Goddamned Aprilia.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 1:46 pm

My front brake light switch took a dump.

It's seriously just a simple, on/off plunger switch. It doesn't have any funky leads or connectors, it isn't part of a larger assembly, it's just a switch with two wires coming out of it, and two little plastic plugs in a specific configuration to mount to its little spot on the bars.

Aprilia wants over thirty fucking dollars for the thing, and it's a special order part.

...so retarded.

All I can say is thank god I don't own a Ducati, coz at least I don't have to deal with expensive service/repair items like this ALL of the time.

It's engineering time, coz there's no way I'm gonna shell out $30 for that stupid switch right now.

Sisyphus · Post by **Sisyphus** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 2:19 pm

Magura might make something similar to that. I suppose you could go to the local offroad/atv shop and poke around, see what they have.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 2:47 pm

The switch itself is something that one could pick up *anywhere.* It's the mounting configuration that's the hassle.
I need to see if the front brake hardware is 'priller specific and start from there.

In the meantime, though, the switch itself still works. It's just that the plunger part has gone missing. Since it's teeny, I'm having a hard time finding anything that will fit to take its place (aside from a tiny twig from the tree in front of my house, but that's not gonna cut it).

Bestguess · Post by **Bestguess** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 4:45 pm

All I can say is thank god I don't own a Ducati, coz at least I don't have to deal with expensive service/repair items like this ALL of the time

Hey, hey... what do you mean?!?
How is not perfectly normal to
get financially raped for a small Ducati radiator at $900 a whack?
Damn

Post by **Beemer Dan** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 6:04 pm

BMW is the same way. I remember $25 washers that are used on the /7 fuel tap assemblies (all models after 1977 up until the superboxer were considered /7's BTW). I'm not looking forward to 25 years down the road when nobody is making the computer brain boxes for our bikes, and we'll need to make shady late night deals with the local hackers. Being forced to pay in Vile Substance That Shall Not Be Named™ and virtual sexual favors.

hmmm... now that I think about it, that might not be as bad as it sounds.

xaos · Post by **xaos** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 9:09 pm

replace? i rather like the blinking taillight. it's sort of a "general caution" to anyone who you aren't passing

maniacles · Post by **maniacles** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 9:27 pm

Try hosing it out with some contact cleaner. Or, see if you can adapt the "pressure switch in the banjo bolt" part.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:32 am

maniacles wrote:Try hosing it out with some contact cleaner. Or, see if you can adapt the "pressure switch in the banjo bolt" part.

There is no pressure switch. It is a mechanical switch and the plunger piece has taken its leave. I can stick a tiny twig in there to get the brake light to turn off, but that's about the only thing I've found that's small enough to fit in there.

guitargeek · Post by **guitargeek** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 5:21 am

Got Super Glue? Maybe some little piece of plastic lying around the house would be a suitable size & shape?

Just a thought...

Bigshankhank · Post by **Bigshankhank** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 5:26 am

Went through the same thing on my 900SS, find the manufacturer of the master cylinder and see if any other bike uses them. As it turns out I was able to find a replacement switch from a CBR600F4i from a salvage yard. $5

stiles · Post by **stiles** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 10:30 am

Bestguess: why did you need to replace the radiator on your 1098? Was it leaking? You're aware that Ducati has issued an updated, redesigned part? I've goodwilled a few of those.

WAFS - that wee switch is something like 60 bucks from Ducati. Aprilia is actually the cheaper option when common parts like switches cross over. Certain Ducati, Triumph, Moto Guzzi, MV Agusta and BMW all use the same metal fuel filter, made by Knecht Mahle. Literally the same, same case, type, stampings, everything.

Guzzi - $54
Triumph - $47
Ducati - $28
MV - $24
BMW - $22

The same OEM spark plugs can vary from $7 to $21 ea, same with certain fuel tank O-rings - $8 to $29. We mix and match identical manufacturer parts when possible to lower the bills for customers while still maintaining our margin.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 11:02 am

guitargeek wrote:Got Super Glue? Maybe some little piece of plastic lying around the house would be a suitable size & shape?

Just a thought...

That's exactly where my brain is. I just haven't found anything that is the right size and would also be strong enough.

