I took my very-new-to-me 95 FXDS to the local bike show, won first place in the street bike category, took a victory lap around the neighborhood and when I got back into my shop it was leaking from the primary drain plug which seems tight when I try to wrench it. The Haynes book isn't precise on this plug, can anyone give me some advice about common problems?

 

Is prim oil or trans oil running down the back of the primary ? Not the drain plug

 

Like S-George said... it could be leaking from the primary inner seal. Primary fluid is so light, it can leak out somewhere and you won't notice anywhere except where it decides to leave the bike on the way to the ground. And, I've had the clutch cover leak and it was so hard to see on the chrome, looked like it was leaking at the plug. Get a flashlight and look up under it from the right side to look for the inner seal leak.

If it is the plug, use teflon tape (about 2 rounds) and be sure to leave the first one or two threads uncovered. Also, always clean the old tape out of the hole, else it'll plug it up and make things slow to drain.

 

Mine is doing the same thing. But, its coming from the transmission seal. I've got different color fluids in the primary and trans, so its easy to tell.. Mine does drip right off the primary drain plug, very decieving.. I wont be addressing it untill I change the belt though..

 

Try a new plug wrap iy with three to four turns of teflon tape. screw it in until you have about 1/8th inch left sticking out. If it doesn't feel "snug" (remember it is a plug not a head bolt) take it out and increase the number of turns of teflon tape until it does. Be careful, it is a pipe thread, and pipe threads can act as a wedge and actually crack the primary.

 

HGM Make sure your trans belt sprocket isn't loose It could cost you 5th gear plus

 

You're right on, it's tranny oil collecting at the primary drain plug. I must have made a rookie mistake replacing the front motor mount and not loosening the rear mount when I attempted the alignment procedure.

Again, the Haynes is pretty vague when it comes to specifics so I'll be getting a real factory book to guide me. In the meantime, can anyone guide me through the alignment steps so i can see if I may have only distorted the tranny seal and not ruptured it?

Yep, I'm a rookie. 35+ years of motorcycles and this is my first big twin, every other bike was a unit motor/tranny so this a new experience for me.

 

oldroadie I don't think the motor mount replacement/alignment would make the trans seal leak Check the trany lube (20 to 24 oz) Check the trans belt sprocket (loosen rear belt) grab the sprocket to see if it is tight Good luck

 

I appreciate the confidence. Still, my unfailing rule of thumb is that when something goes amiss you have to go back to the last thing you "repaired" to sort it out.

That bike hadn't shed a single drop until I finished that short ride yesterday and that was the first mileage on the new front mount. After installing the mount I rode little over a mile to that bike show at our local airport. The bike sat on very clean concrete for 6 hours in 90° sunny heat and never shed a drop. Then I took a test ride up and down the mountain beside my home, basically to test the vibration from 3 to 4K which I was aiming to cure or at least dampen. I've achieved a partial success but I think it can be better. My first thoughts were that the rear mount needs replacing also and the top mount needs investigation; 20 minutes after parking in my garage I found the small pool of oil under the bike and made the original post here. It just seems so unlikely that my one repair doesn't have some bearing on this (but not impossible, I do understand that too).

 

Hmmm, hadn't thought about that. I just put tires on it too.. I assume the belt needs to be loose to check it according to your other post, is there a trick or easy way to check it without tearing into it?
Thanks,