[Lewis9781]

I searched for any posts on this issue, and found nothing like my situation.

I ride a 2007 Road King with 37,000 miles on it. I am the original owner. I had the brake line to the rear brake fail suddenly while riding in the mountains last week. After getting it off the road, I found a leak in the brake line at the point where it crossed the clutch cable under the right side of the engine.

The original rear brake line as installed on my bike has a hard line from the master cylinder to the brake light switch fitting on right lower frame tube. The line is angled up slightly from back to the front, and was in contact with the clutch cable. I am sure the leak was due to the clutch cable rubbing on the brake line during engine operation. Everything looked in the right place and nothing was bent, so it appears to me that it was that way from the beginning.

The replacement from H-D is made up of flexible hose in two sections, the forward portion of which is now tied to the frame tube, well away from the clutch cable.

If you ride a touring model near the vintage of my 2007, or any model from that time period, I would suggest you check your bike for contact between the clutch cable and the rear brake line. If the two touch, better have the brake line checked for wear.

When in doubt, ride the bike!

:bikerguy:

Lewis

 

[Silverback]

Lewis, thanks for posting this heads up. This kind of info could literally possibly save somebody's life.

This emphasizes the strong necessity of putting your hands/fingers and eyes on every part of your bike on regular intervals. Unlike operating a car, we are much more dependent on the mechanical condition of our machine for our safety on the road. The analogy has been made to the pre-flight inspections done on aircraft, and it is a valid one. The Harleys we love have more than average vibration and that can cause parts to "migrate" out of position over time and result in chafing failures. This is something that we were trained to keep a sharp eye out for on our scheduled aircraft maintenance inspections and it has stood me in good stead for many years since then.

Welcome to the Forum from Baton Rouge!

--

 

[SCHMIDTY]

I ran into one like that last spring when it was in my shop. I posted up pics where the line was located on the frame and worn through. I check that area on every touring model I service, only requires a quick look.

 

[scspartan]

I searched for any posts on this issue, and found nothing like my situation.

I ride a 2007 Road King with 37,000 miles on it. I am the original owner. I had the brake line to the rear brake fail suddenly while riding in the mountains last week. After getting it off the road, I found a leak in the brake line at the point where it crossed the clutch cable under the right side of the engine.

The original rear brake line as installed on my bike has a hard line from the master cylinder to the brake light switch fitting on right lower frame tube. The line is angled up slightly from back to the front, and was in contact with the clutch cable. I am sure the leak was due to the clutch cable rubbing on the brake line during engine operation. Everything looked in the right place and nothing was bent, so it appears to me that it was that way from the beginning.

The replacement from H-D is made up of flexible hose in two sections, the forward portion of which is now tied to the frame tube, well away from the clutch cable.

If you ride a touring model near the vintage of my 2007, or any model from that time period, I would suggest you check your bike for contact between the clutch cable and the rear brake line. If the two touch, better have the brake line checked for wear.

When in doubt, ride the bike!

:bikerguy:

Lewis

Thank you for the heads up.:thumbsup Going to check mine this morning.

 

[SCHMIDTY]

On touring models the area to check is inside the right floorboard along the frame.

 

[Silverback]

I ran into one like that last spring when it was in my shop. I posted up pics where the line was located on the frame and worn through. I check that area on every touring model I service, only requires a quick look.

Thanks, Schmidty! You are a true asset on this board, brother.

--

 

[Breeze3at]

I read a service bulletin about this soon after I got my '07. I moved the clutch cable a little, and split a piece of fuel line and tie wrapped it around the brake line where it also rubs the frame.