i've been a biker for my hole life.. now in mid 40s.. never where specifically interested in harleys but these vids almost makes me want to have an old harley .. it really is a beautiful bike with all patina and everything and i enjoy these videos alot.. than you for sharing! .. the process of "cleaning" and fixing .. giving it some love is really a meditative process, even to watch.
We are running out of riding weather, unless you winter ride. Repair what you have now and over the winter, convert to belt if you still want to do that.
I have a speedo cable and drive unit that I am not going to use. That is a late '84 clutch (diaphragm clutch) There is a seal on the back side of inner primary. It looks almost identical to the wheel bearing seals with which you are already familiar. The transmission shaft goes through it much like an axel goes through a wheel bearing seal. The most difficult part of removing the inner primary is pulling the clutch assembly. With the proper tools, it isn't a difficult task. Without them, it is impossible if you want to reuse the clutch assembly.
I agree, the early Evo's utilized a tapered shaft on the main shaft and requires a specific tool for removing it. Don't try one from Auto zone or Advance auto as they won't work and will break your clutch basket. As far as the repair of the leak goes you actually have 3 places it can be leaking from. 1. Front of the motor seal on inner primary (big oring) 2. Starter housing 3. Inner primary bearing seal. I've fought the inner primary bearing seal before and gave up. The best upgrade for that is the "Jims Primary Bearing upgrade 8960" which completely does away with the inner seal and pressed on race on the main shaft. You will need "Jims Inner Bearing race removal tool 34902-84" to remove the inner race from the main shaft but you will never need to use it ever again once you install the Upgrade kit 8960. Ive been down this road many many times, if it were me I'd buy the special tool and bearing and upon assembly replace every gasket and seal on the starter assembly. There is also a special boot that gets used on the solenoid that eliminates a leak path. Let me see if I can find that part number
I’m a huge fan of the patina look but then again I’m the kind of guy that likes to hold onto the past. I think no matter what you do with it, it’s gonna be fun to watch the process. 😎
hang in there, brother. great video. I would just change the inner primary seal and get back on the road. The conversion to belt could be a winter project down the road. only because I enjoy the riding videos 😁
you have 3 seals in there besides the crankshaft seal. you have the selenoid seal and main drive seal which is behind the clutch hub and the starter shaft seal.. you will see it in the manual.
Nice ride you are fixing up. All Harleys end up needing the inner seals replaced eventually, part of the maintenance. The dry clutch/belt drive would work and you could see if you like it. Looking forward to seeing what you will do. Cool old bike, I really like how the rear signal lights are built into the saddlebags. I wish Harley still did that. I am not a fan of the new,Honda looking, rear lights on the touring bikes.
Yes, there's a seal where the transmission shaft comes through the inner primary. The seal is in the inner primary, but take care not to put it in backwards, the lip points toward the clutch basket. Cool video.
I bought a 1983 FLHTC and have been working on it. I took my inner primary off and changed my engine and transmission main seal. There is a starter gasket, transmission gasket, and if I remember correctly a gasket for your chain ddivd behind the inner transmission. The inner primary removal was easy however removing the seals was a pain.
@@tta850 I would change the engine and transmission seal if you remove the inner primary. That will prevent you from needing to tear it down again in the future.
The washer that fell out goes over the starter jackshaft as you guessed. My '84 FXST HAS a seal where the mainshaft goes through the inner primary, even though I had a 'dry' primary. A glance at my 85 - 89 FX/Softail manual says there is a seal in the primary. One thing that you need to keep in mind, is that funky inner primary - specifically that it appears that the starter motor and the starter solenoid are independent with both bolted to the inner primary - you may have issues finding gaskets for them...YMMV of course, because that's an FL model and my books cover FX/Softail models. I'm NOT a belt drive kind of guy, I like my chains! Having said that, to each their own! ALSO, having said that, you may wish to consider that that bike is pretty unique. Keeping it stock or, at least keeping all the stock parts (if you decide to go belt drive), may make it worth more if you decide to sell it!
