Pull the derby cover back off and siphon it out with a suck ball. You'll never be able to drain the right amount and get the plug back into clean threads otherwise.

 

32 oz always fills to bottom of clutchpack on my bike. A turkey baster can suck oil out.

 

Changed the oil formula + last week and same thing the Clutch will slip very noticeable in 5th with every thing hot. It's got 36,000 miles and the oil has been changed every 5000 miles seance the first service.
I'm going change the clutch disks and a stronger spring, should I use stock HD disks?

 

What changed? Only one thing that we know for certain, right? Oil? From Formula+ to Formula+? I would put some miles on it, and see how things react over time.

If things do not change, then you know you obviously have a problem outside of the oil. Does anything else change when the oil is changed? What does the Owner's Manual Troubleshooting section say about clutch slipping?

 

I got 70k out of my first clutch pack using fomula plus exclusively. When I replaced my clutch, instead of HD OEM, I went with Rekluse Torq-Drive. Big difference on torque to the wheel. Have to run a JASO MA2 oil. Ran F+ initially, but after switching to a JASO MA2 oil (Castrol Power RS V-Twin 4T 20W-50 Fully Synthetic), there is noticeable performance and shifting difference. I would not run the Castrol on a stock clutch, but it is perfect for the Rekluse.

 

ok.....so I drained some oil. I did it cold, so watching the level drop and putting the plug back in was easy because it's so thick. I wore surgical gloves so I didn't care if I was getting covered. I have a turkey baster just for stuff like this. Did I think to use it? Of course not. Regardless, it worked out fine.

BTW - My situation was pretty much as depicted in this diagram as found with a Google search, and from V-Twin Forums -



I buttoned everything back up and took her out for a test ride.

Drum roll......

It stopped slipping. For the most part anyway. It felt like there might be just a little, but if what I read is correct, the plates get soaked (more than usual) and it takes time to dry off. Or short of that, I can pull the pack and clean with Lacquer Thinner. I'm also considering the Screaming Eagle spring.

The definitive test was pretty easy. I 1st discovered that the clutch was slipping when hitting "resume" on the cruise. I had the cruise set at 85 MPH (that's just keeping up in Chicago) and sometimes I would have to slow down to 70 or so. I would hit "resume" and the bike would immediately rev up, and the cruise would kick off. At that point I noticed whenever I got on it, it slipped badly. The engine would way over-rev the gain in speed. Eventually it would catch up, but slicing and dicing in Chicago traffic isn't fun without full power. Anyway, on my test ride I could set the cruise at 85 MPH, slow to 70 MPH, hit "resume" and it worked as it should.

So the moral (to me anyway) is - the level is critical. I don't know where the 38 ounces comes from. On my bike it took it above the recommended level as shown on diagrams.

On Why Formula +? I've heard it's better for the compensator. I have no scientific data to offer. I just know it's what I use and I've never had to replace one. Could just be lucky.

Again - thanks all for your help. Greatly appreciated.

 

I would check your oil level 1st. It should be at the red line in the diagram I posted.

 

Turkey baster has many uses, sucking the overfill out is probably the most useful.

 

Mine started slipping and chattering nearly coincidental with putting in Syn3. It improved by draining and putting in HD Firmula +. But, I figured the damage was done. I swapped out the clutch with a SE clutch and spring, and have been using Formula + ever since.

Your mileage and experience may vary.

 

Remind me not to come to your house for Thsnksgiving dinner.

But, yeah...works for me too. And I have a length of tubing stuck over the end to get into the motor to lower it to the 1/2 way point after the dealer overfills it.