This is the continuation of one of James Russell's articles that contains useful information.
Due to his opinion differing from mine in many ways, I have edited some things to suit my way of thinking.
All the information contained in this article does not just pertain to Harley Davidson Motorcycles, it can be presumed that it applies to all motorcycles, where not specifically implied.
I have been injecting James Russell's name into some places to show that was his opinion, not mine. Now if you read this it will be unchanged. Anything that is to credited to me will be in orange text, while the original text will be in blue.
Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly. ~Author Unknown
Part Five.....
60. Question:
What is an index washer for on a spark plug?
Answer:
This is a special washer that is mounted between the shoulder of the spark plug and sealing gasket. Its purpose is to align the spark plug's ground electrode to face away from the center of the combustion chamber. This positions the electrical arcing spark in full unobstructed view to better ignite the fuel mixture. Each indexing washer is of a different thickness and by varying the thickness the ground electrode is rotated away from the view of the combustion chamber, but the spark is in full view. When you remove your spark plug just draw a line down the porcelain insulator indicating where the "L" shape electrode is located, then use a index washer to see if the size you selected will relocate that electrode. TC and Sportster engines can get 8 horsepower with a increase in fuel mileage using this very simple technique. That is like a free Stage-1 tune up for a couple dollars. Believe it or not! Drag racing guys use this indexing all of the time. There are no bad effects, just more power and works with all motorcycle engines.
61. Question:
A mechanic told me they don't let the oil drain for 30 minutes from the engine compartments because they do not have time to waste. That made me think that perhaps they are doing it wrong?
Answer:
I can tell you from experience what that mechanic says is true. They don't have time to waste. They just remove the drain plug, drain the oil and replace the drain plug and move on to the next oil compartment. They don't even level the bike and let more dirty oil drain out. Is it harmful? Yes, because the most dirtiest oil is always the last to be removed. If this dirty oil is not removed it will contaminate the new clean oil with gritty abrasive material that will wear your engine out. Good for the engine repairer, not good for you wallet. Harley's need clean oil to function and to keep cool. A tiny grain of dirt will clog the hydraulic lifters and hydraulic cam chain tensioners to ruin. Learn to change your own oil on your Harley or you will pay dearly relying on others who will always do it wrong and cheat you. Even inferior oil can be substituted in your engine and you'll never know it until it is too late. As you can see, even going to a H-D dealer for your oil change will leave dirty crud oil in your engine, transmission and primary chain system because they are not going to keep your bike on the lift waiting 30 minutes for most all of the black oil to drain. They will have an "apprentice" do the job anyway and they will teach him to do the job "quickly" I guarantee it for time is money in those shops. When you get your bike from an oil change just ride the bike for an hour, check the oil and it will be dirty oil. That's because the oil black oil was not drained out completely and has contaminated and "ruined" your expensive oil change. Live and learn.
62. Question:
Can you explain the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act?
Answer:
You can go online and search for the law (US Code-Title 15, Chapter 50) for deep details. (ftc.gov). I have keep the explanation down here to one paragraph. Many dealers violate the law routinely when they say you must use Harley-Davidson oil and oil filter to retain your warranty and/or you must have your bike serviced by an authorized H-D dealership to keep your warranty. It is a lie and a law violation. The dealer must give you the oil and parts for free to make such an offer. The law basically give you, the consumer, freedom to perform your own repairs, use aftermarket parts and not lose your warranty. But there is a problem. To keep your warranty, you should, if you do your own repairs, use authentic Harley-Davidson parts and oil. Not that you have to, but you "slam-shut" the door of a dealer voiding your warranty and you having to fight tooth and nail to regain your warranty. The law specifies conditions, but the law does not do the fighting for you to retain your rights. You have to sue in court to win your case. Win you will, if you used H-D parts and oil. If you used aftermarket parts and oil you can win or lose in court. Problem is, the aftermarket companies that want your money and lure you to buy their products could fail, ruin your engine and refuse to help you win your case. Now you got to sue H-D and