I just put together a late 84 flt l got rid primary oiler Barrett has a wet dry clutch put 6oz oil in the case just to splash around to keep chain and hub bearings lubricant a good now
I recently acquired a 1982 Tour Glide Classic with the frame mounted fairing. I'm not really sure about all the mechanics so I'm enjoying your series. I also own a 1988 Electra Glide Classic with the Evolution engine. It has a sealed primary that needs the lubricant changed periodically. I previously owned a 1973 Shovelhead Electra Glide. It's primary oiling was all different. The 1973 did not have a sealed primary. It had a vent hole in the vicinity of the front final chain sprocket. Leaking oil there was normal. It would leak mostly on the final drive chain and that was a good thing. Not so good for your garage floor. The oil pump had an output line that went into the inner primary cover and dripped oil onto the primary chain. There was also an oil pickup hose inside the primary that put any excess oil inside the primary back into the engine again. If that oil pickup hose wasn't working then the level in the primary would spill out the vent hole. Even if the pickup hose was working the clutch basket would sling oil into the vicinity of the the vent hole so there would always be some oil leaking there. I did convert my primary chain to a belt drive. I did it for no better reason than I got a great deal on a primary belt kit at a swap meet. I also eliminated the electric starter. The 1973 had the classic 4 speed transmission so adding a kicker cover was easy. Our Tour Glides have the 5 speed transmission so converting to a kick start is difficult. I still like belt primary drive. Until you ride a Harley with a belt primary you don't realize how loud the noise is from a chain primary with a chain tension shoe. Chain primary drive is a constant loud noise. Good luck and I'll keep watching your videos.
Good to know, I think being mine is a late ‘84 with a wet clutch it doesn’t have the oiling system but the whole system sounds really cool and effective… wonder why they changed?
Belt drive and is long term fix without primary inner. But as you said seal is lower cost but higher labor and swearing approach however lower long term reliability. I had same issue with my old bike and went the belt primary.
I would go with the primary housing. My father's shovel had an open 6" belt and a dry clutch at the end. Today I would take a 2" and dry clutch in the housing, the primary housing is part of it for me.
I know my 1997 road king had a seal in the inner primary cover but it had a belt final drive too. I believe there still would be a seal there even with the chain cover, If you do go with a belt Primary drive there were some modifications I saw in some easy rider magazines about drilling holes in the outer primary cover front and rear, using some epoxy to glue some screen mesh over the holes( inside the cover) so air could flow throw it. kept the cover to make it look stock and kept the road debri out of the clutch and belt
those old Harleys had a chin oiler. need to cap it off now that the chain is not sealed in that housing. alot of people remove those and dont realize it!!! my old evo had it and we capped it off and no problem after that... well until i converted to BDL open 3" dive lol
my family are mostly dirtbike and naked street bike people but i find harleys sick as but dont have my license so am looking for a project and i thank you for you knowledge
So it’s just a heel shifter, no reverse, by heel shifter I mean you can up shift by pushing down with the heel of your foot and (using the front shifter) downshift using the toe of your foot. It really does make shifting on a Harley, at least in my opinion, way easier and more relaxed. Both my Harley’s are set up this way, wouldn’t have it without! 👍🏻
@@person13456 Front shift lever.....shift up with your toe......Rear shift lever......shift up with your heel......just personal choice, another way to get through the gears. No reverse on this mule.
In my experience, when seals start leaking, & problems with gear shifting, Usually means something is off in alignment. Maybe sprocket alignment, suspension alignment, Swingarm bushings are bad, Or something with braking system, alignment between disc, pad and wheel, bad caliper, bad master cylinder, Any of above misalignment will cause chain reaction into misalignment of different parts of different systems, and will lead to death wobble, plus catastrophic failure of parts further down the line.
If you just do the seals and such you’ll enjoy her a few years likely before you have to revisit it. Less bucks. Then when you have to revisit you can do other things. Meanwhile the money saved can be used for some weekend fun. Just my 2 cents. You’re gonna need clutch tools either way. Be well and thanks for sharing!
