Hello, VFRWorlders! Spring is here and y'all wanna get out and ride. Our 5th Gen bikes are perfect for a long trip on a nice day or a quick run up the hill to blow out the cobwebs. But...they are getting a tad long in the tooth. They need a little love in return for all of the giggles they have given us. I was out running errands yesterday and noticed the old girl had a bit of dust on her. So today I gave her a bath on my back porch in the sun. After she was all dried off and I had admired her shining glory for a bit, I was backing her up to run her back around to the garage. I caught her reflection in my patio window and noticed my brake light was not on. Crap. I pumped the right hand brake lever and it clicked like normal, but only a flicker of light in the tail. So I pumped the rear brake pedal...nothing. I began to think of how much a rear brake light switch was going to cost me as I inspected the assembly on the rearset. The first thing I noticed was that the switch was sluggish, so I tried to adjust it by turning the threaded housing. Then I noticed that the rubber boot around the wires was torn, exposing the top of the switch. I then removed the switch spring from the pedal with the assistance of a small pair of clamps. Next, I removed the plug carefully from the top of the switch and noticed the contacts were quite corroded. A quick clean up was performed by scrubbing them with steel wool to shine them up. On to the rest of the assembly. I manipulated the plunger that was attached to the pedal by a spring and noticed how sluggish it was. So I took it apart by removing the rubber boot And removing the plunger. As you can see it was pretty crapped up too. So i scrubbed it as well. When I touched the contacts together, I got brake lights back. So I put it back together. The contacts fit specifically in a white plastic holder that is inserted into the assembly. And they go on either side of the plunger floating in the assembly. This part is tricky because the contacts are bent inwards and you have to place them on either side of the plunger before seating them all down in the assembly housing. Just stick out your tongue and take it slow. You can do it. Once back together I taped up the hole in the upper rubber Boot with electrical tape because I am cheap. I will know to check it from time to time. All in all it was a one beer job. It only took about a half hour and this was my first time digging into it. Take care of your girls, they will take care of you.