the aftermarket companies to win you case and both will be fighting against you with experts to ruin your case so you lose and have to pay their court costs and attorney fees. This is why I say to stay with Harley-Davidson parts and oil to keep your warranty. You can do the job yourself, no problem with that. As long as you use H-D parts and oil it is hard for H-D to win a case against you or void your warranty in the first place. The same goes with fuel management devices as they can easily void your warranty if you burn valves or a bore a hole in a piston... a direct result of lean burn and the fuel manager controls that function so it is easy to blame as the cause of engine failure, an iron-clad case against you. If you put a aftermarket Cobra Fi-2000 Pro fuel controller on your bike it could void your warranty, but you would have to had ignored obvious backfiring, rough idle, hesitating engine and knock and pinging noises revealing the device clearly is not working properly. And, you would have to ride punishingly hard at high rpm's to blow a hole in the piston. So, using the Cobra Fi-2000 Pro is likely okay if the bike runs smoothly, which it probably will. Dealers are not so prone to void warrantees, but H-D corporate will if they determine you modified the engine and controls with aftermarket devices. Legally, they can void your warranty if these devices damaged the engine. No law can help you fix that. Your only hope will be the aftermarket manufacturer will take up your case and sue for you. Sometimes they do this to protect their own future sales of their products. Oh, local repair shops can work on your new bike too, but they can not perform warranty-related repairs. If you use a local shop for repairs make sure they list the product name on all parts and oil used (most shops don't itemize so precisely) but you need this to fight a warranty claim. You need to prove you put in a "high grade name brand" oil in the engine, not just "oil". I say it again, learn to change the oil on your own bike... this is the best way to preserve your warranty and the engine's life.
This is an American Act, with the Canadian Consumer Protection the closest to it.
63. Question:
Can I turn my brake rotors like they do in cars?
Answer:
No. Reason being the rotors are already too thin when brand new. Each rotor is stamped with a minimum thickness and you will see it does not take much normal wear and tear to reach this limit. There just is not enough metal meat on the rotors to begin with to allow any grinding on brake rotors. Even the heat of the lathe can crack a thin motorcycle rotor. The thickness limit is to be respected, so check your rotors with a micrometer in the wearing surface areas. A thin rotor can quickly overheat, shatter into pieces and cause you to crash with a front wheel bind and skid. Harley-Davidson rotors are not expensive compared to metric bikes that can cost you $300 each! The cost of metric bike parts are outrageous. Just another great reason to buy and stay with Harley-Davidson. You should get 30,000 miles out of your front wheel rotors even with aggressive and abrasive racing brake pads and 45,000 miles with street sintered metal pads. The rear wheel rotor can last twice as long.
64. Question:
What can happen if I use the wrong brake fluid in my bike?
Answer:
Brake failure can happen. DOT 4 fluid yellow and DOT 5 is purple. The rubber parts in the system will deteriorate and cause sudden brake failure. Tiny bits of rubber just clog up all the tiny passages in the lines, calipers and master cylinders which requires time-consuming flushing and cleaning. Water is another issue that creates corrosion of caliper/master cylinder pistons and bores. The wrong brake fluid if it does not destroy rubber seals can prematurely heat up and boil with a loss of braking control. Nasty things happen! Always check the owner manual and master cylinder caps for the correct oil to use. What if you find a conflict? The owner manual says to use DOT 4 and the Master Cylinder cap says to use DOT 5? You may need to reinstall all new components because some prior owner has altered your brakes. If you don't see tiny specks of black rubber in the brake fluid all may be well, just use the fluid rated on the oil reservoir caps. This does not happen with new bikes. Brake fluid should last 50,000 miles before a flush. If you see bits of rubber in the oil that does not mean the wrong oil is used, but normal wear of rubber parts is taking place. Consider overhauling the brake calipers and master cylinder with new brake lines.
All brake fluids are mixable except for DOT 5, which will not mix with any other. All brake fluids are water soluble except DOT 5, which means that they are prone to absorbing water which can cause problems. To check, look at the color, DOT 5 is generally purple, and if a drop is placed in water, it will not mix, while others will be absorbed into the water.
65. Question:
I was told if I switch to Royal Purple Synthetic oil my engine will run cooler. Is this possible?