It all depends on how much money you’re willing to sink into this machine, the cheapest is to replace all the seals, main shaft, primary, shifter, starter, it’s a lotta work, but you’ll be roadworthy for many miles. While you’re at it replace the drive sprocket. After that, more miles per dollar!
I'm pretty sure there are two seals. One seals the outside diameter of the trans mainshaft, the other seals the rod that comes from trans, inside the mainshaft. Cometic makes some real good primary cover gaskets including one for the derby cover. Silicon cast o-ring in an aluminum "spacer" basically. No leaks. I'm sure you know to use HD, Screaming Eagle or other acceptable primary fluid like Drag Specialties if they are still around. Little advice, do not pull on the bendix (starter gear). It will connect the solenoid terminals and tear you up. In fact pull the ground cable at the battery off for now. Another tip, do not try to pull the snap ring out of the clutch basket without a tool or threaded 3/8 (I think) bolt/ all thread rod to compress the diaphragm spring. Both tips will save you some skin and grief! You can always buy the speedo cable assembly, pull the core to use in your casing. You need to get the broken bit out but you'll have a speedo now. You can put back in your new casing later. Don't bother with the core kits from NAPA, they will not work. If you go with a belt driven primary, I might offer to buy your clutch basket assembly if it fits mine. I'll find out. Mine is fried.
Me I would leave it chain drive and there has to be some type of seal in there and the is a 81 for sale about 90 miles and the guy wants $3,000 and it makes yours look like it just came off the showroom floor
pull floorboard, then compensator and clutch. there is a seal on the inner primary. wet clutch is much better for slow speed maneuvering. kind of hard slipping a dry clutch they won't last long
Not sure, taking this one problem at a time, I think I’m going to try the seal, it seems I kinda have to at least give that a try and the belt drive would be kinda plan b
Those early speedometers were so problematic. Heres a great tip. If youre going to be replacing your gearbox with a new one chances are itll be bone dry (no grease). I take the head off of my grease gun and attach a small piece of clear hose with 2 small hose clamps to secure it lightly to the gear box. I then slowly force grease into the gearbox while turning the tabbed portion of the gearbox to permit grease to get into the gears. This will make your gearbox last forever. I also grease the piss out of the cable prior to instilling it into the housing and spray a tad bit of WD40 into the back of the speedometer itself. Dont get crazy with the WD40, just a little blast will do the trick and leave it facing up immediately afterwards so it doesn’t leak out onto the clear plastic.
I love this bike and content I just started the video so maybe you go over this but I’ve got an 83 FXR shovel which would be the same set up i believe as your 84 FLT (rubber mount 5 spd) i know there was alot of carryover from late shovel to early EVO and my primary has oil lines going to the back of it and the engine oil circulates through the primary then back out but the primary doesn’t take fluid. Anyway I’ll keep watching good luck
I dont know crap about crap but I like Harleys. Should have an inner shift seal back there. My only question would be when you noticed the leak, after the Bacon, egg & cheese sandwich, the bike was on its side stand. The primary only holds enough oil to meet the very bottom of the clutch pack. So on the side stand you shouldnt have oil loss from the back side of the primary? Right? Again I dont know crap about crap. Enjoying the vids. Keep it up.
So yes when on the side stand it doesn’t leak, and it won’t leak no matter how long I let it sit… but take it for a ride and when you stop it will drip out… and be splashed all over the rear fender and bags 😒
I have the original parts book for 84-86. The 85 has several seals that the 84 doesn’t show. There is a seal on the inside of the front sprocket towards the transmission. Was the chain reservoir you removed catching the leak? I just replaced my belt and i had to remove the inner primary. I had to be very patient getting the belt around the swingarm bolt
I bought a 95 Fatboy. First ride it wetted the back tire and was pouring out. Took it all apart replaced all the seals in the inner rode it twice and started leaking. Tore down agian and noticed the bearing race had moved so I replaced that and had a shop press a new bearing in the inner primary then did it again. 1500 miles and not even a little leak.
