3 Hole Oil change
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Intermediate
Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 33
Likes: 3
From: Wales UK
What a great forum==people out there prepared to help others & respond promptly, well done guys (& ladies). So much to learn being a new HD owner, but one thing I noticed at the dealers whilst purchasing my Fatboy was the quality of the parts used in the manufacture of HD--brilliant machining etc. Some yrs ago I lived in Australia & bought a Laverda Jota 1000, brand new in 1982 when I I was 25yrs old, they said it was handmade by one Italian, well mine must have been on the vino all week----nothing but trouble. My mate in Oz was so impressed with USA engineering everything he had was basically made in the US--car bike kettle weed whacker you name it he had it--I laughed at the time but can se where he's coming from now.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 6,174
Likes: 1,960
From: Great State of Canada
Thanks guys, I will probably get the dealer to do the 1000 mile service, keep the warranty up etc, but you hear & see these posts where dealer mechanics ( or technicians as they call themselves now) munch oil plugs etc simply by not using the right tool or torx. I've purchased all the necessary tools & gear to do most of the fairly basic stuff, I mean it's half the fun of owning a HD by doing what you can. even so I've just re-read the factory service manual, & it's so ambiguous, for the engine & primary it says bring the bike up to operating temp, but for the tranny it says "check whilst at ambient temp" then leads off into the changing of the tranny oil, not saying whether to do it cold or hot--confusing or what, & that's after spending Ł70 on the right service book
Opinions vary on this, but I run my ride with (hot) engine oil levels right up to the Full mark. Others recommend 1/2 way up the stick. Oil cools as well as lubricates, so its a simple matter of physics that, in the interests of moderating running temps, more oil is better, but don't over fill or you'll have oil spitting out of your breather. "Its an art".
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 2,400
Likes: 284
From: Fort Worth, TX
Do the service yourself, you can print out a service checklist from a number of HD dealer websites or PM me and I can send you one along with the torques specs and fluid capacities. Doing this yourself will not void your warranty if you have it documented. Don't worry about the tranny oil being hot when changed (we always change it hot), and use a dedicated tranny/gear oil in it; and yes, there is a benefit to using synthetic oil in your bike. The biggest part of a first service is a 3 hole oil change and checking the torque on critical fasteners. Almost every HD we do a first service on has loose switch housings and lever perches. Torque the caliper mounts, axles, shock mounts, motor mounts, exhaust mounts, etc. You may need to adjust the drive belt as they tend to stretch early in their life...
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