Sacrificial lamb... i mean levers...

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thump*140

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Okay kiddies, Uncle Thump's "helpful" tip for the day...
Too stingy to buy bendy asv copy levers?
Fall over a lot, and break levers much?
Overdo the "Motohaka" at parties, and go clutchless on sunday morning?

Then I have a wee trick for you...
you will need: Drill and 4mm drill bit.
Steel File.
Lever from your bike.
Five minutes away from MR and PS3 or Xbox...
25021-sacrificial-lamb-i-mean-levers1.jpg

Using a drill, drill a hole through the lever from front to back, about an inch in from the end...
25021-sacrificial-lamb-i-mean-levers2.jpg

25021-sacrificial-lamb-i-mean-levers3.jpg

Then, using the steel file, file two grooves, directly above, and below the hole in the lever....
25021-sacrificial-lamb-i-mean-levers4.jpg

25021-sacrificial-lamb-i-mean-levers5.jpg

What this does, is create a weak point in the lever. When you get thrown, the weak point takes the brunt of the stack, and the lever will break AT THE HOLE...Instead of at the pivot point where the lever mounts on the bracket... So if you bust the lever, at least you still have 90% of it left over, as opposed to a short stub, you cant use anyway. Murphys Law will dictate you will drop your bike taking it off the trailer as soon as you get to your favourite riding spot at the start of a long weekend away... Leaving you without a clutch or brake lever for the rest of the trip... So if you had bought bendy levers, or done uncle Thump's trick, you wouldnt be a sulky minirider now would you?

Works a treat guys, quick, cheap and easy. :D
Dont believe it works everytime, go try it.... ;)
 
thats an awesome idea mate...

i usually just leave my levers a flysht loose so they can spin on the bars with a bit of effort....still doesnt save them 100% but in addition to your idea i doubt youd ever need to buy another lever...
 
Yeah before i discovered "genuine" ASV bendy levers on Egay, i had been using this trick for years...
An old farmer taught me this one, and to date i am yet to bust a lever "properly"... I've tried running my levers a bit loose, using tape under the clamps, or even the proper plastic rings to allow the clamps to spin on the bars if you get chucked, but i'm fussy with lever heights, so i've always gone back to sacrificial lever tip thingy..
Handy little trick. :D
 
nice thump*, lol have ya noticed on big jap bikes(YZF, CRF, KXF's etc etc) the levers already have this groove in their levers
 
he he, the last new bike i bought was an '06 model... havent actually seen anything more recent in the flesh..

So the Japs WERE spying on my old farmer mate all those years ago then.... ha ha
 
lol musta been, Even the aftermarket levers i buy have the grooves, but cant say i have ever seen them for mini's, but still not many people would no about this trick
 
because we dont all work for bike spares shops, and can steal them before and after the boss comes in... Hole in lever negates the need and cost of buying spare levers... lol..
Awwww hillz, why must you rain on my parade... ;)
 
plus when ya in the middle of nowhere and ya have a prang it only snaps off the stub of the lever and not ya perch etc etc
 
but but but! you can only break them once!

:rolleyes: what happens next weekend when you drop your bike getting it off the trailer again? screwed then, arent ya!!!!!

:p:p
 
well if your a smart cookie, you either drill another hole another inch in, until the lever disappears up it's own bum, learn how to ride and fall off less, or buy a replacement lever before next time...

lol...

smart ass...

still gets you out of trouble as opposed to having no lever for the weekend... ;)
 
I remember me and my mate went riding , untied the bikes and everything .... then decided to move the car , so i sat in the back holding 2 bikes and well we hit a big ass bump both bikes fall over snap there levers hahaha
 
^^^ see, if you had drilled and grooved your levers, woulda been apples!! ;)
 
or....

you could just slideyour whole lever perch down a couple of inches (if possible) so when you look at your bars the levers arent flush with bars but are in a inch or 2 what ever is comfortable
 
yeah, but you can still break em. my way takes 2 mins, and will only break on the end bit...
gets you out of the poo for very little effort, and you dont have to run your levers in an uncomfortable position. :D
 
how bout ya dont do em up tight and then if ya go down or drop they will spin on bars instead of snapping?ey

they still can snap... yes reduces the chances thats for sure

but it aint cool when your racing and your clutch lever is loose enough to moove when ya grab and your trying to push it into place while going around a corner :p

ad thump i like using the end of levers as you have less to pull so you can sometimes get away with one finger pull
 
My two bob's worth now. When I was riding enduros I would tape a spare clutch and accelerator cable to the cables concerned so if they snapped I already had the cable in place and ready to be fitted. As for levers I would tape two each of new brake and clutch levers to my handlebars so they were there when I needed them. Tools I use to carry in the bag on the back of my IT490 (ANYBODY GOT ONE FOR SALE?) were two 6" shifters,10"shifter,phillips head and blade screwys,roll of insulation tape,pair of pliers,sidecutters and a foot length of fuel line,spare fuel filter and clamps and a partridge in a pear tree. Got me through the races ok and never had a DNF. I used the short two finger plastic levers but I did see a few blokes doing Thumps trick though. And levers still break even when you have barkbusters on. They (Levers) do get caught in things even with the BB'S on.. I know as I had them on my IT.
Rgds Rastus.
 
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I used to ride an IT490 ... awesome old bike but scarce and expensive these days.
I think I saw a restored one going for around 7g a while back. I paid $1300 for mine but that was over 10 years ago.
 
I used to ride an IT490 ... awesome old bike but scarce and expensive these days.
I think I saw a restored one going for around 7g a while back. I paid $1300 for mine but that was over 10 years ago.

Parts are plentiful and no problem to get.Check Ebay. If you want something that will snap your arms off and push the eyeballs into the sockets this is a monster for you. Mine got stolen. Never to be found. I can handle a weapon like this and it was an absolute awesome monster to ride. Kick it in the guts on the straight and hang on, in the corners,boot down,body in and hang on to the beejezuz. This thing launched like no tomorrow. Just watch that band kick in and HANG ON.
 

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