@@kevintomes3786 that’s life on these old Harley’s, but it’s satisfying to me that we can keep em going and have stories to tell! Good luck with yours and ride safe!
if ya do a belt you will need to grease the clutch hub bearings occassionally or they will create problems and fail. you also should convert to needle bearings for the clutch hub. i like my belt conversion on my 1980 shovelhead. also you need to flip the crankshaft seal if you go to belt. ride on!
Brother I got an 84 flhtcu i had that issue with the turn signals like you it was a real pain, I have a red wire that gets hot under the speedo every time i turn the ign switch to the lights position. all the lights work. Is there a chance you could post a picture of the wiring under the speedo preferably those three circut breakers i think i wired mine wrong.
@@SoulMUNTEAN I’m working on wiring in an all in one type turn signal + run/brake/turn module so you have perfect timing for this question. Let me see what I can dig up 👍🏻
@@tta850 Thank you so much electrical is one thing i don't have patience for but i can do everything else also I love the R35, im a huge gear head / JDM guy
@@SoulMUNTEAN thank you the R35 is a great car, and no problem the wiring on this bike is done in a way no longer used so we are both learning while we work lol
I had the same symptom before I disassembled mine. For me it was the transmission seal that was bad. At the moment I’m riding it with no Chainguard and no seal worked in in the primary. The chain ist always oily but no drops or stains under the bike. It still takes less Oil then recommended by the manufacturer 😅
It's hard to tell 100% from your video but it seems like you had way too much oil in your primary you don't need much oil in those setups regardless of installing a belt drive you might have a sprocket shaft seal leak and it's transferring engine oil through the seal into the primary
i've been a biker for my hole life.. now in mid 40s.. never where specifically interested in harleys but these vids almost makes me want to have an old harley .. it really is a beautiful bike with all patina and everything and i enjoy these videos alot.. than you for sharing! .. the process of "cleaning" and fixing .. giving it some love is really a meditative process, even to watch.
🙏
I love the gas tank logo design
@@badboybootz8 me too, just seems to fit the bike and era perfectly, so glad I was able to source a replacement decal for the right side!
We are running out of riding weather, unless you winter ride. Repair what you have now and over the winter, convert to belt if you still want to do that.
itll be nice and ridable here in NY until maybe late October / mid November
I have a speedo cable and drive unit that I am not going to use.
That is a late '84 clutch (diaphragm clutch)
There is a seal on the back side of inner primary. It looks almost identical to the wheel bearing seals with which you are already familiar. The transmission shaft goes through it much like an axel goes through a wheel bearing seal.
The most difficult part of removing the inner primary is pulling the clutch assembly. With the proper tools, it isn't a difficult task. Without them, it is impossible if you want to reuse the clutch assembly.
Good to know, will look into the tools, I think I almost have to try a seal first before anything else 👍🏻
I agree, the early Evo's utilized a tapered shaft on the main shaft and requires a specific tool for removing it. Don't try one from Auto zone or Advance auto as they won't work and will break your clutch basket. As far as the repair of the leak goes you actually have 3 places it can be leaking from.
1. Front of the motor seal on inner primary (big oring)
2. Starter housing
3. Inner primary bearing seal.
I've fought the inner primary bearing seal before and gave up. The best upgrade for that is the "Jims Primary Bearing upgrade 8960" which completely does away with the inner seal and pressed on race on the main shaft. You will need "Jims Inner Bearing race removal tool 34902-84" to remove the inner race from the main shaft but you will never need to use it ever again once you install the Upgrade kit 8960.
Ive been down this road many many times, if it were me I'd buy the special tool and bearing and upon assembly replace every gasket and seal on the starter assembly. There is also a special boot that gets used on the solenoid that eliminates a leak path. Let me see if I can find that part number
This just gets better and more interesting with each installment!
Thank you 👏
This is where a workshop manual comes in handy for sure.
I’m a huge fan of the patina look but then again I’m the kind of guy that likes to hold onto the past. I think no matter what you do with it, it’s gonna be fun to watch the process. 😎
🙏
I have a 85 looks just like yours, I've it over 30 years, love it.