Answer:
Oil does cool the engine so it is possible. Royal Purple's Synthetic Max-Cycle 20w-50 engine oil is claimed to lower engine temperature with the use of thermal imaging showing a 50 degree temperature reduction in some hot areas of the engine as proof. But I have no way to verify it and I have not tried it. Going to Royal Purple's Website was so frustrating to negotiate to locate product and read the descriptions I backed out of the site. I was not impressed with the handsomely dysfunctional Website at all. You could install a larger Baker oil pan to reduce heat, or, better yet, install an oil cooler (or larger cooler) Jagg and be safe. To determine if you need an oil cooler purchase an oil temperature dip stick. Normal temps is 180-220 degrees Fahrenheit. If you get spikes above those temperatures it is still okay as long as the temps come back down within a minute. However, 240-260 up to 300 degrees is too much for the oil to handle and will begin to fail to lubricate the engine properly. Oil temperature that hovers at 240 degrees means you need an oil cooler. This is why some riders switch to Red Line 20w-50 synthetic oil for it lubricates up to 400 degrees. It can be fun to experiment with different brands of motorcycle engine oils. However, do not count out Harley-Davidson's Syn3 oil for it is really good stuff and I use it in my Harleys in all three oil compartments (engine, transmission, primary chain case). Only if you experience gear noise should you consider a thicker brand of oil for the transmission. Make sure when you buy an oil cooler it has a automatic thermostat to stop the oil flow into the oil cooler on cold days.
Amsoil is another good quality product.
http://www.royalpurpleconsumer.com/product-categories/motorcycle/ http://bakerdrivetrain.com/plus-1-5-oil-pan
http://www.jagg.com/
http://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=8
http://www.harley-davidson.com/store/syn3-full-synthetic-motorcycle-lubricant---sae-20w51-pa-12-62600005--1
66. Question:
I had a Harley-Davidson dealer download a Stage-1 map on my bike, but it runs lousy. What could cause this?
Answer:
The Harley-Davidson generic maps in their tuner software is for stock Harley-Davidson's for H-D performance products only. If you have installed aftermarket exhaust pipes that are not Harley-Davidson those maps will only give a starting point for a proper tune-up, but it will not tune-up your engine perfectly. You need a custom tuning job. The dealer's mechanic should have known better and you should go back and request they custom tune the bike or refund your money. Make sure the two fuel injector's wires are secure to the injector as a loose connection will cause erratic vibration and poor performance. They will balk for the Harley-Davidson Screaming Eagle Street Performance Tuner Kit is "married" to the bike. It can't just be used again on another bike. This is why I warn riders to stay clear of these devices and aftermarket devices that are "married" to the bike. There are products that you just install and they self-tune the bike and you can take it with you when you buy another bike (or at least a similar model). Why do they do this? So they can slam you with hundreds of dollars each time you buy another bike for another performance tune-up. Don't fall for it, don't buy their product. Check out: Cobra Fi2000 PowrPro.
http://cobrausa.com/inside_cobra/behind_the_scenes/58/fi2000_powrpro_how_it_works/
http://www.thunder-max.com/Products/ThunderMaxEFISystems.aspx
67. Question:
Where can I buy high performance parts for my Harley-Davidson?
Answer:
There are many sources. All you need is Google or some other good search engine. Or just go talk to your Friendly Neighborhood Independent Bike Shop.
68. Question:
Just how devastating is it to have a hydraulic valve lifter fail in a Harley-Davidson?
Answer:
It can be just a simple replacement of the lifter, but in severe cases if the bearings have failed or the lifter has sized in the lifter block bore hole and sheared metal you will need to clean the cam chest of metal pieces, oil pump, oil pump screen (Evo engine right-rear corner of the rear tappet block), oil lines, oil passages, oil tank and depending on condition and engine model a complete engine teardown to clean up the mess.
In an older engine, it could take out the breather screen and the cam.
69. Question:
Dealer told me I must replace the rear wheel brake rotor when the front wheel rotors are replaced. True?
Answer:
Generally, on most bikes this is not true, but on bikes with shared-link braking it can be a requirement to replace all the disk brake rotors at the same time. It can be a "come on" sales builder to tell people they need all brake pad and rotors replaced at the same time. The front wheel, yes. Rear wheel, not likely unless the pads and rotor are worn down which may be the case.
Many riders use the front brakes more than the rear so that the rear setup will outlast two or more front changes.
70. Question:
I installed a Jagg oil cooler and the rubber hoses leak. What am I doing wrong?
