I crashed really hard on Friday. Long story, but I was riding fast on a rocky trail, wheelied across a small mudhole and caught a square edge/boulder on the other side with my rear tire. The rear end kicked up hard (seriously, really hard) and sent me and the bike into completely unintentional front flip...sent me over the bars into the dirt and rocks and the bike cartwheeling into the trees. Fortunately for me the only damage to my body is a badly bruised left thigh and knee, along with some other bumps and abrasions - thankfully I was wearing good gear, except for (wouldn't you know it) on my thighs and knees (MX pants only).

Likewise, damage to the bike was very little, and I was able to ride out and home. However, the impact(s) sheared the left hand steering stop clean off of the lower triple clamp.



I know this happens a lot to a variety of bikes, but has anyone here ever repaired one? Tried methods that worked or didn't?

I'm considering a few options right now:
Build up with weld and remachine.
Drill and tap the broken stop for a bolt to make up the height.
Machine off the broken stop entirely and fabricate a bolt-on stop.

 

I'd go with #2 - "Drill and tap the broken stop for a bolt to make up the height."

 

I have seen all three of your proposals work with satisfactory results, but the bolt-on method reduces the risk of weakening the frame or clamps which would make it more prone to cracking. Many tracks forbid any weld/drill modifications to the frame for things like steering dampers for this very reason.
I have also seen a broken steering stop cause an insurance company to WRITE OFF the entire bike because of the risks of attempting repairs to the frame, and the cost of installing a whole new frame!
My caution in going with the drilling or welding method would be that you may cause the bike to fail certain types of vehicle inspections...

 

The broken piece appears to not be on the frame. Instead it is on the lower triple clamp right? Can't you just replace that part?

 

I would clean the bike before working on it...LOL

 

Easily replaceable....for about $370...Ouuuuuuuch!

At least if I'm looking at the parts fiche pic correctly. A motorcycle wrecking yard or an ebay search would probably yield better prices on used parts, however. Still, I like the idea of grinding off the OEM boss and doing some kind of installed bolt design...as long as there's enough meat in the lower clamp and it's done properly. Drilling the OEM triple clamp might weaken the integrity of the clamp but that would be hard to qualify. Welding the aluminum on the OEM clamp to build up a stop might be harder to do than it sounds...at least where it would offer a good deal of integrity on the next crash. The bolt design would at least be replaceable.

 

Personally i would drill and tap the existing stub and put a bolt in there for the mean time and keep an eye out for a used lower triple if one came along.

 

Before buying a new oem triple clamp, use the money to buy aftermarket. Page 24 in the bad a$$ klx thread member AgoosSS has some on his bike.

 

Then he might have the OEMs to sell.

 

IMHO, I may be wrong, but I think any temporary fix will be an exercise in frustration, and will break pretty easily (i.e. the first soft "bump" on the stop will put you back to square one.) The stock material is more of an alloy of aluminum; not really a pure "billet" type which you can effectively braze. I'd find a "yard" and scab a used one, or go with the aftermarket tricky stuff.