👏
hang in there, brother. great video. I would just change the inner primary seal and get back on the road. The conversion to belt could be a winter project down the road. only because I enjoy the riding videos 😁
Haha I’m with you, the best part is always riding… and the challenges that brings lol
Hey man love your videos on this bike, hope this thing stops giving you problems soon
It’ll get there, though the problems with these old bikes makes life interesting and keeps you in your toes lol
you have 3 seals in there besides the crankshaft seal. you have the selenoid seal and main drive seal which is behind the clutch hub and the starter shaft seal.. you will see it in the manual.
Nice ride you are fixing up. All Harleys end up needing the inner seals replaced eventually, part of the maintenance.
The dry clutch/belt drive would work and you could see if you like it. Looking forward to seeing what you will do. Cool old bike, I really like how the rear signal lights are built into the saddlebags. I wish Harley still did that. I am not a fan of the new,Honda looking, rear lights on the touring bikes.
Me too, I love the signals, just picked up an NOS set but now don’t want to use them so looking for a used set just to have spare lenses lol
Like this kind of backyard content. Also a cool bike just as it is.
Thanks, now just gotta heal these ribs and then it’s back with two backyard projects going 😆 🤦🏻♂️
Yes, there's a seal where the transmission shaft comes through the inner primary. The seal is in the inner primary, but take care not to put it in backwards, the lip points toward the clutch basket. Cool video.
Yeah this. You're into it now brother.
Thanks 👍🏻
💯
Dont covert to belt dr8ve keep it old school. Great content ,nice ride. Keep it up.
I bought a 1983 FLHTC and have been working on it. I took my inner primary off and changed my engine and transmission main seal. There is a starter gasket, transmission gasket, and if I remember correctly a gasket for your chain ddivd behind the inner transmission. The inner primary removal was easy however removing the seals was a pain.
Interesting, the gasket and seals are in their way to me hopefully I can dig into it soon, 🤞 I can seal it up
@@tta850 I would change the engine and transmission seal if you remove the inner primary. That will prevent you from needing to tear it down again in the future.
@@tta850 th-cam.com/users/shortshsmZGgaeDhg?si=eiuFsUlmNFkpFkPA
love your garage and the place. keep the content coming
I don't know about the seal, but a belt for the primary sure sounds like a more fun solution.
Maybe… I think I will lay the foundation for a belt drive eventually
Belts break, chains don't.
Harley could build them with a belt for a fraction of the cost but, they don't for a reason 🤔
Convert your primary to belt drive, I did it and it was almost the best change that I made!
Curious, what was the ‘best’ thing?
@@ozziejim8472 nothing , lol / DONT CONVERT leave factory always the BEST! there is a REASON why.
@@johnjohnson9135 yeah , I like stock for the most part.
A belt drive is very expensive (approx $500) & is not cost effective.
When a belt snaps without warning, you are dead in the water 😢
@@ozziejim8472 An Indian! 😂
Another great video, glad to see it’s not just my project Harley that needs an aspirin 😂😂😂😂
Nope we are all in the same boat lol
Danke!
Thank you! 🙏
The washer that fell out goes over the starter jackshaft as you guessed. My '84 FXST HAS a seal where the mainshaft goes through the inner primary, even though I had a 'dry' primary. A glance at my 85 - 89 FX/Softail manual says there is a seal in the primary. One thing that you need to keep in mind, is that funky inner primary - specifically that it appears that the starter motor and the starter solenoid are independent with both bolted to the inner primary - you may have issues finding gaskets for them...YMMV of course, because that's an FL model and my books cover FX/Softail models. I'm NOT a belt drive kind of guy, I like my chains! Having said that, to each their own! ALSO, having said that, you may wish to consider that that bike is pretty unique. Keeping it stock or, at least keeping all the stock parts (if you decide to go belt drive), may make it worth more if you decide to sell it!
Good points and insight, thank you!
