Need advice/ideas on Installing Quadlock Post Mount on 2015 Spyder RT

[bigpacific]

I want to get rid of the Zumo base on the central column and install a QuadLock Post Mount for my iPhone 15.

https://www.quadlockcase.ca/products...40320815792203

I took out the two bottom bolts by spraying with WD40, which broke the Loctite grip.

The post mount for Quadlock is 8mm and the post for the steering wheel is 10mm and an inch longer. I took the Loctite off the Quadlock post and then added two sleeves to make the post 10mm.

Then I realized it's probably not long enough or strong enough to be used as a steering bolt.

I put the bolts back and tightened them, then took the bike on a short ride, but the steering felt 'loose'.

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Part B: Removing the Garmin Zumo base:

I took everything apart at the steering wheel (bottom bolts only) and took off the mounting plate for the Zumo, along with the plastic side mount holders. Then I realized I can't just cut the wire, as it's still wired to the battery. So I unzipped the frunk liner and removed the bolt for the ground terminal, but there are 3 black leads (One I believe is a second connection for a heated vest or suit and is capped off) but I don't know what the other two are for.

I went to take the right side-panel off, and surprise, surprise, I need yet another socket head (hex with center hole). And a plastic pry tool, which I now have.

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Questions:

1. Can I remove the Zumo mount without taking the side panel off?
2. I can't get the ground battery terminal screw to engage and tighten to put everything back the way it was. What is the trick?
3. Can someone confirm the QuadLock post with the expansion sleeves on is a no-go for that spot?
4. Should I put Loctite on the stainless bolts before reinstalling them, even if I want to be able to take one out again, to make the bike safe to ride?

[Peter Aawen]

.....
Part B: Removing the Garmin Zumo base:

I took everything apart at the steering wheel (bottom bolts only) and took off the mounting plate for the Zumo, along with the plastic side mount holders. Then I realized I can't just cut the wire, as it's still wired to the battery. So I unzipped the frunk liner and removed the bolt for the ground terminal, but there are 3 black leads (One I believe is a second connection for a heated vest or suit and is capped off) but I don't know what the other two are for.

I went to take the right side-panel off, and surprise, surprise, I need yet another socket head (hex with center hole). And a plastic pry tool, which I now have.
..........

DON'T REMOVE THOSE

They are the heads of angled/curved pins on the inside that need to be oriented the correct way to hold those two panels together, so you don't ever need to remove them unless you're replacing the panel with a new panel!! They have those 'Security Torx' in them so you know NOT to remove them or even turn them, cos if you do, they can be a right pain to get back in and angled the correct way to allow you to fit those two panels back together again and to have them hold together while you ride!! I do hope you haven't removed them??!!

I can't really help much on the rest, apart to say that I've removed the 'center handlebar OEM Zumo mount' on a few RT's now without removing any of the side panels; but in all of those removals, I just replaced the 'mount' part with the OEM cover from the lower spec RT's that don't have the Zumo, so I've only needed to tuck the wires back down the hole.

But I'll say it again about those Security Torx on the side panels - please, do yourself a favour, and DO NOT REMOVE THEM!!

Aside from that, what you're planning/doing is not something I'd ever do or even recommend anyone ever do for a whole raft of reasons, but it is your bike, so Good Luck with it all!

[bigpacific]

Thanks, Peter.

I guess I have to wait until I take it in to Vancouver (ferry & 1 hr drive) to get an oil change to remove the wiring.

I'd cut it off at the Zumo mount, but is it safe if I just tape it off and stuff it inside?

I only suggested that action because it was referenced in another post in the forums.


Any answer on putting loctite on before reinserting steering wheel screws, or why the (very hard to get to) battery negative terminal screw isn't engaging or tightening?

[Peter Aawen]

It's generally safe enough to cut off and tape the Zumo wiring, then poke it back into the gap - it might not be 'best practice' but ut works, and I've done it often. BUT, just between you'n me, it's much smarter to unplug the other end of the Zumo wiring from down along the LH side of the gas tank, once you've removed that side panel (WITHOUT touching those Security Torx! ) and then pulling the wiring out from the top.