Bigshankhank · Post by **Bigshankhank** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:01 pm

stiles wrote:Certain Ducati, Triumph, Moto Guzzi, MV Agusta and BMW all use the same metal fuel filter, made by Knecht Mahle. Literally the same, same case, type, stampings, everything.

Guzzi - $54
Triumph - $47
Ducati - $28
MV - $24
BMW - $22
.

I found a NAPA fuel filter (don't remember the number) that has worked for both of my Ducati's, like $12 each. Of course I have steel tank bikes, not the newer plastic ones.

goose · Post by **goose** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 6:54 pm

the radiator from ducati and mv are the same . . . mv is $300 and ducati is $900. funny huh? fuckers!

Whiskeywrist · Post by **Whiskeywrist** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 10:00 pm

Kimball- take a pic of the area in question, and I'll take a look at my Tuono and see if I can come up with a fix you can duplicate for cheap/free.

I may have something around the shop I can hack for you, too, depending.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:02 am

I am pic incapable at the moment, but I CAN tell you that it's part number ap8124288. If you go to http://www.af1racing.com/store/Scripts/ ... tegory=451 and look at the diagram, its diagram/line number is 20.

From there you should be able to locate the part on your bike. If you'd like a better look, it just presses right out with a small screwdriver when you give its little mounting plug a poke from the bar end side.

Whiskeywrist · Post by **Whiskeywrist** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 5:35 pm

So, you're missing the pin actuator that connects the brake lever flange to the guts of the switch?

Is the spring still in there?

Seems like you could drill out the end of the lever flange, and screw a #4 machine screw through it so that it pokes all the way through and hits the switch. You could tap the hole, and adjust the sensitivity by backing the screw out/screwing it in or grinding the end off with a file.

If this is indeed your problem, I'm a bit baffled how that pin came out in the first place!

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 8:24 pm

That is indeed the problem. No idea how it went, either.

I will have to look at the lever to be sure, but my first reaction is that the drill/screw idea wont work because the screw will then trace an arc instead of linearly actuating. The hole is so tiny that I think any lateral motion would just wonk the whole thing out.

I also believe that the spring inside the switch isn't a coil, rather, just a small metal tab, so it's not something that can really be lost.

Whiskeywrist · Post by **Whiskeywrist** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 8:49 pm

After looking at it, it seems the conical rubber boot is what holds the actuator in place. Without it, I'm not sure how you'd retain even a kludged together shim.

It kinda seems like one of those "too small to hack, for the money" type jobs.

It could certainly be fixed, but for less than $30? labor and materials? You might be best off just biting the bullet on this one.

If you're handy, electricalwise,
Mouser.com

or

electronicsgoldmine.com

probably has a switch that you could sub in there, but you'd have to wrangle a mounting solution, and work an interim widget to make the whole thing work.

In the mean time, how about a cut off piece off toothpick, held in with electrical/gaff tape, checked/replaced as necessary until you can affford the OEM or better solution? Maybe throw an E-clip on it or two?

Good luck, yo...

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 12:42 am

Toothpick is a good one.
I was going to use either a part of a condom or an inner tube, glued to the housing and run over the ghetto actuator to hold it in place.

It is DEFINITELY a bite the bullet type of deal, but as of this moment, I just don't have the cash.

stiles · Post by **stiles** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 10:42 pm

WAFS, pm me your addy and I'll see if we have something in the takeoff bins at work. No guarantees, and we definitely won't have the correct one, but perhaps I can find something salvageable.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:56 am

That is very much appreciated, but my tax returns have landed, so I am going to bite the bullet and drop $30 on the switch.

Thanks, though!!!

stiles · Post by **stiles** » Wed Mar 10, 2010 9:03 pm

No prob! For future reference, K&L makes a hydraulically activated switch that replaces the banjo bolt in the clutch or brake master cylinders. It's about 20 bucks and made in taiwan, so perhaps a less than ideal solution, but there you are.

I'm using one with the Brembo RCS radial clutch master going into my Sport 1000 since that unit lacks any provisions for a mechanical clutch switch.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Wed Mar 10, 2010 11:54 pm

I've actually got one of those on my rear brake, since the original one was a mechanical switch, but I've got rearsets that rendered it non-functional.

It's a little big and ugly for anything on the handlebars. At least for my taste in things. (Though I'm not sure of the brand, so yours might be neater and cuter.)

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Goddamned Aprilia.

Goddamned Aprilia.