I just put together a late 84 flt l got rid primary oiler Barrett has a wet dry clutch put 6oz oil in the case just to splash around to keep chain and hub bearings lubricant a good now
I recently acquired a 1982 Tour Glide Classic with the frame mounted fairing. I'm not really sure about all the mechanics so I'm enjoying your series. I also own a 1988 Electra Glide Classic with the Evolution engine. It has a sealed primary that needs the lubricant changed periodically. I previously owned a 1973 Shovelhead Electra Glide. It's primary oiling was all different. The 1973 did not have a sealed primary. It had a vent hole in the vicinity of the front final chain sprocket. Leaking oil there was normal. It would leak mostly on the final drive chain and that was a good thing. Not so good for your garage floor. The oil pump had an output line that went into the inner primary cover and dripped oil onto the primary chain. There was also an oil pickup hose inside the primary that put any excess oil inside the primary back into the engine again. If that oil pickup hose wasn't working then the level in the primary would spill out the vent hole. Even if the pickup hose was working the clutch basket would sling oil into the vicinity of the the vent hole so there would always be some oil leaking there. I did convert my primary chain to a belt drive. I did it for no better reason than I got a great deal on a primary belt kit at a swap meet. I also eliminated the electric starter. The 1973 had the classic 4 speed transmission so adding a kicker cover was easy. Our Tour Glides have the 5 speed transmission so converting to a kick start is difficult. I still like belt primary drive. Until you ride a Harley with a belt primary you don't realize how loud the noise is from a chain primary with a chain tension shoe. Chain primary drive is a constant loud noise. Good luck and I'll keep watching your videos.
Good to know, I think being mine is a late ‘84 with a wet clutch it doesn’t have the oiling system but the whole system sounds really cool and effective… wonder why they changed?
Belt drive and is long term fix without primary inner. But as you said seal is lower cost but higher labor and swearing approach however lower long term reliability. I had same issue with my old bike and went the belt primary.
While you're at it, consider converting the clutch to the ramp and ball setup.
I’d love to but seems very involved… maybe have to do more research on this
@@tta850 it’s just a few part numbers from a Dyna to figure out, not a big deal if your HD Parts guy is the real deal.
@@tta850 it allowed me to run the heavier SE clutch spring, due to an EV27 cam and heads setup I had.
I do believe you have to change the inter primary case to get away from that oil bath enclosed chain setup.
Ugh I hope not, will find out when some more parts show up
I had an 80-80 FLT.
I would go with the primary housing. My father's shovel had an open 6" belt and a dry clutch at the end. Today I would take a 2" and dry clutch in the housing, the primary housing is part of it for me.
Agreed! It’s a piece of the whole Harley puzzle for me too 👍🏻
6” belt?
I know my 1997 road king had a seal in the inner primary cover but it had a belt final drive too. I believe there still would be a seal there even with the chain cover, If you do go with a belt Primary drive there were some modifications I saw in some easy rider magazines about drilling holes in the outer primary cover front and rear, using some epoxy to glue some screen mesh over the holes( inside the cover) so air could flow throw it. kept the cover to make it look stock and kept the road debri out of the clutch and belt
Good info thank you 🙏
Obligatory comment for the man. Keep 'em comin brother!
❤️
those old Harleys had a chin oiler. need to cap it off now that the chain is not sealed in that housing. alot of people remove those and dont realize it!!! my old evo had it and we capped it off and no problem after that... well until i converted to BDL open 3" dive lol
may or may not be the issue for your bike but know its a common issue for alot of 80s bikes
I’ll have to look, thank you 🙏
my family are mostly dirtbike and naked street bike people but i find harleys sick as but dont have my license so am looking for a project and i thank you for you knowledge
also whats the behind gear lever is it a shift down or reverse heard or some big bikes with reverse
So it’s just a heel shifter, no reverse, by heel shifter I mean you can up shift by pushing down with the heel of your foot and (using the front shifter) downshift using the toe of your foot. It really does make shifting on a Harley, at least in my opinion, way easier and more relaxed. Both my Harley’s are set up this way, wouldn’t have it without! 👍🏻
@@person13456 Front shift lever.....shift up with your toe......Rear shift lever......shift up with your heel......just personal choice, another way to get through the gears. No reverse on this mule.
@@cb750k1974 cheers
@@tta850 cheers
In my experience, when seals start leaking, & problems with gear shifting,
Usually means something is off in alignment.
