KZ oil cap tether

Hey gang! So on the way home from Wyoming(60 miles from home) with the flag I stopped to fuel and add a little oil and went on my merry way. Fifteen to twenty minutes later my foot slips off the peg, I look done and you guessed it I'm missing an oil cap. Cap was gone, boot, jeans and the entire side of my bike are covered in oil. Dangerous! No rear brake And tire covered in oil. Between the boots, jeans oil cap and a quart of oil I'm out about $170. Now I'm pretty sure I put the oil cap on I remember checking it before I left the gas station. Most I can figure is the o-ring dropped off(it has happened before) and the vibration spun the cap loose; the rest is history. I know I'm not alone here as this happened to Saxjohn on the way to meet me in Wyoming.

Here is my solution. A tethered oil cap, never to be lost again.

materials used:
1- 9" stainless steel nylon coated leader



1- #6 Stainless steel split ring



Step 1- Drill hole in oil cap i used 5/32" bit



Step 2- Connect split ring to swivel end of leader



Step 3- Find someplace to tether to(this will determine tether length)



Step 4- Run the swivel end back through the pre-fashioned loop.



Step 5- Connect split ring to oil cap



Finished




Hope this helps. Enjoy!

Great idea! So Relieved that you did not go down from the oil.

AND.....What a crazy coincidence! As you may recall, this is the very thing that happened to SaxJonz on our way into Jackson, WY to meet YOU!

Remember This?!

Very innovative!

Good Fortune!

Good idea, but if the cap came off it was either not installed or if it was was never tightened. The cap will never vibrate off. Impossible.

Forrest wrote: Great idea! So Relieved that you did not go down from the oil.

AND.....What a crazy coincidence! As you may recall, this is the very thing that happened to SaxJonz on our way into Jackson, WY to meet YOU!

Remember This?!

Yes I had to laugh when it happened to me. I figured two guys with in 48 hours it must be a some what common issue.

Not a common thing. In 35yrs now I've heard of it twice, and these are the only two times ever that I know of, both I've read about here tonight. Trust me, you did not install the cap. Like anything check, recheck then check again before hitting the road after doing anything.

I carry a 4" crescent in my pocket. I use it to open beer and tighten my oil cap.

With that stainless leader, you must be doing some Pike fishing up there.

Yes Ron, impossible to come off if tightened on. However, in these two cases within 24 hours of each other two caps were not put on or at least not tightened. Distractions, and brain farts can happen. AND, Yes they can have dangerous consequences. I give credit to Jon for a very practical and innovative solution.

As an example, I disconnected my kickstand kill switch on my ZRX1200R so I could use the circuit for a tip over engine kill switch. After the second time forgetting to put my kickstand up and going hard into a left corner and almost crashing out, I found a solution and was able to wire both the kickstand kill switch as well as the tip over engine kill switch.

RonKZ650 wrote: Not a common thing. In 35yrs now I've heard of it twice, and these are the only two times ever that I know of, both I've read about here tonight. Trust me, you did not install the cap. Like anything check, recheck then check again before hitting the road after doing anything.

Yeah Ron, They get it. I was on this ride and experienced the situation first hand with SaxJonz. Maybe I distracted Lawrence long enough he forgot to put his oil fill cap back on his ZRX. Maybe he should have double checked and ultimately was responsible for his ride. My only thoughts at the time were not to criticize Lawrence but genuine concern for his life and safety. I also met and saw what a responsible common sense man Kaw-a-holic is. Distractions happen and mistakes can be costly dollar wise for cagers but can be deadly for motorcyclists. You think anyone of us who rides responsibly has their heads up their asses all the time? I give Jon a lot of credit AND respect for posting up his situation and an innovative way to address it therefore avoiding any possibility of it ever happening again. Again, my main concern here is for Jon's life and safety. Now cut them some slack.

Beats me why all side stands aren't equipped with the rubber extension (used by Honda) designed to disengage a deployed stand while riding instead of allowing it to pole vault the bike.





Good Fortune!

Patton wrote: Beats me why all side stands aren't equipped with the rubber extension (used by Honda) designed to disengage a deployed stand while riding instead of allowing it to pole vault the bike.

Good Fortune!

Is that what that rubber does? Thanks for that info, as I've been wondering for 40yrs nearly.

Forrest wrote: Yes Ron, impossible to come off if tightened on. However, in these two cases within 24 hours of each other two caps were not put on or at least not tightened. Distractions, and brain farts can happen. AND, Yes they can have dangerous consequences. I give credit to Jon for a very practical and innovative solution.

As an example, I disconnected my kickstand kill switch on my ZRX1200R so I could use the circuit for a tip over engine kill switch. After the second time forgetting to put my kickstand up and going hard into a left corner and almost crashing out, I found a solution and was able to wire both the kickstand kill switch as well as the tip over engine kill switch.

Only problem here is the tether will do zilch to fix this problem other than the fact you won't lose the cap if you forget to install and tighten it. A cap hung by a tether flopping around beside the engine will still leak oil I'd wager.