Main Shaft Bearing Failure...Anyone Else?
Thread Starter
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Club Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 2,095
Likes: 4
From: Ponchatoula Louisiana
Main Shaft Bearing Failure...Anyone Else?
Coming up on 25,000 miles on my '08 FXDC. I noticed what appeared to be oil and grime on my kickstand. Upon further inspection with a mirror it appeared oil was leaking from around belt drive sprocket behind primary. Local dealer said to bring it in and they tore it down and sure enough, main shaft bearing had failed and plastic and oil fragments in transmission. It's covered under warranty, but was told that they have seen 2 or 3 bikes recently with this problem. I don't abuse my bike by any means, and have always considered myself a conservative rider. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this and at what mileage.
Club Member
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 11,483
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From: Passaic County, NJ
Just for posterity. The basic V-twin design is 100+ yrs old. A good number of bikes from the teens, 20's and 30's are still running today. My point is, you don't have to baby your motorcycle. Don't be afraid to ride it....after the bearing issue gets fixed of course. 
Good luck and glad it was covered. I bet that could be an expensive repair.
Good luck and glad it was covered. I bet that could be an expensive repair.
Thread Starter
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Club Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 2,095
Likes: 4
From: Ponchatoula Louisiana
I realize now that I should have done a more thorough search. Could not find anything concerning the '08 models. I sure hope they check the run out and any alignment issues. I also asked them to see if the fifth gear could be upgraded to helical. Not too important as I never had any problem with fifth gear noise before.
Cruiser
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 219
Likes: 0
From: Central Illinois
dfredb,
Glad to hear that the repair will be covered at no expense to you. I don't believe its a common problem-though not unheard of. It has been said that an overtightened belt could cause such a problem as it puts undue stress on the shaft and bearing. Or maybe just a bad bearing that went to pieces.
Glad to hear that the repair will be covered at no expense to you. I don't believe its a common problem-though not unheard of. It has been said that an overtightened belt could cause such a problem as it puts undue stress on the shaft and bearing. Or maybe just a bad bearing that went to pieces.
2nd Gear
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
Leak
My 07 FLHX has been leaking for 3 years. The dealer has been great and has fixed it about 2 times a year for the past three years. It is leaking again. The dealer has thought it was the primary, so last week they installed a new inner primary. After a short ride it still leaked. The dealer called HD and asked them what was up. HD replied yea we know about that problem but it is rare. The transmission output shaft was machined to small and thus it leaks. No TSB was ever issued according to the dealer. So after three years, I hope this will finally fix it. Like I said, the dealer has supported me 100% on this issue, but HD needs to get their **** together and support their dealers and customers. A simple TSB would have saved a lot of aggravation.
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I just found my bad main drive gear bearing. I started to take my bike apart to fix a simple leak. When I removed the bad seal pieces of the bearing fell out. I almost left it alone, it wasn't a bad leak at all. I don't like my bike leaking, anything, so I went in for a look. Last night I pulled out the main drive gear and bearing. The bearing came out in pieces and is shot. All of the ***** are pitted and scorn and so are the races. Let me know what the dealer say about using an aftermarket 5th gear(MDG). Part of the inner race is still stuck on my fifth gear and I'm thinking about replacing it.
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Thread Starter
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Club Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 2,095
Likes: 4
From: Ponchatoula Louisiana
I just found my bad main drive gear bearing. I started to take my bike apart to fix a simple leak. When I removed the bad seal pieces of the bearing fell out. I almost left it alone, it wasn't a bad leak at all. I don't like my bike leaking, anything, so I went in for a look. Last night I pulled out the main drive gear and bearing. The bearing came out in pieces and is shot. All of the ***** are pitted and scorn and so are the races. Let me know what the dealer say about using an aftermarket 5th gear(MDG). Part of the inner race is still stuck on my fifth gear and I'm thinking about replacing it.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,062
Likes: 2
From: Southwest OHIO
My uncle has a fatbob... And he replaced his 5th gear with a helical gear. Not sure of brand or details but he said he was tired of the 5th gear noise so he had it replaced. If i can i will get more info on what he used, but i thought it was the newer style h-d gear as they went away from that type of gear after 08???