Well, I'm brand new to bikes in general (as in a month of riding). I bought a 1982 Ironhead because I simply loved it. There are no serious mechanical problems, runs great. I need help finding parts for it though, there is some chrome damage on the primary covers, I'd like to put a new seat on it (maybe a vintage mustang), new handlebars, and turn signals.

Unfortunately I look at all the XLH, XLHC, etc. and scratch my head. The guy i bought it from told me it was a "XE" but I've never seen that anywhere.

Anyways, any information or links to information would be a huge help . . . also how do i get my hands on a service manual?

 

Welcome to the club. I just picked up my first ironhead back in september. It's a 74 xlch. It needed a little tlc but not much..... so far. As for a manual, I went to my local hd dealership and ordered one as well as a parts book.

A good source for parts is JPcycles.com . Also check out xlforum.net, lots of info on there.

Lets see some pics when you get a chance.

 

These two manuals are your most essential tools ...

Factory Parts Catalog 99451-85A
Factory Service Manual 99484-85

These are widely available thru a local indie bike shop, HD dealership, J&P Cycles, various eBay and internet sellers like motorcyclemanuals.com, AbeBooks.com, Amazon.com, etc. Just put the part numbers into the Gogle and eBay search engines and you will find many.

For buying parts these are the ones to try for NOS parts that i know of ...

http://www.tomsnosparts.com/
www.OldDude.com
www.SportySpecialties.com
rdns@genesco.net <- decals & transfers
www.NOSParts.nl <- does not ship to North America
www.JWBoon.com <- does not ship to North America

For all of these sources you must have the official HD part number, which you can get from the Factory Parts Catalog.

If you have a local indie bike shop that is familiar with and works on old bikes, especially IronHeads, they could be your best friend. Buy from them. Support the local indie bike shop even tho the parts will cost more.

With all due respect, but never take your IronHead into an HD dealer shop for maintenance or repair. Their tech's are not trained to work on these bikes.

You may be best to keep the engine covers that you have. Chrome damage is not a problem, it is patina - normal aging. The bike is worth more with original parts even if they are not fresh.

You cannot arbitrarily replace the gearcase [right side] cover, also known as the cam cover. It is not just a cover; it contains the bushings for the 4 cam gears, the pinion gear, and the generator idler gear. It is a major operation to replace, something none of us wish to do.

The primary [left side] cover is not so difficult, but you could very well end up with gasket fitment problems.

In summary, do not think in terms of replacing these covers. Also having them re-chromed may create new problems with the gasket surfaces. Also best to avoid this whole idea.

What is the engine serial numbe/VIN? That will tell us whether it is XLH or some other. The number is on the right side of the engine just below the V of the cylinders, and also on the steering stem neck.

 

welcome to the board post pictures of the bike.

 

Thanks! working on getting those pics up on here. . . what SHOULD i do with the covers? Peeling, splotchy chrome isn't so hot

 

you can have it stripped and rechromed, powdercoated or painted.

some pics of one option:

http://xlforum.net/vbportal/forums/s....php?t=1575979


s

 

Ive got a 77 ironhead and my master link came off and ended up hitting the sporket cover which in turn took a big chunk out of my engine case....really could use another set of cases if anyone has any its a 77 1000cc...thanks

 

I have not seen engine covers after being stripped of chrome, but i believe as Scott says they need to be painted or whatever after. Any chrome shop can strip the chrome.

With the side covers care must be taken to protect the gasket surfaces and to not distort the parts ; and with the gearcase [cam] cover the bushings must be protected. Best if the shop that does the work has experience with engine covers from vintage bikes. A shop that typically chromes car bumpers etc would not be the best choice, regardless of how good they say they are.

You do not want to have to replace the bushings in the gearcase cover - that requires dismantling the entire engine down to the crank, splitting the cases, and line reaming the new bushings with a special tool that no one has and is difficult to find.

A good local indie mechanic shop may be able to recommend a good chrome shop, machine shop, etc for getting specialty work done. I give these kinds of work to my mechanic, then he chooses the specialty shop and supervises the work. Then they have to answer to him, and he is a tough guy to have to answer to.

These same comments apply to powder coating, etc.