I have a K100RS. Sorry for the inane question, in reference to my left front turnsignal connector. I found the problem of the orange/brownish wire having pulled out of the female side of the connector. PO seems to have tried to fix it by sticking it back in and trying to crimp or smash the inner tube where is supposed to be connected. What is the proper fix and what is a general overall proceedure for this repair. Not sure what to do here. soldering would melt connector. I can follow the previous owner and try to open smashed terminal and resmash it. Perhaps I have to replace wire and connector.
Looking at it, it seems ashame I couldn't just connect it again, but with some additional knowlege from this trusty team.
Jim

I delved into fixing one similar to those and came to the conclusion that the manufacturer doesn't really want you to fix it. I ended raiding a broken switch for the connector and cut the wires and soldered them.

Thanks Rick,
That may be an option for me. I have soldered miles of copper tubing. but I haven't done wire. I buy a soldering gun. Do I use flux? So if I solder wire won't the covering melt? Perhaps I should educate myself on soldering wire. I have also heard of shrink wrap connectors. Slide on sleaves, then you twist wire, then apply heat. You are definitely on to something. Do you know the gauge of wire used here, I would guess it is close to 20 gauge braided?
jim

tio Jaimito wrote:Thanks Rick,
That may be an option for me. I have soldered miles of copper tubing. but I haven't done wire. I buy a soldering gun. Do I use flux? So if I solder wire won't the covering melt? Perhaps I should educate myself on soldering wire. I have also heard of shrink wrap connectors. Slide on sleaves, then you twist wire, then apply heat. You are definitely on to something. Do you know the gauge of wire used here, I would guess it is close to 20 gauge braided?
jim

You use a flux cored solder which as said has the resin flux down the certer of the solder, you apply the soldering iron to the baer wire and then touch the solder onto the wire, it should almost immediately run into the wire. Best way is to get some old wire that is clean inside (sometimes water wicks up the wire core and causes the wire to oxidise, turns black) new copper look as it will solder easily. When you get the hang of it it is very quick and the plastic insulation doesn't get a chance to melt.
Get some 3mm heat shrink, clip the length so it will cover the soldered part plus about 10mm either side and slide it onto the wire getting it well away from any heat from the soldering (it shrinks very easily). Put the wires end to end with about 20mm stripped of insulation and twist them together. If you twist them together with the wires side by side you end up with a lumpy joint and it can be difficult to get the heat shrink tube over the joint.
Easy way is to use a very hot iron and do it as quick as possible. As we were told in my first apprenticeship strike while the iron is hot.
Getting some practice in first with some scrap will pay. Also get some solder that is about 1mm in diameter as the heavier stuff makes it more difficult as it takes longer to melt.
I can still hear my instructors saying it and thats 50 years ago nearly.

Rick, Thank you so very much, this was exactly what I needed. So what I can do is buy the same plug from bmw, take the side I need and cut the wire back a bit , then do the solder (after practicing on another piece of course). Rick you have helped me again.
Jim

I have those (New) connector parts from BMW (Phoenix, AZ). Photos to follow momentarily
ibj

Radioshack will supply a soldering iron and some solder, it is worth getting a temperature controlled iron like a Weller with interchangeable tips as that will enable you to work on different items as you get more proficient. Make sure the soldered connection is away from any point where the wire can flex back and forth or it will break at the point where the bare copper wire stops and the solder starts.

Regards,
K-BIKE

First thank you to Jay and AJ Puentes for their help getting me parts, and thanks for the help with soldering. Just like soldering copper plumbing, clean, flux, heat and dab solder. My only regret is that I didn't buck up and buy a good soldering gun, I bought a wand, which worked fine. But I like to get a fast heating pistol type, so I may go that route moving forward.

1985 K100RS mirror pod has been knocked off one too many times. On my first ride about Saturday, I had to put my soldering to the test three times. I took it off, stuffed the pod in my shirt, lifted the manhole cover climbed into the sewer to retreive my clips from 6" opaque and smelly water (the last phrase didn't actually happen, but it might as well had), and drove home. The posts were bent (ever so slightly), and those clips are devils, DEVILS. So using the geometry theorems and postulates I decided to make sure that the center to center dimenions of the posts (can be changed by bending), matched the center to center dimensions of the cups. I used my "Executive Pocket Pal" Machinist scale to verify and modify those dimensions before hand. I moved the posts with my mallet to the right dimension.
Last night I cleaned and reloaded those Devil clips, with my pin nosed pliers. I squeezed them tighter, and made sure that the grip teeth were ever-so-slightly incurved (shark teeth come to mind) so that when they bite the head of the pins (frenum comes to mind:|) there is some aggression and no passivity.
Then I loaded each Devil Clip with a fair dollup of Silicone, underneath and on the open side of each cup, being careful not to get any one the face of the cup or on the protruding clip teeth. This allows the clips to function, but without falling off. I suspect that after previous hits and popoffs and reinstall that it may be typical and infuriating that subsequent re-installs may pose similar symptoms. So this work brings the reinstallation back to near (90%)OEM conditions.
Finally, I laid a thin bead of clear silicone along the joint of the gasket and the fairing. I only did the forward third of the lower and the entire top edge (thinking of weather and, water drain, airing out, and removal , I did not silicone the aft lower or aft vertical seam.) I believe that if it gets hit it will break the silicone without damage, yet give vibration resistance to the pod. Took it for a Chicago street test run and Voila! Exito! Ausgeseigtnet! Thanks again the guidance and support here is un-equalled.
Uncle Jim

Hi,
I'm not sure if maybe I should not have read back up the posts further to see if I missed something???
I've seen plenty of posts around here about adding "safety cables" inside the fairing/mirror assys to catch them when they fall.
Personally I probably have yet to earn that lessor the hard way because I have no cables yet.
Wife & I traveled over a mile or so (each way) of quite substantial washboard dirt road last weekend that shook the fairing & speedo so badly that I was concerned about something coming off but nothing did. I really only worry about a mirror popping off if I physically whack it on something like a car mirror as I drive by. Hasn't happened yet.
When assembling my rs for the 1st time, I realized that on several attempts........that although the mirror appeared to be fully seated on the 3 taped studs, in actuality it was not. A light pop with the palm of my hand would dislocate it again.
I discovered that just a small coat of almost any type of light grease on the outside edge of each of the "devil clamps?" allowed the clips to slide up and over all 3 taper posts so they were fully clamped on the small diameter of the post. The presence of the lubricant does not appear to lessen their retention ability. (I'm only talking a TINY film of lube on the outside of the bottom edge of each clip.....TINY, Tiny, tiny)
If tio lost a mirror, I'm guessing that it wasn't completely clamp over a 3rd post even though it appeared to be fully on.
It should not be necessary to take any extra measures to hold the mirrors on, like silicone glue.
I do believe that the cables are an excellent idea to prevent further damage to the mirror if one is accidently knocked off. I expect to add some next time I'm in there.
ibj....

Above photo was my beautiful silicone job.
Below was the broken contact.

The tethers are a good idea, just after I got my bike but pre-tether I knocked a mirror off onto my garage floor and broke the glass. I now have tethers each side. Stable door firmly bolted as the horse gallops smartly away down the road
Regards,
K-BIKE

Just in case anyone needs new 'devil clips' Motobins have them.

Paul.

Never figured out why BMW would use clips that are so prone to failure on the RS and yet on the RT they use clips that will hardly come off when you want them to come and I have rarely heard of an RT mirror committing mirrorcide.