Do I Go Fishing for Bolt or Leave it Dilema

[1SpyderGal]

Ok, so I went and got a 3/8" breaker bar at Sears and began wrenching the stubborn Locktite bolt on the center handlebar when wrench slips off the stock bolt and the 7mm socket pops off the breaker wrench and falls through the space under the center of the steering column. Its not under the Spyder nor in the front trunk so it is somewhere under the body pannels. Will this fall out on its own onto the roadway on my next ride or will it get into something it shouldn't, causing hundreds of dollars of damage? Do I now pay a mechanic to strip the pannels off to go fishing for that socket or do I leave it and pray? What would you folks recommend. My Honda Shadow and Rebel were way easier to work on than this stupid Spyder, it's not a poor girls toy that's for sure. Bankrupt in Florida?

[ARtraveler]

Welcome to the been there, done that club.

Rule #1. Anytime you are going to wrestle with a bolt, cover the area with a towel or similar to catch the bolt. They are usually never found when they fall into the bike.

Will it do damage? Generally not enough moving parts to cause an issue.

I have a missing bolt somewhere in the back on my old 08--when I installed the Corbin seat.

I have a missing bolt somewhere in the front of the 09--when I installed the Corbin fairing.

So far, so good on all the rest.

[Bfromla]

Typically the void eats all & is never found again if you have space & time you can lift & try removing the bottom skid cover , FYI most don't even have to do that for oil change , & may be bit extreme, more than likely the side panels won't be enough. But you may get to learn good deal by making it "naked" always good to learn more about your bike anyway,especially if your looking into airbox farkle or glow lighting

[Chupaca]

depends on how much time you have on your hands and if you have any other reason to go in there. They usually work their way out or lodge somewhere snuggly and wait to pop out so you wonder where that came from... if you go in might as well do some frame and powerplant cleaning and whatever else

[AeroPilot]

Yes things do get lost in the Abyss that is the underworkings of the spyder. I have several lost items, and have been successful retrieving some with a telescoping magnet probe from AutoZone or similar store. Just a matter of luck, but so far no bad consequences of these lost items.

I once located a small dropped bolt by slapping the black trays underneath and listening for the sound of a like sized bolt bouncing on the plastic--got lucky located it and retrieved it with a magnet. Also lost some cherry gum drops that my wife shared by setting them down on the dash, and WHOOPS- there they went into the Black Abyss. I just knew they would lodge on the hot exhaust and catch fire a hundred miles down the road, but they were found later when I had the panels off to change the HCM filter on that side. RYDE MORE- WORRY LESS!

[DGoebel]

Having done a few procedures on my RTL including a Frunk Removal, I'm regularly amazed at the bolts and screws I've lost into the abyss that is my Spyder. I think I've recovered maybe 1 or 2 out of 10. The rest just vaporize or fall into the interdimensional rift under all that tupperware. I think Blueknight911 or one of the other prolific DIY'ers had posted a list of the common spare screws and bolts to have on hand. I wonder, is that list in the Sticky about everyone should read this anywhere.....
But, if I can't retrieve it quickly, I've learned to just let it go, and ride. Never had any issues with any of the lost items.
Spyder Maintenance inventory


keep a small inventory of
250000303 (m6 x 20 torx truss screw)
250000348 (m6 x 16 torx truss screw)
293150089 (Tuflok plastic rivet)
234062670 (Washer)
250000349 (m6 x 10 torx truss screw)

[ARtraveler]

Update: Believe it or not I lost a large mag lite when I was installing the Seal Floorboards on my 2010. I have never found it. Am guessing it went out with the packing materials--but I cannot confirm that the did not eat it--just because it could.

[2dogs]

I lost a dash screw in the same location. When I removed the side panels for another operation, there I found the lost screw laying under the plastic just behind the center of the handle bars. Maybe, without removing the panels you can fish around with a small magnet on a wire and recover your lost bolt.

[1SpyderGal]

Thanks everybody, you all had me laughing, sounds like this happens to all Spyder owners. I'm going to accept the fact that my $2.18 socket is history. Someday if I get the desire I might drop a magnet on a string down there for fun and see if it brings up any treasures. From now on I'll be placing a towel along there to prevent anything else from dropping into the abyss. I'm going to Lowes tomorrow to get a heat gun so I can get those darn bolts out. My breaker bar barely budged them. I hate Loctite.

[Little Blue]

All very good TIPS. YES, Always use the TOWEL, It comes in very handy. PS: "Throw in the TOWEL", #1 tool.

