What is bugging me most these days is I seem to be getting a definite smell of gas when I stop the bike. Now this would ordinarily roll off my back but coincidentally my gas mileage has been lower than usual by 6 or 7 mpg's for the last three weeks. I just don't feel like catchi9ng on fire at any given moment!

Next my bub7's ,which some of you may recall I installed in june, keeps breaking the P-bracket which supports the middle part just at the back of the header pipes before the muffler/header joint. First time it cracked (always in the same spot) I called bub ent. and they replaced it. Two weeks later it cracked again,so i decided to just fuggitt and ride on. Well then the main support bracket broke right in half,and the saddle bracket at the exit point was broken too! Now those were all replaced and yesterday I went out for about a 300 mile run and upon my arrival home noticed the damn P-bracket is cracked agin!

Third there is always a small drop of oil , and i think it is engine oil hanging off the primary drain plug. i thought it was from the drain plug o-ring so i changed that at the next oil change but it didn't solve the problem.

...any Ideas on problem 1 and 3? The bike is going in tuesday to see about the oil and I will ask them to look into the gas problem at the same time.
The P-bracket problem well,i think I'm going to fab one out of thicker metal. Brad at bub ent wants me to send him some pics , to me all seems to be in it's place. But I will work with him and see if he can help me fix this up,this def should not be happening.

Pic one is the support bracket in two peices. Pic 2 though a little blurry is the P-brcket from underneath. Pic 3 you can see the P-bracket followed by the aluminum spacers bub supplied me with orientation from front to rear respectively. Pic 4 from the tailpipe view is the original saddle bracket I had welded up at a local body shop. you can see a small insignificant drop of weld on the chrome, just under that you can see the bead of weld i had him do for me which was not present at all until I noticed it was broken ,which clued me in to the fact this was a weak point. The question is why are my brackets all snapping on me?!!!

 

On the p bracket...insert a solid steel rod and weld the piece back together. I bet it never breaks again. Support it from the inside. Understand?

Is it possible that when you torqued it all down at install, it became crooked and is placing undue stress on the brackets? Maybe loosen it up and reseat the exhaust, and re-torque.

as far as the oil on the drain plug...try a little plumbers tape on it. You know, white teflon tape. I think I used a little piece on mine and have never had a problem.

 

I had a gas smell as well, turned out it was the seal at the top of the tank. once I tightend down the seal...smell gone. I found this accidently when I was re-wiring for the apes, there was some fuel sitting on top of tank under the controls.

 

About two years ago my wife complained she smelled gas after I put up my bike in the garage.

I checked the fuel lines but couldn't find any leak. After some time I found out there was a brownish spot on the rear cylinder, just below the fuel valve.

After having monitored this situation, I found out that the diaphragm in the fuel valve was leaking when the engine was hot. I could locate the drops after I had put a piece of paper inbetween the cylinder heads and the fuel tank.

Without the paper, the drops fell on the cylinder and evaporated instantly thus hard to locate.

I replaced the fuel valve by a new one and the problem was solved.

My advice would be: check the fuel lines for leaks.

___________
FXD2003Rider

 

The P-bracket is basically an angle iron,if I named it-it would be an L-bracket, but re-ienforceing is what I think too! anyhow it has one hole for the bolt to hang onto the main support bracket and a stainless steel clamp to hold the header pipe to it,and it keeps cracking at the bolt hole. There is a pic of my old bracket. I'm gonna take a peice of angle iron maybe a 1/4 inch thick if i can find one,(which I will),drill it and heat it with a torch and do some bending si it cradles the pipe and hope that nabs it. Winter is almost here (fugh) and I'll have time on my hands. As for torqueing the main bracket has to go on before the header pipe,so that is torqued ahead of time. and I did remove the assembly recently and started over with new gaskets and the whole chi-bang Vic,making sure not to over tighten anything,and do all bolts evenly a 1/4 turn at a time. I'll try the teflon next time,but I have he impression this is engine oil,but can't figure out where it's coming from as I don't yet have a lift but i guess I shall need one as My warranty is up the end of this month.

FXD2003, i have no fuel valve,and like you my fuel lines are dry when I check them.
Jonn2002 I'l disassemble that this winter too!

 

I meant put the teflon tape on the threads of the oil drain plug as you mentioned there was a drip of oil hanging from the plug.

Also, check the attached image.

 

the oil is probally running down the inside of the back of the primary from the inner primary bearing seal...not biggie but a pain in the a** to replace...

 

OH ! that is not the p-bracket! see the pic of the p-bracket,at least that is what brad from bub ent called it. ok yes a rod will fix that! But i have a new one of those for now and will be repairing that one soon,and when I do thank-you because i hadn't even thought of the rod idea!

Thanks Superfast that is exactly why i want to get HD to fix it before the warranty is up! at least now i have an idea where it's coming from.