody travels on the old road……except me.
The ride was great, but more to the point.
What the hell is it with me and luggage on this bike?!
Not that long ago, I returned home from a similar ride , only to realize that my brand new Nelson Riggs tail bag had somehow come undone and flew the coup.
Today I returned home, only to realize that somehow two of the bolts holding my luggage rack went AWOL, allowing my rack and top case to flop down and hit my tail light , cracking it.
View attachment 230542View attachment 230543View attachment 230544View attachment 230545
That taillight assembly is a three piece affair, a chrome ring, gasket and the tail lamp assembly that is all one glued together housing. Anyone care to guess what Suzuki gets for one of them jewels?? I’m still trying to pick my jaw up off the floor.
Btw, the mounting bolts had crown nuts on them that I had installed with threadlocker and no lock washers because I didn’t want to mar the chrome. I don’t think the nuts fell off, I’m more inclined to believe that the small mild steel , bolts broke. I’m thinking about enlarging the holes a bit and getting some hardened bolts to replace them.
Attempted Tail Light Repair, Part 1
Given how stupid expensive this tail light is to replace, I’ve decided I have nothing to lose by trying to repair it.
The best price I’ve found for an OEM replacement is $310 , add tax and delivery and it’s more like $350, and from what I could find, there are no aftermarket replacements, and I couldn’t find a used one on EBay. If I eventually decide to replace it, I will look harder. But for now………
I mentioned this light is a sealed unit, so if I want to attempt a repair, I’m first going to have to separate the lens from the assembly. So I removed the light and this is what the unit looks like.
Then I found a spot to insert a small flat blade screwdriver and began to gently pry the lens off. There was enough flex in the plastic that a little persistent flexing would result in a pop! And an inch or two would separate.
I was surprised to see that under the red lens was another clear lens that covered a circuit board with 18 LED’s.
You can see the crack a little more clearly, and now I can access the lens from the inside to super glue it.
I did as @gggGary suggested and applied a line of super glue to the crack and then sort of flexed it with my thumbs to flow it into the crack, which it did surprisingly well. I have no doubt the repair is structurally sound, as I can see the glue has come all the way through the crack to the outside.
The only problem I see is cosmetic, that super glue is really thin and it wicked into the surrounding areas very quickly. On the sides of the inside there is sort of a frosted look and where the glue flowed and it changes the look. I may be able to touch it up with a fine tip Dremel stone to de gloss it. And on the outside of the lens where the glue came through. I have a headlight restoration kit that I already know can work wonders on plastic lenses.
So that’s where things are at right now, I left it to dry overnight. Then I’ll see what i can do with it.
What have I got to lose?
To be continued…….
Given how stupid expensive this tail light is to replace, I’ve decided I have nothing to lose by trying to repair it.
The best price I’ve found for an OEM replacement is $310
, add tax and delivery and it’s more like $350, and from what I could find, there are no aftermarket replacements, and I couldn’t find a used one on EBay. If I eventually decide to replace it, I will look harder. But for now………I mentioned this light is a sealed unit, so if I want to attempt a repair, I’m first going to have to separate the lens from the assembly. So I removed the light and this is what the unit looks like.
Then I found a spot to insert a small flat blade screwdriver and began to gently pry the lens off. There was enough flex in the plastic that a little persistent flexing would result in a pop! And an inch or two would separate.
I was surprised to see that under the red lens was another clear lens that covered a circuit board with 18 LED’s.
You can see the crack a little more clearly, and now I can access the lens from the inside to super glue it.
I did as @gggGary suggested and applied a line of super glue to the crack and then sort of flexed it with my thumbs to flow it into the crack, which it did surprisingly well. I have no doubt the repair is structurally sound, as I can see the glue has come all the way through the crack to the outside.
The only problem I see is cosmetic, that super glue is really thin and it wicked into the surrounding areas very quickly. On the sides of the inside there is sort of a frosted look and where the glue flowed and it changes the look. I may be able to touch it up with a fine tip Dremel stone to de gloss it. And on the outside of the lens where the glue came through. I have a headlight restoration kit that I already know can work wonders on plastic lenses.
So that’s where things are at right now, I left it to dry overnight. Then I’ll see what i can do with it.
What have I got to lose?
To be continued…….
Great repair! Nice hack to fix cracked plastic.
The XS650 brick taillight also has a clear lens on the inside. Once upon a time, mine shook loose. Those 1157 lamps did a great job of melting it.
Just pretend it’s chrome………you will have no problems.
A great tradition has been born, Bobberizing!
Only the carpenter sees his mistakes
Might try scraping those inside glossed ridges a bit with an exacto or utility knife blade tomorrow.
Were the bottom mount bolts loose?
My thoughts exactly.
No, not at all. That’s what makes me think they were cheap bolts and they just broke.
That box has the frontal area of a drag chute.
I'd guess it gets a fair bit of buffeting.... and those bolts take quiet a beating me thinks. I might even consider drilling the holes up a size for fatter bolts.
.... jus' to hedge your bets.
Bob, curious if there is a forum out there for these bikes like we have here? Just wondering if there are other caveat’s out there to watch out for.
Bob, you are a tenacious wizard! 
