New to the forum so I hope I'm posting this in the right place.

I recently bought my first HD, It's a '94 Sporty with 10k miles. In nice cond, just needs some TLC. I don't know a lot about HDs but know I want to change the Oil, Already checked the Brake fluid and replaced the battery. My neighbor has a newer bike and said there would be a drain tube under the motor. Well I looked tonight and I can can see what looks like a drain plug right at the bottom of the motor, not sure what size socket it would take but it was pretty big. Could this be the drain plug for the oil or will I dump the tranny fluid instead?

If I'm asking stupid questions, just point me to the corner. I would appreciate the help.

94-Sporty

 

I wish I could answer your question, someone will. Check on Ebay to see if you can find a used Owners Manual, or a Service Manual, either of these books will answer this question.

Good Luck!

 

The thing that looks like a screw-in drain plug is the primary lube drain. (transmission) Further back, under the engine oil tank you'll find a black rubber hose clamped to a stub on the frame. You remove that clamp and pull off the hose and oil drains out of the hose. Let it dribble out for 5 minutes or so, then put the drain hose back.

Before you change the oil, you need to have it warm. The MoCo says ride above 50 mph for 20 miles to get the oil warm enough to drain. At least ride for 20 or 30 minutes before you change it.

Have 3 quarts of oil. When you get ready to install the new oil filter, fill it 2/3 to 3/4 full of oil before you quickly screw it on. (Be sure to dab some oil on the rubber gasket of the new filter and run your finger around it to leave a thin film of oil on the gasket. Don't over-tighten the filter. One hand tight is plenty. Pour the rest of the oil into the tank.

Not to scare you, but some Sportsters take a while to develop oil pressure after an oil change. Don't let it freak you. I've found that the 96 likes to be on an incline with the front end down. It has to do with the oil hose routing. Sometimes it takes 2 minutes at idle for the oil light to go off. Don't panic. And don't rev it. Be patient.

There is a story going round that you should run with the oil level half way between the marks on the dip stick. That applies to later models because of a tank sizing error. It doesn't apply to the 94. However, don't ever over-fill it.

Mine seems to be happy running about 1/4" below the full mark, so I run it there and it never uses oil.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Harley.

I'd strongly recommend that you get a Factory Manual. It is worth the $60.00 price. You'll save that much the first time you use it.

 

There are NO stupid questions. Only dumb mistakes.

You can't learn if you don't ask. You're smart to ask. One fellow with a brand new Harley didn't ask. He drained the primary and the engine. He added oil to the engine. He didn't refill the transmission because he thought it was all the same oil. He ran it hard for several weeks, then took it back to the dealear complaining of a rattling noise. The result was a very expensive primary rebuild not covered by warranty.

No one knows it all. If you know enough to ask you're doin' good.

 

The plug is the primary/tranny drain. The motor drain is a rubber hose that's hose clamped to a dead barb fitting under the swingarm just behind the engine. Like stated, make sure you warm the engine first for best draining. And I'd recommend going synthetic on the oil. I use mobil 1 20w50 vtwin oil in the motor and mobil 1 75w90 gear oil in the primary. You'll need 3 quarts for the engine, and 1 quart for the primary along with an oil filter. And often times after an oil change, you'll hear a clicking sound from the top end, it's nothing to worry about it just takes about a minute for the hydraulic tappets to get filled. By the way, i have a 94 sporty too.....used to be a 883, but now it's a 1250.

 

Thanks guys, just the info iIneeded. Will probably buy a service manual.
now i know it, i'll probably drain the tranny too, where do I fill it from though?

Also with the Synthetic oil, is it ok to go synthetic after the engine has been run on regular oil all it's life, will it affect seals or anything ?

thanks again for all the info, its' very much appreciated. I'll let you all know how my oil change goes this weekend.

 

primary, you can fill it from either the inpection cover, the little cover with 2 screws just over your shifter, or through the clutch cover. You should really take the clutch cover off to check the oil level anyway,....with the bike standing upright the oil should just touch the bottom of the clutch diaphram spring. Oh yeah, and be sure to throw a block under the kickstand so the bike sits upright as possible when you take the clutch cover off, otherwise you'll spill a little oil if the bike is leaning. And there's no reason not to go synthetic....I got my sporty with about 30,000 miles on it when i put synthetic in. Shifts a lot better and no more clutch moaning. And its nice having more miles between oil changes.

 

You put in the Primary lube through the primary chain inspection cover after removing two Allens screws. Word of warning. The book says the primary takes 32 ounces. Maybe bone dry it does. Every time I've put in 32 ounces, the primary ends up being slightly over-filled and an over-filled primary on a Sportster causes clutch drag. I put in 29-30 ounces and avoid oil drag on the clutch. After you get the manual, you'll read that the oil level in the primary should be just below the clutch diaphram spring disc. On the 92 and 96 we have, it works out to about 30 ounces. It is easy to check the level, once the clutch inspection cover is removed. Sometimes those screws can be a pain to remove. Don't attempt it until you've talked with someone who has gone through the difficulties.

Note: Don't mistake the primary chain aduster for the primary drain plug. The primary aduster has a threaded adjusting screw in the middle of it. Don't mess with that until you have the manual.

Synthetic oil tends to make Sportster engines run noisier. Also, synthetic oil tends to find ways past the Sportster engine seals that pure dino oil doesn't.

If the engine is fully and properly broken in, then changing to synthetic oil shouldn't pose a problem. You don't have to "flush" an engine with synthetic.

I've heard enough people complain about oil seepage and noisier engine operation that I'm content to stick with dino oil. Racing and prolonged, all out, running is another matter. Synthetic is a must.

Whether to switch to synthetic is a purely personal choice.

I have over 30,000 miles on my 96 and while I don't flog it, I don't hesitate to run it at 90 or 100 if the highway is empty. I don't bounce off the rev limiter regularly, but I do sometimes hit it in second gear. My 883 doesn't use oil between oil changes, and I run mine 3,500 to 4,000 miles between changes, sometimes more. I'm telling you this because people who say that Sportster normally burn a quart of oil every 1,500 miles are kidding themselves. There's something wrong if your engine uses oil.

 

I think I'll stick with the Dino oil, and you were right, what I thought was the tranny drain plug is the primary chain adjuster, is the tranny drain plug to the rear of this?

Will I find enough info to handle a tranny fluid change and oil change in the owner manual or do I need to spend the $60 on the Service manual?
Thanks for all the info so far guys, this site is great !

 

Yes, the primary lube drain plug is further back, just above the rubber Jiffy Stand bumper. The head size of that plug is 3/4". The primary chain adjuster lock nut is larger, 13/16" I think.

The owner's manual tells things about using the bike, controls, what tire pressures should be, oil and filter change intervals and like that. It doen't tell you HOW to do any of these things.

I've found older Factory Manuals at used book stores for $20.00. Amazon sometimes has some, Alibris too. E-bay at various times. You really can't properly work on a Sportster without one. Oil and filter and lube changes are fairly straight-forward. After that, things can get model specific and you really need the manual. It is a worthwhile investment that saves you money by helping you avoid mistakes.