Answer:
Jagg uses single barb hose fittings. I wrote them and informed them a multi-barb fitting would be way better to stop oil leaks. They still use the single barb. To stop the oil leaks you got to crank down those hose clamps so it crushes the rubber hose real tight to the fitting. Why? Because one barb is just not enough to create a labyrinth-type seal. You can replace the fitting on the oil filter adapter, but not on the oil filter and oil thermostat. Just crush down the rubber tight to the fitting using a tiny 1/4" open-end wrench. You will see the rubber under the hose clamp is much smaller in diameter than the unclamped hose, then you got it right. If you go too far you will strip the hose clamp. Just in case, I keep a spare 1/4" hose clamp and 1/4" wrench in my saddlebags just in case it fails. You can buy stronger case-hardened hose clamps on the Internet such as, Amazon.com, or your local suppliers.
71. Question:
Please explain the compensator sprocket on Harley's.
Answer:
The engine drive sprocket is a spring-loaded device that is allowed to wind up and relax to take up the shocks of the 45 degree firing angles of the pistons that create powerful damaging pulse forces into the drivetrain all the way back to the rear wheel. It is nothing but a shock absorber for the engine out to smooth out the flow of power. The compensator was originally installed in 1970 big twins up to 2011. With the 103-cubic-inch engine's increased power and riders loading up large saddlebags with added weight the compensator was too weak and failed much too often, so a new upgrade is now used. Millions of Harley's below 103c.i. should upgrade to the new Screaming Eagle compensator or risk failure. The upgraded compensator has longer and steeper ramps with a multi-stage spring and is about 7 times stronger. This one is not going to break!
72. Question:
What is the problem with helical-cut transmission gears?
Answer: Straight-cut gears produce no sideways force on the transmission shaft, but they can be noisy. Helical-cut gears are in constant contact with each other so there is no noise, but they produce powerful axial forces on the transmission shafts. A very strong thrust bearing and case must be designed to handle this load. The problem is people are making helical gears for transmissions in cases with weak thrust bearing and a case not designed to handle the load. That's the basic problem.
73. Question:
Should oil be changed hot or cold?
Answer:
Hot oil can burn skin at 200+degrees. Cold oil flows slowly and has the tendency to allow sludge to settle out of the oil before it has been drained. This settling will allow sludge to fall into voids in the casing that will not be drained out with the oil. When you add new oil this sludge contaminates the fresh oil. Warm oil is best. However, it really does not matter if the oil is hot or warm as long as you do change the oil often so the engine always has clean oil. Harley-Davidson engines have a lot of blow-by at the pistons due to the loose tolerance fitment for an air-cooled engine. It means products of combustion leak past the piston rings dirtying the oil. The black color you see is mostly carbon mixed with acid and it is abrasive as fine sandpaper and corrosive too. Don't wait until the oil is black, but change it when it is a caramel brown color. When the engine is cold just place a drop of oil on your finger tip suing a plastic glove for protection. This will show the real color. It will always look black if you just look into the oil tank or case reservoir.
74. Question:
My dealer says nothing is wrong with my vibrating bike. What can I do to reduce the vibration?
Answer:
Assuming nothing mechanical like an out of tune motor or broken motor mount you can try isolating the vibrations. Riders for years have filled their hollow handlebars with shotgun shell lead shot, copper or steel BB's or beach sand to absorb the energy. It works on vibration but not on "shakes" from the engine throbs. There is no cure for for throbbing as that's just a Harley thing. It works for vibration "buzzing" that creates numbness in the hands. You could insert the shot, BB's and sand or a mixture of all three into a cardboard tube sealed at both ends then insert the tubes into the bar ends. Lead will work best and copper second due to their high density to absorb vibration energy. Bizmuth shot will also work and is less toxic than lead. Be aware some bars have studs welded into the bores so you will have to drill out these studs. Another method is to attach bar end weights on the end of the handlebar grips. You may find that slipping on some soft foam handgrips over your current grips will help. They do sell rubber and gel isolation handgrips too that will take out some vibration. Ask your dealer if they can recommend some rubber-mounted handlebar supports if rubber mounts do not exist on your bike. Bar Snake has a liquid you can pour into your handlebars to absorb vibration and will work with all Harley-Davidson handlebars. Check them out.
http://www.barsnake.com/
75. Question:
Which type of torque wrench should I buy?
