My terrifing ride home from work

[davestrike]

Hey All,

I am just needing to get this off my chest. Still shaking a bit from a rather scary incident while riding my bike home from work.

I was travelling south bound on HWY 16, had just crossed over the new Narrows bridge and all of the sudden my engine dies and the rear wheel locks up! Or maybe the rear locked and the engine died.

So here I am traveling at 60 mph and now skidding along. God or something was watching over me! The rear tried to skid left, I had the presence of mind to counter steer and keep the bike upright! I came to a stop in the middle of the freeway (three lanes). Again God or someone was watching over me, no car from behind hit me!

The cutch is doing nothing, the gear selector is doing nothing, bike locked solid! Couldn't push or nothing!

As I am looking behind me trying to figure out how to get to the side of the road as cars and semis pass, praying the cars see me so I can at least get to safety, some cars do slow and turn on their flashers.

Some others pull off and help me drag/carry the bike to the side of the freeway.

Thank God for friendly and helpful people! I do not know about you, but I cannot push a 700 pound bike with a frozen rear wheel!

So now that I am not shaking I can type out my story. And I am so glad that I paid for that Roadside Assistance on my insurance! They towed/carried the bike to my house and helped me get her in the garage.

So now I am at home looking over my bike, shaking my head at the possibilites of the night. Thankful I am home in one piece and so is my bike. Then the thought of where do I begin on this repair job hits me!

To my buddies up here in the PNW, I maybe calling upon your expertise on this one!

Oh, and the Oyster Run for this month, well lets just say I am kinda out of it.

Thank you letting me share my story, it helps.

[latexeses]

Thank God you are all right. Someone was looking after you today for sure.
What ever happened to the bike pales in the light of what might have been.
I am going to pay special attention to the outcome of your "quest for the cause". I'm working on getting a neglected 79FS on the road. Episodes like this are a lesson to me about what might be lurking in my bike.
Take care. Once again..Glad you are OK.

[DiverRay]

Dave, that is VERY close to what my '79 did on Fathers Day!! I found the bike is in TWO gears at once. I was able to rock it and get the neutral light on, pull in the clutch, and the engine ran!!
I've yet to pull it apart to find out what went, but I WILL let you know once I do.
VERY happy that the people up there in Tacoma DID stop and help!

[Ken Talbot]

Glad you made it through that unscathed, Dave.

Once you're able to relax and check it out, I'm pretty sure you're going to find your middle drive unit is seized up. The good news is that this is an easy repair, and you'll be able to get a replacement unit for a prettty reasonable price. If it is any consolation, you're not the first guy this has happened to.

[mro]

Here in CA CA land we would have run you over and over and over and over.....

Scary


mro

[prometheus578]

"I'm gonna miss the OYSTER Run!"

Oh, CLAM up, ya baby!
Hahahahaaahahh!
(Clam up....! See, because he said "OYSTERs".... so I...)

Anyway... If the engine starts with the clutch pulled in, then the engine's OK. (unless it's clutch related, then the engine may not rotate)
Oh, and it was nice of the tow truck driver to help you MUSSEL the bike into your garage.
Anyway...
Get two clean drain pans. Drain the middle drive and the final drive. See if one o' dem has metal chunks in the oil.

Now then, if mammary serves me correctly, I seem to 'member havin' a crate in the shed with a middle drive in it. Seems I also recall seeing a final drive out there, too.
I might be inclined to supply parts. (iffn' I still have them)
Sure... I have a reputation for being a CRAB, but I certainly don't want to be SHELLFISH about it. To be able to render assistance to you, would warm the COCKLES of my heart.

Now, don't go all jumpin' up and down yet...
Like I said, this stuff is out in the big shed.
Here's the problem...
My brother is flyin' in on Friday...
One of the projects we'll be doing is putting a floor in the big shed... so it might take me a week to now "re-find' this stuff!
And you know me, I move at a SNAIL's pace.
Once you determine which part broke, if I've got it, I can let you have it for a song.
Do you know "Melancholy Baby"... or maybe show tunes from OKLAHOMA!"?




I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
T.S. Eliot

[mstic2000]

Wow that's a tough act to follow prometheus, the master of inuendo's. LOL

Anyway.....can't beat that roadside assistance. I got it and don't leave home without it.......for exactly that reason.

[trbig]

My money is on the middle drive also... if I was a betting kinda guy. You can swap these out easily with the engine in place. If you don't want to wait on Pro's kindness (Not sure what to think about that.. kinda scary seeing him in this state.. or any other state for that matter..) I'm sure Andreas has one just north of you that he'd ship quickly. Just make another gasket while you're waiting on it, and it should only be a 30 minute job. If it's the final drive... not much longer, and I'm sure Andreas would have one of those also.

Either that, or drive to Pro's house while he's making a beer and cigarette run. He always stops by the grade school to stare at the little girls for an extended time. This will give you time to rumage through his shed yourself..


Tod

[andreashweiss]

middle drive unit

I agree with the group, middle drive most likely locked up, little or no oil will come out of that drain plug, most likely dry. I certainly have a replacement middle drive unit (with gasket) ready to ship if you need one, send me a private message. thanx andreas

[Ivan]

I have three extra middle drives and an extra final drive, if it happens to be that. If the other guys don't work out, let me know.

[prometheus578]

"Beware of imitations...."

All parts... and no puns!

[fredintoon]

Pro must be punnished

" if mammary serves me correctly,"
So, you are admitting that you are a singular tit? Making a clean breast of it, even?
BTW, you must have to remove the stuff off the old floor to install the new one?
That'd be a good time to look inside those boxes?

[prometheus578]

So, you are admitting that you are a singular tit?

Quite good, Fred.
Yeah, well, last week when I started preppin'... it was grab crates, drag 'em out and stack 'em somewhere else. I didn't look inside o' dem.
I shall next week.
Oh, no old floor, just gravel.

[davestrike]

Wow!
Thanks for all the replies and hopeful sources of parts!
I have not even looked at the bike since parking it last night.

What I am thinking about doing, maybe over kill, is starting at the rear end and removing the final drive on forward to inspect for any damage after that 4,000 RPM to 0 RPM stop!
I would rather do the work and insure that no internal parts broke that may cause a jam up again.

Thoughts?

[Crazcnuk]

"I would rather do the work and insure that no internal parts broke that may cause a jam up again"

Thoroughness is next to godliness!

However, if it is a middle drive, or a final drive that locked, you should be ok with just fixing or replacing the affected part. They rest of the drivetrain is very rugged, and can handle a lock-up with ease.

Once the tire breaks loose, there is not that much force on the drivetrain!