Maybe sprocket alignment, suspension alignment,
Swingarm bushings are bad,
Or something with braking system, alignment between disc, pad and wheel, bad caliper, bad master cylinder,
Any of above misalignment will cause chain reaction into misalignment of different parts of different systems,
and will lead to death wobble, plus catastrophic failure of parts further down the line.
Yes BDL makes a primary belt drive for that year
Good to know 👍🏻
If you just do the seals and such you’ll enjoy her a few years likely before you have to revisit it. Less bucks. Then when you have to revisit you can do other things. Meanwhile the money saved can be used for some weekend fun. Just my 2 cents. You’re gonna need clutch tools either way. Be well and thanks for sharing!
It all depends on how much money you’re willing to sink into this machine, the cheapest is to replace all the seals, main shaft, primary, shifter, starter, it’s a lotta work, but you’ll be roadworthy for many miles. While you’re at it replace the drive sprocket. After that, more miles per dollar!
Leaning this way, didn’t think of the drive sprocket, thanks! 👏
I'm pretty sure there are two seals. One seals the outside diameter of the trans mainshaft, the other seals the rod that comes from trans, inside the mainshaft. Cometic makes some real good primary cover gaskets including one for the derby cover. Silicon cast o-ring in an aluminum "spacer" basically. No leaks. I'm sure you know to use HD, Screaming Eagle or other acceptable primary fluid like Drag Specialties if they are still around.
Little advice, do not pull on the bendix (starter gear). It will connect the solenoid terminals and tear you up. In fact pull the ground cable at the battery off for now. Another tip, do not try to pull the snap ring out of the clutch basket without a tool or threaded 3/8 (I think) bolt/ all thread rod to compress the diaphragm spring. Both tips will save you some skin and grief!
You can always buy the speedo cable assembly, pull the core to use in your casing. You need to get the broken bit out but you'll have a speedo now. You can put back in your new casing later. Don't bother with the core kits from NAPA, they will not work.
If you go with a belt driven primary, I might offer to buy your clutch basket assembly if it fits mine. I'll find out. Mine is fried.
Thanks for the tips, didn’t even think about disconnecting the battery, that’ll be job one before I pull that primary off again for sure!
Me I would leave it chain drive and there has to be some type of seal in there and the is a 81 for sale about 90 miles and the guy wants $3,000 and it makes yours look like it just came off the showroom floor
😳
how you making out with this leak ?
Tearing at apart now that I got the electrical done… and disconnected the battery this time!
pull floorboard, then compensator and clutch. there is a seal on the inner primary. wet clutch is much better for slow speed maneuvering. kind of hard slipping a dry clutch they won't last long
Disconnect the battery when digging around in the primary, might save a finger.
Didn’t even think of that, I feel kinda dumb as I read comments telling me this as looking back it’s so obvious 🤦🏻♂️Thank you 👏
On the fence with the belt drive, but like you said, it's what you want, your bike. Have you decided sprocket yet? Does it really need it.
Not sure, taking this one problem at a time, I think I’m going to try the seal, it seems I kinda have to at least give that a try and the belt drive would be kinda plan b
Those early speedometers were so problematic. Heres a great tip. If youre going to be replacing your gearbox with a new one chances are itll be bone dry (no grease). I take the head off of my grease gun and attach a small piece of clear hose with 2 small hose clamps to secure it lightly to the gear box. I then slowly force grease into the gearbox while turning the tabbed portion of the gearbox to permit grease to get into the gears. This will make your gearbox last forever. I also grease the piss out of the cable prior to instilling it into the housing and spray a tad bit of WD40 into the back of the speedometer itself. Dont get crazy with the WD40, just a little blast will do the trick and leave it facing up immediately afterwards so it doesn’t leak out onto the clear plastic.
Good tip on the new one being dry, will do thanks!