Answer:
The click type is the best for bolts 10mm and up in sizes. The dial or beam type is used for smaller size nuts and bolts because you can "feel" the pressure being applied along with reading the torque wrench so you will not strip the fine nut/bolt threads. It is a more gentle approach. The click type is fairly brutal and should always be used with larger size nuts/bolts. Plus, if you do not hear the "click" due to loud music in the workspace you will strip the nut/bolt. It takes some practice using torque wrenches as you can feel excessive pressure being applied in all torque wrenches if you pay attention. The 3/8" torque wrench is used on small size nut/bolts and the 1/2" torque wrench is used on larger sizes such as 17mm nut/bolts and up. You should buy both sizes. The dial or beam type you only need one, the 3/8" size. But you also need a 1/2" breaker bar ratchet so you will not be using your torque wrench to loosen things like large axle bolts, sprockets, etc.
76. Question:
What is your opinion on the Scavenger system to change oil?
Answer:
I have not used it, but if it can remove dirty oil from the engine compartment all the better to use it. It won't get all the dirty oil out of the smaller hidden compartments. It also will not remove any dirty oil from external oil lines to the oil cooler, so a slug of dirty oil is still waiting to contaminate the new oil. The Scavenger system works, but it still allows the oil to become black and again and again.
77. Question:
How do I center a front wheel?
Answer:
With the bike sitting upright tape two flat boards of wood to each side of the front tire then with a ruler measure the distance between the inside surfaces of the wood boards. This make it easy to get a measurement. If you try to just measure across the diameter of the tire your eyes will play tricks on you. Divide the number of the width on the ruler by 2. The number you get is the center of the tire, so place a mark there. Now measure the distance between the forks from the inside to inside. Divide that number by two. That number should be exactly at the center of the tire where you made your first mark. If not, use different size wheel hub spool spacers to adjust the wheel so it is dead center true position.
78. Question:
If I install a new 6-speed transmission will I get the same performance as the new Harley's?
Answer:
No. Reason being the gearing in the primary chain case is still different than your 5-speed bike. You need to update the primary gearing. It is now costing you a lot of money to do this upgrade. Consider buying a new Harley before you dump a ton of money into an older bike that has few of the new features available. You may not need a 6-speed transmission. Just changing the size of your belt pulley sprockets can give you low engine rpm's on the highway. This is also the cheapest way to go. Your pulley's and belt are likely old and worn anyway and due for a change. I believe altering the belt drive pulleys' sprocket sizes in this case is better than changing the steel sprocket sizes in the primary chain case, but it is a viable option.
79. Question:
What causes noise from the primary case on the new H-D Cruise Drive transmissions?
Answer:
This transmission is noisy by nature. Not that it is right, it is also not harmful. The sixth-gear chatters, fifth-gear has backlash clatter, a "bang" noise will be heard with the engine starts and if you pull in the clutch lever just a bit you will hear "clack" sound. These sounds are normal assuming your primary chain tension is okay (not too loose sloppy play in the chain) no worn out chain adjuster glide pad or failing compensator or broken clutch spring or bad bearings. As new models role out you can expect to see improvements in the transmission design. Until then, the noise is normal and will not cause harm.
80. Question:
How do I true a spoke wheel?
Answer:
It is very easy to do and if you have spoke wheels you really do need to learn how to keep the spokes true. First, purchase a spoke nipple wrench to fit your wheel's spoke. You may need two different sizes, one for the front wheel and one for the rear wheel. Using standard open-end wrenches is a bad idea, use the right tool for the job. Elevate the bike just enough so you can rotate the wheel. Do not let the bike slip off the jack. You can use a jack under the frame of the bike with the side stand down to leverage the wheel off the ground with no chance the bike will fall over as long as the force is against the side stand. Using a spoke wrench lightly rap on each spoke. You should hear a nice sharp "ping" noise indicating the spoke is tight. If you hear a "thud" or "clunk" noise the spoke is loose or broken. With the spoke wrench tighten the loose spoke until it "pings" again. If it will not ping or tighten the spoke is broken and may need to be replaced in the future. Spokes usually break at the wheel hub or the hub itself may be cracked, or the spoke nipple threads in the rim is stripped. Mark it with some white paint for now. Keep rotating the wheel tightening all the loose spokes. Generally, it does not take much to tighten a spoke, usually only 1/4 to 3/4 turn, more if really lose of course. Tighten the spokes in small increments of 1/8 to 1/4 inch turns. If you tighten too much you can actually drive the spoke deep into the rim to puncture the inner tube, so never over-tighten spokes. When you have all the spokes sounding the same "tone" you are close to perfect. Now, the wheel may be out of true. You can set up two dial micrometers or two cloth hanger wires as a poor man's substitute. One dial is set on the side of the rim to measure side-to-side wobble run out. The other is set on the inner side of the rim to measure top-to-bottom wheel hop. Here's how easy it is to true a wire-spoke wheel: If the rim wobbles to the left, loosen the spoke on the left side 1/4 turn and tighten the spoke on the right 1/4 to 1/2 turn. You will notice the spokes alternate between left and right the way they are inserted into the rim. If the wheel hops high at the 12 o'clock position, loosen the spokes at that 12 o'clock position and tighten the spokes at the 6 o'clock position. When working on wheel "hop" try loosening or tightening 4 spokes at a time as a group to adjust out the wheel "hop". You may not get the job absolutely perfect the first time as it is a tedious job and it can be baffling the first time you try it. I will give you a great tip. Go to a bike shop, swap meet or junk yard and buy an old used spoke wheel then practice on that before you do your own bike. You can't screw up anything that way and you will not become so flabbergasted or angry if things take a bit of practice to get it right. It is not hard to do. Just work slowly, relax and enjoy the learning experience. We mechanics all had to learn too at one time or another!
