'Made in USA' (Happy 4th) air filter...and some quality/assembly notes for mine

[JKBC]

Being anxious to give my new bike a 'steady diet of dirt' (like pretty much all the vehicles I had on the road the past 40-some years) I put a K&N 'Made in USA' air filter in it.
When I loosened and removed the screws holding the gas tank cover on (the one on the right side from the location shown in the picture)...one felt like it had been cross-threaded/mangled and obviously is.
Probably on the assembly line in India screws like this are quickly screwed in with air or electric ratchet tools and this one was either cross-threaded or over tightened...anyway I hope I can do as best as possible to repair the threads in the frame.
I'd also noticed the big washers directly under the screws that hold the front fender on had the black colour (< that's how we spell it in the British Commonwealth as opposed to color) fade out...and later the ones holding the tank cover on did too. Well no big deal and a black marker can make them black again but just seems a little odd I think.

 

[mr-fabricator]

All but one of my "aluminium" washers have had the "colour" fade . For me its a track bike so im not concerned but its a real shame for street bikes as they do look very bad , QC issues on the little rc are everywhere . They are relativly simple fixes though we shouldnt need to bring our brand new bikes upto standard ourselves .

Still wouldnt change it for the world .

 

[Treachery]

If/when mine fade, I'll probably hit them with a coat of epoxy paint. Not going to the trouble of re-anodizing them, so that should be a little more "presentable."

 

[Ryanthegreat1]

Whoa, that is some extreme fade. Did you get some kind of acid or base cleaner on them? Does the bike live outside in the sun all day?

 

[JKBC]

Whoa, that is some extreme fade. Did you get some kind of acid or base cleaner on them? Does the bike live outside in the sun all day?

A lot of the time it is parked on the back porch which has a roof and I've never touched them with cleaners or anything.

 

[JKBC]

As for K&N filters check out the July calendar picture of theirs which features a chopped 51' Ford in a USAF/Marines/Vietnam sort of setting...
http://www.knfilters.com/images/wallpaper/widescreen/2015 July.jpg

 

[emeglasson]

Yeah, two of the screws holding bodywork on my bike were cross threaded from the factory. One broke the first time I tried to remove it. Kind of annoying... I have had to chase several of them to get them to install with a reasonable amount of effort. Between this and what appears to be a significant lack of lube on many moving parts, I'm hoping they will get the QC tightened up for future buyers. Very fun bike, but there have certainly been a few disappointing details. I sort of sigh every time the 'ready to race' logo pops up on the dash; that's pretty wishful thinking on this particular model. I've got several thousand $ extra invested merely to make it 'ready for the track', let alone ready to race!! I'm still a KTM fan in general; I have a couple of others in the garage.