It's smarter to do it that way, cos instead of ending up with a useless mount to discard & orphan wires hanging around & cluttering up your bike, you'll end up with a complete Zumo Mount AND the necessary wiring to connect it up to any Spyder - a mount and wiring kit that you can give away/sell on to someone who wants to add a GPS to their Spyder! Many do that 'add a GPS' to theirvSpyder, especially if their Spyder didn't come with that mount... They do it possibly cos they find the stand-alone GPS units are significantly more accurate & reliable than their phones; cos depending on the model of GPS, the GPS unit can usually store significantly more music or map files, etc; AND do a bunch of other stuff besides (Safety Cam or TPMS anyone??) and unless you're changing continents, it'll likely provide GPS directions without any of the hassles to you of needing to remember to download all the necessary maps for your next adventure before you leave a phone service area - and even if they want a different model of Zumo or Garmin GPS, they can usually get an adaptor to fit onto that Spyder base to hold whichever their model GPS may be from Garmin, but the Spyder compatible base mount is necessary to fit any/all of that onto!!

Personally, I'd be keeping the GPS mount where it is, possibly upgrading the existing GPS to an XT 2, and using THAT to its fullest capability rather than using any phone for anything but calls when necessary, instead keeping and maybe connecting the 'much more fragile' phone to a charger in the trunk & to my headset by Bluetooth; but then I'm here in Oz where we've got conditions & roads that truly aren't kind to handlebar mounted phones as well as vast areas of country without any phone service at all; and where the greater robustness, readability, and higher number of satellite channels/receivers in a stand-alone GPS unit make them much more useful & reliable than any phone can be out there, even if you could download all the necessary mapping data!! Mobile Phones, even satellite phones, aren't really all that great here in Oz for much except paper weights once you get a hundred or so miles inland &/or away from the coast & major cities! They assure us they've got 95% of the population covered with usable cell-phone signal, but IIRC, that means it covers something less than 5% of the land mass...

You shouldn't really need to add any more Loctite to the steering head screws, not if you torque them up properly - Loctite doesn't help them 'hold' the steering head 'on' any tighter, it just stops the screws from vibrating loose - and they won't do that quickly if they're torqued to spec to start with!! Besides, there'll be some Loctite left in the threads inside the steering head anyway, so that'll help keep them torqued a little bit, at least for the first few (tens of??) thousands of miles anyway!! If your steering is still feeling loose after re-torquing those screws down, then it's not the lack of Loctite that's at issue!

And I gotta ask, which '(very hard to get to) battery negative terminal screw' are you having issues with?? Your Spyder is a 2015 RT, isn't it?? So which terminal is the problem??

If it's the one on the top of the battery itself that's loose, are you sure it hasn't been stripped already? They are little screws that don't usually take all that much tightening to cinch them up; but you do need to check them regularly, or fit star washers to stop them slackening off thru time & vibrations... And if the screw itself is too long, it might be bottoming out in its hole before the terminal lug is clamped down tightly; &/or if there's a captive nut held 'inside' the terminal on the battery, it might not be holding anything properly in place; so you need to check all those things out, which generally requires the battery to be slid forward & out if its little cubby hole in the frunk at least a bit, so that you can get a good look at the terminals! It can help make getting the battery in & out easier & thereby making the terminals easier to access if you use a bit of Duct Tape to hold the top bracket in its slots before inserting the battery into its cubby hole; and you can also use Duct Tape around the battery's base &/or just a bit of string or cord to put around/behind the base of the battery, leaving enough string/duct tape sticking out on either side of the base of the battery to use as 'handles' so that you can more readily tilt/lift/slide the battery out of its cubby hole too... But if course, if it's not that negative terminal you're talking about, all that ^^ might be good info, but it's applicability may be just a tad moot!

[Snoking1127]

Or the little bar nut that fits in the battery "post" has slid out and is MIA. Had a friend call for help on his
Spyder and that was the issue.