81. Question:
What is the white dot on the tire indicate?
Answer:
It is a balance mark. The tire is close to balance when new, but where the inner plies are seamed at joints it can cause a thickened area that is slightly heavy at that point. So, opposite the heavy point on the tire they put a white doge. This tells us mechanics to put the white dot (lightest point on the tire) beside the heavy point valve stem. There are exceptions to this rule when working with heavy wheels, but for most cases this is the correct procedure. If you have new tires put on your street bike by a shop and the white dot is not aligned with the valve stem do not panic. It really does not make much difference on most street production bikes. You'll hardly ever notice the imbalance.
82. Question:
A dealer mentioned to properly balance a motorcycle wheel and tire, a spin balancer must be used or it will be performed improperly. Is this true?
Answer:
It is a bold-face lie. The dynamic spin balancer machine is just a machine for absolute dummy employees. Without going into a rage I will prove it by telling you to go to any professional motorcycle road race and in the pit area you will see the best machine used to balance wheels. That machine is the manually operated static balancer and is even more accurate than the dynamic spin balancer! It is also the same device I tell readers of my tire change book to purchase. You can buy the static balancing machine for less than $100. The automatic dynamic spin-type balancer does work, but so does the static balancing method. You can even put a round metal axle in a cloth-wrapped bench vice, slip the wheel on the axle and balance the wheel with no machine whatsoever.
83. Question:
I thought Harley-Davidson fixed the cam chain shoe problem, but you say they have not. Explain why?
Answer:
The shoe material was not just the problem it was the severe spring tension pushing the shoe wickedly hard against the chain. Harley made some changes to the shoe material which is now a nylon formulation and the flat chain is now a roller chain along with the removal of the springs as a oil hydraulic piston now applies pressure to the roller chain driving the gears. The problem? There are still "shoes" rubbing against the new cam chains. There are two cam chains; inner and outer chains. Since there's less tension on the chain due to the hydraulic-controlled piston, the "shoes" will last longer. However, as you can see, lasting longer does not mean "cure" it only means the shoes will now wear out later, down the road, as the engine racks up miles... but if you do not inspect and replace those shoes the same thing is going to happen... the engine will self-destruct. The system needs a complete redesign, not a patch. The cam chest in the Twin-Cam engine is a rat's nest of chains, rubbing tensioner shoes packed with an oil pump in a tiny space. If you compare the T-C cam chest to the Sportster engine you will see how the Sportster engine's cams are horizontally driven gears which is exactly what locomotive and industrial engines use (a perfect system). So, even installing an aftermarket gear drive system in the T-C engine is not a fix as those gears are "stacked" vertically and that will destroy the crankshaft bending the pinion shaft causing excessive pinion shaft runout. That means even if you replace the crankshaft it will only bend again and again and again. No cure. As it stands, all Twin-Cam engines are still defective. And if you still don't believe it, just buy some current and back issues of V-Twin related motorcycle magazines. It's not a secret, but not many Harley riders want to talk about it and many prefer to retain an "ignorance is bliss" attitude.
84. Question:
What is crankshaft runout. Is it good or bad?
