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Having a rough day

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Dswartz

Active Member
Have you ever started on a simple project that turned into a nightmare because you did something stupid? I have a couple of problems. My day started off bad when I went out to my bike and noticed the primary was leaking from the drain plug. I had the bike serviced at the dealer 1700 miles ago and haven't had any problems. I tightened the drain plug slightly and hopefully this solves that issue. Is it possible that it's a bad plug that needs to be replaced? Or do they tend to back out with the vibration? I certainly don't want to overtighten it.

After tightening that plug I started on another project. My battery tray and exhaust mount bracket have begun to rust most likely due to battery acid. (the previous owner had some charging issues which I have since resolved). I am stripping them both down and re-painting. In order to remove the exhaust bracket I had to remove the exhaust. When I got the nut off of the rear exhaust I accidently dropped the nut! I watched it fall right between the left side of the tranny top cover and the inner primary right where the drive belt gear is. I looked everywhere and could not find it. I even used a magnetic pickup tool with no luck. I could easily buy another nut but I am concerned that this nut could be in a place that might cause trouble. My bike is a 2002 super glide. Is it possible for the nut to have slipped into the inner primary? I have never removed my cover so I wasn't sure if it it sealed in there or not. Is there anywhere that nut could be that would damage the drive belt? Should I remove the primary cover and look in there or is that a waste of time? Sorry this is so long I'm just frustrated!
 
When you tightened up the primary drain plug was it actually loose or did you tighten it up even though it felt tight? The drain plug should have an o-ring on it that may be leaking (split) and tightening could go either way making it leak more or less if that is the case. If it was loose to begin with tightening may have solved the issue. To be safe I would pick up a new o-ring and if it continues to leak replace it before it becomes a larger issue.

As for the bolt you dropped you will need to locate it to be sure it does not get somewhere it can cause more damage but there is no way it will find its way into the primary. Main concern would be belt damage as you said.
 
I have had the same problem with those sneaky nuts, drop one and it disappears. I blew compressed air in the area, I rode the bike hard and stopped hard in the driveway, I even put the bike on it's side I shook it it and still no nut. Good luck
kemo
 
Agreed, you need to find that nut. While it cannot get into the primary, it could get down on top of that belt or in close to the drive sprocket and make big trouble for you.
You may need a strong flexible magnet, an inspection mirror and a good light....but find the nut!
 
If it will ease your mind, the leak from the primary plug is either from not being tightened at servicing, which you corrected, or from a damaged o-ring. If it leaks again, sacrifice and replace the primary fluid, which is relatively cheap, and replace the 0-ring. Might bring this up to the servicing department when next in there.

As for the inner primary, it is a sealed unit so nothing is going to get in or out by accident. Page 524 of the Parts and Accessories catalog has a photo of one, from the inside.

Someone more knowledgeable will jump in on where the nut could be hiding. Is it possible it hit the floor and rolled/bounced somewhere out of sight?

Good luck. :bigsmiley28:
 
VICTORY!!! After looking all over for that stupid nut I came inside to drink a cold beer and post my problem. After a few minutes of cooling off and singing kumbaya (not literally) I decided to go back and give it another try. This time I found it in less that a minute! Somehow it get wedged below the drive belt in a rather interesting way. Yes, I'm glad I found it because if I would have left it, it probably would have torn up my belt.

On a side note I am really surprised how quickly everybody responded to my post. I am relatively new to the harley community but I must say everybody I've met has been wonderful and the info on this site has been great. I am certainly happy I decided to buy a Harley instead of an import. Nothing else seems to invoke the same amount of passion and pride in people as a genuine Harley Davidson does. Thanks again to everybody for the help and happy holidays.
 
When that happens to me, I just pick up the bike and shake it for a minute or two. That usually causes the nut or bolt to fall out.:lolrolling
 
Dswartz, glad you found that nut, it would be a worry regardless if you had not found it.

I always change the o-rings. What I have found is that when I remove the drain plugs at each service, the o-rings look fine, no cracking or tearing that is visible at all. I put the used ones in an envelope marked used and replace them each time. (Not sure why I keep the old ones) Now, we took my husband's bike in to a local shop we like for his 10k service. (Was busy dealing with his parent's estate at the time) Overall they do good work, but I don't believe they changed the o-rings on his drain plugs. Here is why I feel this way; at the end of the summer when I was doing our regular service before parking the bikes for the winter, I pulled the drain plugs and upon inspection, my o-rings still looked like new, but his were cracked and frayed and looked awful. I know they were new when I did the last service, but since we took it to the shop for the service between, I feel that the mechanics didn't change the o-rings since they have never looked that bad again since. I guess the heat and compression wears on them, and though they may look like new, they are not new and do not hold up as well for re-use. I know I took pictures, but apparently I didn't load them to photo bucket so I can't post them. I will try to get them later.
 
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