Rock vs. clutch cover

Decided to go out for a nice ride up through the Sheep Mountains north of town. Got onto the dirt (if that is what you want to call it here) and everything is going fine. Rock right along at I guess 50 or so and up ahead there in a washout. Grabbed a foot full of brakes and kicked it sideways. Laid it out stopping about 3 feet from the washout. It was about 3' deep and 3' across. Not really a bunch of drama during the whole thing, new bars and hand guards did their jobs and collected some minor scrapes. Nice, let's get moving again. Crap, why is there oil on the ground?? Perfect little hole right above the skid plate. Fired it up and got a fine mist. I'm only 4 or 5 miles from home, so I go for it. The freeway made a heavy mist. Made it back about half coasting when possible.

Time to weld it up! I am wondering if this is the same cover on the bmw 650?

Here is the inside

I was thinking about that after. I'll have to pack some of the 5 minute stuff!

I take it you're OK?, You should have done like I did and let your leg and foot protect the bike.

Anyway, how on earth did that get past the skid plates etc?

I think the stock BMW cover will fit, you just won't have the cool husky logo.

Oh yeah, I'm fine. I'll take a rain check on letting my foot do the protecting!
As for the cover, I have no idea how it got hit. It went between my skid plate and the shifter. Didn't even bend the shifter!
I ordered a new one up along with the small parts to go with it from ktm parts. Until that gets here I'm jb welding this one. I was going to weld it, but changed my mind. Serious degreasing going to be happening though!! View attachment 33299

I don't recommend the leg as a crash guard either.

I'm just real curious on this particular incident of yours. You even have a bash plate. I personally am not a fan of aluminum bash plates. The damage to the case shows how alloy metals break. I know your bash plate is of different material, and not cast, so I doubt the bash plate itself would fail in the fashion of the cover.

So my particular concern then revolves around the coverage of the plate itself. If you received case damage, the thing you are trying to protect with the bash plate, what is the shortcoming of the plate? What design would help? I ask as in a few weeks I am going to build my own.

What other points of the bike took impact on the slide? On my spill, the fender, handlebar rear footpeg and plastic around the radiator took hits, rear footpeg and my right foot took most of the impact.

Anyway after looking at that plate, the corner and the proximity of the damage on the case, is it possible the bash plate itself flexed and punched through?

Mag, there isn't even an impact mark on the plate, so I doubt there was an issue there. I'm sure it was an issue of right rock in the right place. As far as improving on this design an idea would be to bring the wing of the plate up more and make attachment points on the perimeter mounting bolts of the clutch cover.
The plate I have is the moose racing one. I needed one ASAP and it was readily available. It isn't the heaviest, but it covers good. It makes me feel good about it when I'm going down the road and hear all the rocks banging off it.

I dunno, when I zoom that picture, which has great resolution, there seems to be something on the corner of the bash plate, that looks like aluminum shavings. Does not look like a factory burr. Also, in the same pic, if you look at the bottom corner, it looks like scrapes consistent with a side slide.

So the next question would be, the rear mounting underneath, how secure is that, will the plate float. Some of the mounting on plates I have seen just slip over the pipe on the frame, some bolt to it, some bolt other places.

400 lbs, skidding on that bottom corner sure could do it, but there would have had to be something protruding up to catch the skid plate , maybe only 4 inches or so if in a perfect flat slide.

The aluminum would flex and then return to shape.

I look at the shape of the hole, the shape of that corner, predict a flex and man, it looks like that bash plate did the damage.

Skidding on the plate, or an impact, would definitely explain why the shifter did not take a hit.That corner of the plate is about an inch from the engine right?

Either way, I would find a way to ease that corner for future, and recommend that for anybody who uses the same plate.

Mag, I see what you mean in the picture. The angle is a little deceiving though. The corner isn't as sharp as it appears and it is also set back from the hole. I would set it up and take another, but the JB is setting up right now. The plate would of had to flex an incredible amount for the hit to have happened. Also no tell tale scar on the plate where it would have impacted nor where it would have been pushed. Not sure what's on the corner in the picture though, nothing now though.

I do have a new conspiracy theory on this though. I think it was the shifter. Found an impact mark on it. It also looks like it could reach. That and it had a little tweak in it. That being said the shifter has had a rough go at it with this bike. I've bent it a couple of times already. Might be looking at the touratek one now.

Yes very interesting indeed. I can't really tell from the angle, and my bike is safely sleeping now.

Detective work eh? This now may be an added design for my plate, shifter protection, if it did the damage.

I'll certainly be looking in that direction in the near future.

What's crazy is this was to be a 40 or so mile off road ride. Some of it actually no road. Glad it happened when it did just off the freeway. That's a long way to walk!

Anyway, if you can look a bit once assembled, the arrows would indicate impact and bowing spots, if you can check front mounting and cross section and if a slight rotational flex could happen.

My theory, is impact at the lower corner would flex the plate at the area marked quite considerable, and the bash plate would have a rotational distortion along the length of the bike, with some flex on the front end. More like a spring.

What I see, is definitely in your photo. I use the zoom.

The size of the hole in the case, matches perfectly to the corner. At least from the pic.

This picture is a better angle. The corner as you see is way back there in relation to where the hole is. The hole is just above the most forward of the two lower bolts.

It is the same as the BMW one and I did grab one off ebay as a spare. My buddy did same thing you did and has been on back order for a bit now...

Well, it's all back together. New oil and filter with all the original parts back on. JB weld to the rescue! It will take a few more degreaser and pressure washer sessions to get it 100% oil free again as I lost 1/2 a quart or so all down the left side of the bike and on my boot. There will be an extension on the bash plate in my future. The shifter is bent to where i think it should be. A little semigloss paint hides the JB weld pretty good :-)

I would lose the stock shifter asap. You wouldn't want to go down again and have it bend or worse, sheer the shifter shaft. Not that uncommon and the biggest advantage of a folding shifter.