Answer:
The Harley-Davidson crankshaft is a huge, heavy, unbalanced beast due to the 45 degree firing angle. It will vibrate like a monster and that is why the balanced engine has internal flywheels to counter the imbalance and other models are rubber mounted isolation so the engine can shake at will without causing your eyes to hemorrhage. The Twin-Cam engine crankshaft has problems of its own and one of the biggest issues other than flywheel slippage (which is serious) is crankshaft runout. Runout is bad, never good and is usually referred to the right side pinion shaft that drives the oil pump, cams, lifters and valves. There's a lot of pressure on that tiny thin shaft which is also relatively long in length and if you ride hard, pull wheelies, burnouts, hop up the engine power output, etc., that shaft will bend ever so slightly. Even stock engines ridden sensibly have some runout and it can still grind away at the engine causing it to fail. Runout places accelerated wear and tear on the crankshaft case bearing(s), wears the face of the oil pump and can wobble the gear rotors in the oil pump, grinds wear lines in the pinion shaft and grooves the camplate bushings (or wear roller bearings). The grooving means metal is being ground up and is being circulated in the oil to destroy bearings and bushings. These "fines" will not be caught by the oil filter, but "steel fines" will be trapped in a magnetic oil filter. You should buy an external magnet and attach it to your oil filter. Harley permits .015" runout which is still excessive and wear as described above occurs. The cure is to have your crankshaft balanced, trued and the crankpin and flywheel webs "welded" and that's what needs to be done. Yes, the runout issue is curable. Sportsters can have a pinion shaft runout problem too that will wear out the worm gear on the pinion shaft that drives the oil pump. That gear (on XL model engines) is so easy to replace it is a do-it-yourself replacement. You just remove the cam cover, remove the pinion shaft nut, remove the cam drive gear then the oil pump worm gear (two bolts to remove/loosen oil pump housing). Replace the worm gear and reinstall the other items. So easy! There is nothing else that will be ruined in a Sportster, just that one worm drive gear. The Twin-Cam engine, on the other hand, is a disaster when the pinion shaft runout becomes excessive, it causes the end of the shaft to wobble like an unstable child's toy top. That up and down wobbling (radial up-and-down runout is the issue not axial left-to-right runout) causes metal parts to wear out. Advice? Ride easy with no abrupt slamming of the transmission gears that can cause crankshaft flywheel to suddenly lose rotational velocity such as pulling a wheelie. That sudden "slamming" on the crankshaft will bend both ends of the crankshaft; the right side pinion shaft and the left side that drives the primary chain. Hard downshifting can do it too, so don't let the rear wheel skid. Use synthetic engine oil or at least a blend of 70% mineral and 30% synthetic or 50%-50%. Harley TC crankshafts has problems and it will break if you abuse it and it will wobble naturally until you have yours balanced, trued and welded. But don't let a Harley dealer do it as they won't because Harley will not permit it or warranty the repair. It has to be performed by an aftermarket firm. S&S is one firm that can do it for you. Unfortunately, it is expensive to tear down the entire engine. I would just ride with good grade, clean oil with a magnet on the the oil filter, ride sanely and live to ride. But eventually you'll have to deal with the defects because they will surface and it will cost you a lot of money to fix the engine. A much stronger crankshaft is needed to address these problems.
85. Question:
I thought factory-trained Harley-Davidson mechanics were working on my bike. What gives?
Answer:
Surprise! Surprise! Just because a Harley-Davidson dealer is an authorized dealer does not mean they have factory-trained mechanics working on your bike. In fact, there may be none on site! I have seen plastered on the wall diploma certificates of "Harley-Davidson Trained Mechanics" who are not even working at the dealership anymore. How about that for deception, huh? Seeing those authentic diplomas laced on the wall makes you think a factory-trained mechanic is doing you right, but you can't trust it to be true for it is just another deception used by repair shops and dealers to trick you into believing a lie. I saw a Victory dealer do it too recently. It's not just a Harley thing here, it is widespread. Rule #1 is this; assume people in the motorcycle and auto repair industry are lying to you for they most likely are. Trust, but verify! But even if they do have a factory-trained mechanic on duty does not mean he/she will be working on your bike. Helpers are probably changing your oil, installing tires and accessories. They have low skills and you would be better off learning to do these routine tasks yourself and know the job is being done right.
That covers Part Five.....
Stay tuned for Part Six.......
Happy Trails.....
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