Hi,

I just got my K100 running reasonably well and came out to do a road test. I could only the key half way in.

Apparently some jackass has been fiddling around in the night and manage to break a foreign key off in the lock.

As far as I can see peeping down the hole there is half a brass key broken off about 1/4" down from the dust flap.

I have a fine pointed pair of tweezers that can get to it but not well enough to get a grip.

Can anyone suggest a trick to recover a bit of broken key stuck in the lock ?

TIA.

Part of an old key to loose fit, a VERY SMALL amount of superglue leave for 20 mins or so now pull

Thanks, I had considered that but I was worried I was more likely to block it solidly if it goes wrong.

Super glue in a lock?!  That sounds scary.  I can remember vandals shooting super glue into the door locks of expensive automobiles.

You can remove the ignition switch with a little work.  Then take it to a locksmith.  A good locksmith can easily get the broken key out. 

It would be a good opportunity to do a little preventive maintenance on the ock and the switch contacts as well.

Yes, I think I'll take it off tomorrow. I can't remember how it comes off ( apart from desoldering ) , I recall it was a pain.

Once off, I'll try tapping it on a block of wood to see whether I can get it to move with inertial shock.

I recommend this video not so much for its eventual successful outcome, but rather for its calming music.

I made my suggestion because I suspect the attempted thief used the wrong key in the lock.  This would jam the key in the lock and make it very difficult to remove by pulling on it.  They probably broke the key trying to pull it out or while trying to force the lock to turn.

With the lock out of the bike a locksmith can push the key out of lock.  They can also repair any damage the the thief may have done to the internal parts of the lock.

This isn't the same situation as having the correct key broken off in the lock. 

It would help to know the model and year of the original poster's bike.  Some ignition switches aren't that hard to remove.

1985 K100

From what I can see, the ignition switch is the same as what is on my K75RT.  You can remove the switch and lock fairly easily. 

First, remove the tank so you can unplug the switch from the wiring harness.  Then lift the dash pad so you can remove the switch from it.  It shouldn't take more than an hour if you haven't done it before. 

You are lucky because some models have a steering lock that makes getting the lock out a lot harder.

Thanks for the tips, I'll take a look tomorrow.

As .75 pointed out, there is no need to desolder if you pull the tank back and follow the wire bundle to disconnect it.

First pull off the ring around it -  you can do this with your fingernails.



Next, put something small like little screwdrivers in each of the holes on the side of it to push it down.


  

This depresses the plastic tangs on each side of it that hold it in place:


You'll then probably want to remove the two screws that hold the dash pad to the upper fork tree to push it all of the way out.

Many thanks, that's the kind of detail I needed to see where I'm going.

Laitch wrote:I recommend this video not so much for its eventual successful outcome, but rather for its calming music.

Nice post. That is insanely amusing. The LAST thing i would ever do is put superglue in a lock.

I'm not even sure if I believe the Indian guy. He probably bunged his lock with super glue and had to replace it after he made the video. I hope he made enough click pennies to pay for the lock! I've seen plenty of that sort of thing where they sell you a method but never show that it really works.

Here is guy who shows a few tricks to avoid glue contamination. Not sure how applicable this is to a key which not broken flush with the lock.  The scalpel blade looks possible.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xsbWs0nA9w