I love this bike and content I just started the video so maybe you go over this but I’ve got an 83 FXR shovel which would be the same set up i believe as your 84 FLT (rubber mount 5 spd) i know there was alot of carryover from late shovel to early EVO and my primary has oil lines going to the back of it and the engine oil circulates through the primary then back out but the primary doesn’t take fluid. Anyway I’ll keep watching good luck
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I dont know crap about crap but I like Harleys. Should have an inner shift seal back there. My only question would be when you noticed the leak, after the Bacon, egg & cheese sandwich, the bike was on its side stand. The primary only holds enough oil to meet the very bottom of the clutch pack. So on the side stand you shouldnt have oil loss from the back side of the primary? Right? Again I dont know crap about crap. Enjoying the vids. Keep it up.
So yes when on the side stand it doesn’t leak, and it won’t leak no matter how long I let it sit… but take it for a ride and when you stop it will drip out… and be splashed all over the rear fender and bags 😒
I have the original parts book for 84-86. The 85 has several seals that the 84 doesn’t show. There is a seal on the inside of the front sprocket towards the transmission.
Was the chain reservoir you removed catching the leak?
I just replaced my belt and i had to remove the inner primary. I had to be very patient getting the belt around the swingarm bolt
Yes I think the chain enclosure was catching the leak… until the enclosure itself started leaking lol
I bought a 95 Fatboy. First ride it wetted the back tire and was pouring out. Took it all apart replaced all the seals in the inner rode it twice and started leaking. Tore down agian and noticed the bearing race had moved so I replaced that and had a shop press a new bearing in the inner primary then did it again. 1500 miles and not even a little leak.
@@kevintomes3786 that’s life on these old Harley’s, but it’s satisfying to me that we can keep em going and have stories to tell! Good luck with yours and ride safe!
@tta850 Yes Sir. They are extraordinary machines. 100% mechanical and I love it.
if ya do a belt you will need to grease the clutch hub bearings occassionally or they will create problems and fail. you also should convert to needle bearings for the clutch hub. i like my belt conversion on my 1980 shovelhead. also you need to flip the crankshaft seal if you go to belt. ride on!
The diaphragm clutch bearings are sealed.
Go with belt drive, less maintenance, it's quieter and gives piece of mind in my opinion, if you convert it I hope you put it on u tube 🇺🇸👍🏆.
I’m leaning towards doing the seal now and the belt later… both jobs will be documented on TH-cam 👍🏻
Brother I got an 84 flhtcu i had that issue with the turn signals like you it was a real pain, I have a red wire that gets hot under the speedo every time i turn the ign switch to the lights position. all the lights work. Is there a chance you could post a picture of the wiring under the speedo preferably those three circut breakers i think i wired mine wrong.
@@SoulMUNTEAN I’m working on wiring in an all in one type turn signal + run/brake/turn module so you have perfect timing for this question. Let me see what I can dig up 👍🏻
@@tta850 Thank you so much electrical is one thing i don't have patience for but i can do everything else also I love the R35, im a huge gear head / JDM guy
@@SoulMUNTEAN thank you the R35 is a great car, and no problem the wiring on this bike is done in a way no longer used so we are both learning while we work lol
I don't even ride a motorbike and I'm glued to this channel. convert everything on the bike so we get more videos 😂😂🤘🏼
😂❤️👏
I had the same symptom before I disassembled mine. For me it was the transmission seal that was bad. At the moment I’m riding it with no Chainguard and no seal worked in in the primary. The chain ist always oily but no drops or stains under the bike. It still takes less Oil then recommended by the manufacturer 😅
Alot of them speedometers don't work.
So it seems 🤦🏻♂️
What's with the car in the shed? Is that a Nissan GT?
Yup GTR Nismo, great car 👍🏻
It's hard to tell 100% from your video but it seems like you had way too much oil in your primary you don't need much oil in those setups regardless of installing a belt drive you might have a sprocket shaft seal leak and it's transferring engine oil through the seal into the primary
Will check on that, it’s drained and the gasket set has arrived so it’s high on the list to get going on! 👍🏻
are you the guy from kaplan america?
If only lol just a guy from Brooklyn who likes messing with bikes and cars
That old bike is a italian new york gangster.
🇮🇹 😎
Wow bye a manual