[MR. H1956]

Its all good. One day you might pull in a parking lot and it may fall out when you least expect it. But right now the spyder gremlins have it They like to hang out around bikes.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I dropped the plate that holds the ignition module to the handlebar when I put the Tri-Axis handlebar on my RT. After a few hours of fruitless hunting I went to Home Depot and bought an inspection camera with the 3' fiber optic probe. I found the plate after about a half hour of looking! It was on top of the frame cross piece under and behind the frunk.

[canamjhb]

Loosening the lock ring for my Elka shocks with an allen wrench when, TOING.... the wrench goes flying and lands "somewhere" but not in sight and not on the ground. Someday, maybe, if it's still on/in the bike...... Geezzz, these spyders seem to eat a lot

[Samson]

I did the same thing, dropped a bolt, decided to get it. ( after all it's only a little bolt! ) Then I stripped a side panel screw head taking that off. Once I got the screw corrected and the panel off I got the 4 cent bolt and I thought I was the doing great. Then my dog went racing through the garage and stepped on the side panel and cracked it! So now I am into a 4 cent bolt for about 4 hours of time and a $160 dollar side panel. Isn't life fun ! Leave it, you will not miss it.

[KX5062]

Thanks everybody, you all had me laughing, sounds like this happens to all Spyder owners. I'm going to accept the fact that my $2.18 socket is history. Someday if I get the desire I might drop a magnet on a string down there for fun and see if it brings up any treasures. From now on I'll be placing a towel along there to prevent anything else from dropping into the abyss. I'm going to Lowes tomorrow to get a heat gun so I can get those darn bolts out. My breaker bar barely budged them. I hate Loctite.

Heat guns work great, but another way is to use a soldering iron. Put the tip onto the bolt and let it heat the bolt directly. It works great and no worries about melting plastic.

[Bob Denman]

It's usually not a big deal.
I've actually lost enough parts, to be able to build an entirely new bike!

[SOlsenPHS]

Having done a few procedures on my RTL including a Frunk Removal, I'm regularly amazed at the bolts and screws I've lost into the abyss that is my Spyder. I think I've recovered maybe 1 or 2 out of 10. The rest just vaporize or fall into the interdimensional rift under all that tupperware. I think Blueknight911 or one of the other prolific DIY'ers had posted a list of the common spare screws and bolts to have on hand. I wonder, is that list in the Sticky about everyone should read this anywhere.....
But, if I can't retrieve it quickly, I've learned to just let it go, and ride. Never had any issues with any of the lost items.
Spyder Maintenance inventory


keep a small inventory of
250000303 (m6 x 20 torx truss screw)
250000348 (m6 x 16 torx truss screw)
293150089 (Tuflok plastic rivet)
234062670 (Washer)
250000349 (m6 x 10 torx truss screw)

Do you by chance have a part number for the little metal clip that is threaded that the m6 x 20 torx truss screw threads into. I have one missing hate to pay dealer prices for extras

[SpyderAnn01]

Do you by chance have a part number for the little metal clip that is threaded that the m6 x 20 torx truss screw threads into. I have one missing hate to pay dealer prices for extras

Take one off and bring it to a good hardware store. They should have a replacement

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Do you by chance have a part number for the little metal clip that is threaded that the m6 x 20 torx truss screw threads into. I have one missing hate to pay dealer prices for extras

What metal clip? There are many on a Spyder.

[BigGuy66]

SNIP... Someday if I get the desire I might drop a magnet on a string down there for fun and see if it brings up any treasures. From now on I'll be placing a towel along there to prevent anything else from dropping into the abyss. SNIP

I was inspired to write about my lost bolt experience after reading several posts about the experience of others. I was working on my VTX 1800 and needed to remove the hardware around the gas tank. I had read some helpful tips on the VTX forum...but I didn't do it. "Put a rag over the gas tank opening when you remove the surrounding bolts holding the chrome." they said. I didn't and sure enough, I dropped a bolt into the tank, which was still bolted to the bike. "No problem" I thought. "I'll just use a flexible magnet and pull that bolt right out." I went to NAPA and bought a flexible magnet retriever and paid $12. It was about 24 inches long and worked like a ball-point pen. "Nice tool" I said to myself. This will be easy. I can reach anywhere inside the tank." I got back home and went immediately into the garage to get that bolt out of the tank. I stuck the retriever into the tank and it snapped right to the side of the tank and stuck there. Magnet + steel = attraction! The whole tank was steel - duh - and the magnet would get stuck whenever I got anywhere close to the tank - sides, top, bottom... and I thought, "Well... I learned something today." I removed the entire tank from the bike and turned it upside down and shook it - the bolt came out! While I had it off, I also cleaned the submersible fuel pump and checked all the lines. Lesson - try not to drop bolts into places they aren't meant to be!
Mr. Not-Very-Experienced-DIY'er Jim