I decided to check for intake leaks, and sure enough, I've got leaks where the manifold meets the heads on both cylinders. Bike is a 2004 Road King. I assume I will be changing some gaskets. Obviously the tank will have to come off. What all will be involved with this process? I have the manual, but its at work so I can't look at it til tomorrow. FYI, the bike is fuel injected.

 

You may be able to just lift the rear of the tank. It's not a very tough process, just tighten down the the flanges equally.

 

just remove the fuel line and lift the rear of the tank. remove the horn bracket and air cleaner. a good idea is to buy a intake wrench from harley it will make this a hell of a lot easier. just loosen the bolts on the horn side till finger loose. the air cleaner side bolts need to be removed all the way. pull manifold out towards air cleaner side. a little silicone spray on the new seals will help with installation. you can get new air cleaner gaskets if they are damaged. good luck

 

What does an intake wrench consist of? I remember a ball end allen wrench making the job a helluva lot easier on my sportster when I had it. Is there a more "sophisticated" wrench or is a ball end all I need?

 

Get 4 --"12 point head" chrome or plated bolts. I think 1/4 x 1 (maybe 3/4).

Whole nother world for easier.

 

Skully....just did mine. You're on the right track...1/4 inch ball end allen about 4 inches long works fine. No need to buy a HD special part. If you don't already have one, Craftsman makes a nice set. Some decent advice above. Just follow the manual.

My advice, take the tank, horn/engine bracket and throttle body off off for easier access. Two throttle body little Torx bolts are easily accessible from the horn side once you get the horn/engine bracket off. Replace the intake seals....no-brainer. Since you're there, replace the injector o-rings too. The injector assemply takes a bit of wiggling to get out but it'll come easy enough. HD doesn't sell the injector o-rings individually but they're a commonly stocked item at just about any auto parts store. Bring your old o-ring with you and ask for a injector o-ring replacement kit for small cars....they're a common size for lots of manufacturers. Size match to make sure it's the right one. All O-rings are not all equal. The ones you want are for automotive application...made out of Viton.....great for heat and fuel. Don't get the rubber ones from the hardware store....they won't hold up, made for plumbing(water). The Nitrile (or Buna-A) ones are ok but Viton has a higher heat tolerance....Viton is better.

Also, just use fresh motor oil for the 0-ring/seal lube....just like the manual says.

 

Oh yeah, the reason I advise to replace to injector o-rings is that I had one bad one at ~30K miles. That was the source of my intake leak.....the gremlin I chased for a long time. Took a while to find but finally got it nailed. Ended up replacing all intake seals, o-rings, and gaskets...runs like a raped ape now.

 

the new seals are cheap enough to just throw in since you are there

 

If you have the heads worked on and this includes milling and thinner gasket, the head will sit a little lower.

The metal of the manifold might need to be slightly filled on to get the manifold to fit right. Has a little less room to nestle there.

Otherwise it will always be a problem.

 

No headwork or anything unusual at this time. Just gonna pull it apart and replace the seals. Got stuff today. Two seals, two o-rings, and an air cleaner backplate gasket. I do plan on rigging up a wrench to make life easier. Should be all I need and hopefully will be pretty straightforward. I hope.