My 1978 XLH is starting to both consume and leak significant amounts of oil. Since refurbishing it and running it for the past 1300 miles it has gradually gotten worse. I refurbished it in the winter and rode it, so I used 20w50 dino and still have that in the bag. Indie says I should run nothing lighter than 50w, which I know is a big debate. I say its consuming because it does not seem that the leak can account for all of my oil loss.

It has always had a smokey exhaust at startup, but the smoke only comes when its cold and once the engine is warm exhaust is clean. For the first 500 or so miles after refurbishing oil consumption was negligible. The next 450 miles saw me losing 1.25 quarts, and I noticed oil accumulating on the base of the front jug and in places you see in the photo but never leaving a drip on the ground.

The next 350 miles were ridden in warmer weather, but still with 20w50 and it seems that I have lost almost two quarts, and now it leaves a drip and the oil accumulates at the jug base much faster. The photos you see are from 350 miles of riding (cleaned it up to see how and where it was coming from). Those 350 miles were also home to my two longest trips, a 60 mile round trip on the highway averaging 75 mph, and a 200 mile round trip averaging 80mph. I guess that I lost two quarts as an estimation, but the oil is right in the middle of the "danger" zone. I have not ridden it since that 200 mile trip which saw the oil move from just above "refill" to "danger"

My idea was to do an oil change and put in 60wt oil, is this going to help me or just allow me to ride through a bigger problem? Unfortunately I have just become unemployed and do not have the money to spend on the bike anymore. That being said this bike is a long term thing for me and if I have to put it on hold for a great deal of time I will be disappointed but not crushed. The spark plugs are clean (no oil fouling at least). Not shown in the photo, the fat part of the kickstand that is closest to its pivot point also gets a healthy coating of oil.

Any thoughts or suggestions based on the photos? My Dad (who got the bike new) never had oil leak or consumption problems so did not know much about what could be wrong. Any help is appreciated, I had been planning a camping trip next week and wanted to take the sporty on the 250 mile round trip, was hoping the 60wt would allow that one trip until putting her to rest until money is at a better place.

 

The 50W or 60W is a good idea. I use 50W dino, then 20W50 dino for winter when i am starting up the bike in near-zero and sub-zero weather. The 60W will probably reduce oil consumption a little but will not of course solve the actual problem, whatever it is. I would install the 60W and go on the camping trip. I am not in favor of synthetic engine oil in IronHeads.

Is it just engine oil that is being lost? The usual technique is to put one oz of ordinary red food coloring in the primary along with the oil. This does no harm and allows you to see clearly if any of the leakage is from the primary. Thoroughly clean it up first then try this.

Check the oil level in the primary to see if it may be either high [oil passing from the engine to the primary] or low [leaking out somewhere].

Is some of that mess primary oil coming from behind the sprocket cover? There is an oil seal behind that sprocket that can leak and is fairly easy to replace. The red dye test will help to discover this. Also cram some paper towel up there [avoiding the chain].

Did the refurbish include installing new piston rings? If so they may not be correctly installed. I had one ring installed incorrectly; after the fix oil consumption dropped dramatically, from a qt every 500 miles to less than a qt in 2400 miles.

Do you have the crankcase [foofoo] valve installed on the outside of the gearcase [cam] cover opposite the generator? If it is missing that will contribute to oil consumption.

I think that it is important to get a clear idea of the oil loss due to leaks vs the internal consumption. I am a big fan of the paper towel technique to identify precise locations of leaks. Clean up suspected areas, attach paper towels, let it sit overnight and/or go for a ride. Usually takes two or three times thru this to determine actual leak locations.

D@mn economy and job losses! I am fortunate to be retired from work that had a pension plan; however that also means that there are many more years behind me than ahead, eh.

 

Thanks for all the help. I know I am losing primary but slowly, a little from the top of the case at the gasket (nearest the battery) but it is very slow. I will dye my primary before the trip and clean it all up.

My refurb did not get into any internal engine work, just cleaning, adjusting and a carb replacement.

I have an interview on weds, if it goes well I will be heading to get the oil first thing. Until that happens I need to wait even on the oil change, which my mean driving my cage for the ride. May tap into my father for some oil-change cash as he was always a fan of motorcycle camping so we will see.

 

This is possibly a dumb question but does your bike have an "automatic" chain oiler on it? All of your pics look like right below where the oiler would be. The lines running to it are steel and it may have cracked from vibration and is leaking. It will be right above the front sprocket and have a little tube that points down to the chain.
Pretty much everyone turns them off because they are a mess. I'm not sure what years they used them. Just a thought.

 

My 1978 does not have the automatic chain oiler, so i think they ended a few years before that.

 

So much for a quick and easy one! Sorry!

 

It does have a chain oiler, me! In all seriousness it does not have an automatic oiler, and yes that does sound like a mess.

Ironmick, as far as the foo-foo valve goes, it does have the spout and there is usually a little bead of oil on it, and I think some of the mess is from that sputtering at speed. Is this valve stock, or is it something I need to add to that assembly opposite the generator?

 

You said the plugs were clean. If so then oil must be being consumed at the valve guides,not the rings.
Come on. If a motor was burning that much oil through the combustion chamber the plug would have oily mud on it.
Twizted biker is the man when it comes to these older bikes. Maybe he will give you a plan of attack.
Straight grade oil will help but not solve the problem.

 

Where the crankcase vent comes out of the casing below the generator drive, there should be a round fitting about one inch round, one inch long, then the steel vent pipe screws into that fitting. That fitting is the foo foo valve.
Run the engine and stick your finger over the end of the vent pipe. You should feel little pulses of air coming out and none getting sucked back in.

If you dont have a foo foo valve fitted, it will be blowing all your oil out that vent pipe.
If you are real short of money like you said, you might try plumbing a PCV valve from the auto parts store on to the end of the vent pipe with some rubber hose. Mount it so air can come out of the engine, none can be sucked back in.

Here are pics of the 77-78 external foo-foo valve. Or more correctly the 1977-1978 crankcase ventilation valve as the manual calls it, ie engine breather.

Located outside the case, below the genny.



Body opened and valve in its correct orientation. Vent pipe below. The top half of the valve body can stay attached to the genny case, just hold it with a wrench and unscrew the bottom nut to get to the actual valve mechanism inside.



And the foo-foo revealed in its glory, showing the spring loaded disc that does the actual foo-fooing. Don't try to pull this bit apart. Just clean it with carb cleaner and make sure it moves freely and the spring is not broken or deformed.

When reassembling make sure the valve goes in the right way. Air must be able to blow OUT of the cases, but must not be able to get sucked back in.
So the spring goes on the bottom. The flat side of the disc valve goes to the top.

 

My valve works then, blowing air out but not sucking in. Shredding Rubber, I thought the same thing too, was expecting nasty plugs. Also, if rings were shot than I would expect more smoke from exhaust and not just while its cold.