Front Motor Mount Replacement
Dirt don't hurt
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 21,065
Likes: 4,561
From: Haslet Texas
I just replaced the front motor mount on my 1990 FLHS with a Biker's Choice motor mount from J&P. It now has an obnoxious vibration. I didn't tighten any of the motor mount bolts until I had the front stabilizer tightened. I then tightened the remaining bolts. The vibration is worse at low RPMs and makes the bag lids rattle at idle. I'm ready to put the old mount back in.
Does the mount need to "run in" or is it a poor choice in mounts? I cant see where I have anything mis aligned as that is set by the front stabilizer. I installed the new mount tapered side up like the original that came out.
I'm sure this has been covered before and did search for a while, couldn't find anything helpful.
Thanks in advance.
Frank
Does the mount need to "run in" or is it a poor choice in mounts? I cant see where I have anything mis aligned as that is set by the front stabilizer. I installed the new mount tapered side up like the original that came out.
I'm sure this has been covered before and did search for a while, couldn't find anything helpful.
Thanks in advance.
Frank
I haven't had much luck with them over the years.
My suggestion is get an OEM one and try again.
Thread Starter
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Cruiser
Joined: Sep 2017
Posts: 156
Likes: 21
From: Adirondacks
Last night I loosened all bolts associated with the front mount, started the bike and ran it at a variety of RPMs while sitting level on the wheels then shut it down and tightened things in this sequence: 1) bolts through motor to flat mounting plate, 2) bolts holding mount to frame, 3) center bolt through motor mount without over tightening. Still shakes ridiculously at around 1200RPM.
I replaced the motor mount because I have a new set of exhaust pipes to install and didn't want to crack the pipe where front and rear pipes join. The original mount from the bike looked solid when removed so I'm going to reinstall it to see if that resolves the problem.
I still have a couple of questions:
-Could I have misaligned or damaged something when I jacked the motor to clear the front motor mount for replacement? I didn't go crazy but did see some frame lift when jacking. I removed the motor bolt through the front stabilizer before jacking.
-Eventually the original motor mount will fail. I will get an OEM mount but there's lots of posts saying they cause additional vibration problems as well. What's the ultimate solution for a smooth mounting system; glide pro, OEM, other? This is an FLHS that was smooth before the mount replacement. It now seems to shake worse at 1200-2500 than my solid mount '82 Shovelhead FXB.
This is driving me nuts.
Thanks.
I replaced the motor mount because I have a new set of exhaust pipes to install and didn't want to crack the pipe where front and rear pipes join. The original mount from the bike looked solid when removed so I'm going to reinstall it to see if that resolves the problem.
I still have a couple of questions:
-Could I have misaligned or damaged something when I jacked the motor to clear the front motor mount for replacement? I didn't go crazy but did see some frame lift when jacking. I removed the motor bolt through the front stabilizer before jacking.
-Eventually the original motor mount will fail. I will get an OEM mount but there's lots of posts saying they cause additional vibration problems as well. What's the ultimate solution for a smooth mounting system; glide pro, OEM, other? This is an FLHS that was smooth before the mount replacement. It now seems to shake worse at 1200-2500 than my solid mount '82 Shovelhead FXB.
This is driving me nuts.
Thanks.
Tourer
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 410
Likes: 127
From: Iowa
My '96 Heritage vibrates quite a bit as I get close to 70mph, and gets worse the faster I go after that. I read here about riders happily cruising along at 80 to 85 mph or faster. There's no way I could do that on my bike.
I'm still such a green newbie with EVO's that I don't have a clue what's normal and what should be addressed, regarding vibration.
Frank, I hope you get your shaking problem resolved soon. I'll be watching this thread to see how it goes.
.
.
Back when J&P was having fulfillment troubles a couple years ago, they sent me a $20 loyalty coupon. Used it to buy a new front mount for the Electra Glide. Probably the same one we're talking about.
Bad vibes for sure for the first however many miles. It eventually broke in, and now the bike is smoother than ever.
Bad vibes for sure for the first however many miles. It eventually broke in, and now the bike is smoother than ever.
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 3,872
Likes: 83
From: Canton, Michigan
My horn was made in France. Not to be confused with a French Horn....
Road Master
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,005
Likes: 103
From: Ghent NY
Yellowstone, you dont have to worry about a front motor mount on your 96 Heritage. (you dont have that type) But if you have a lot of vibration check the four mounting bolts that holds motor to the frame. they will losen sometimes.
Last edited by Ruggs59; Sep 15, 2018 at 04:46 PM.
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 3,466
Likes: 425
From: Illinois
I bought a mount off ebay for about 30 bucks. Shook like crazy at first-took about 30 miles to smooth out. Actually,I was ready to turn around and go home just before it smoothed.
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Road Warrior
Joined: Dec 2017
Posts: 1,503
Likes: 2,854
From: Delaware
Regarding the post about mounts being made in tiawan/china, I just got a rear mount for a '98 Evo Dyna from Boardtracker HD and it had Made in USA stamped on it. I would bet that mounts from aftermarket suppliers are made in Asia. Paid about $30 more but I have had trouble with aftermarket ones. Lets see if the extra $30 was worth it.
Road Master
Joined: May 2018
Posts: 783
Likes: 179
From: Bay Area
I put an Alloy Art poly front motor mount on my FXR when I put the new 131 in and it definitely has more vibration, not sure if that's due to the new motor Im still breaking in or the stiffer mount, but I have about 100 miles on it now and it didn't smooth out. I did a similar sequence installing it as mentioned above. I think I might just get a new oem rubber mount and swap it out