Oil Cap Blew Off
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Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2019
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From: Unreconstructed
Oil Cap Blew Off
Helping my buddy do the brakes on her '13 Blackline. Took it out to bed the brakes and shake it down and when I was happy, I got on it to see what it would do. 1st gear romp ended up blowing the oil reservoir cap off into the bottom of my thigh and shooting hot oil everywhere.
Pretty sure the bike is cammed by the way it took off, otherwise, SE AC and Thunderheader. What would cause that? My '01 88B FLSTF never did anything like that.
Pretty sure the bike is cammed by the way it took off, otherwise, SE AC and Thunderheader. What would cause that? My '01 88B FLSTF never did anything like that.
Seasoned HDF Member
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From: Honah Lee
The dip stick is warn out. Is it really free? If so, most have two grooves in the rubber plug section. Grab a o-ring slight smaller and roll it in the groove.
Common. Seen it numerous times on here and on my bike. It has the oil style temperature antilog one.
Common. Seen it numerous times on here and on my bike. It has the oil style temperature antilog one.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 14,119
Likes: 11,174
From: San Diego, CA
In addition to those possibilities already posted, did he check the oil on a cold engine before you went for a ride....???
The volcano of hot oil is sometimes caused by checking the oil on a cold engine, seeing it's a quart low, adding a quart, then going for a ride... Many softails, after sitting for awhile, will have oil from the tank, leak past the oil pump and settle in the sump. When you then check the oil cold, you THINK it's low because the oil settled in the sump, and overfill it. Once the bike is started, the oil pump scavenges the oil, pumping it back into the tank, which is already full. The oil eventually has to go somewhere...
The low oil volcano usually happens in the first 5 minutes of operation, or sometimes longer, depending on how overfilled it is...
The volcano of hot oil is sometimes caused by checking the oil on a cold engine, seeing it's a quart low, adding a quart, then going for a ride... Many softails, after sitting for awhile, will have oil from the tank, leak past the oil pump and settle in the sump. When you then check the oil cold, you THINK it's low because the oil settled in the sump, and overfill it. Once the bike is started, the oil pump scavenges the oil, pumping it back into the tank, which is already full. The oil eventually has to go somewhere...
The low oil volcano usually happens in the first 5 minutes of operation, or sometimes longer, depending on how overfilled it is...
Seasoned HDF Member
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From: Honah Lee
Post 4 is a good point. If owner is new to a Softail, you absolutely need to check oil level after running. If my set months, the oil bag will completely drain.
Top it off only when hot hot right after running is only safe way to not get too much.
When my plug popped out, no oil came out. And it did it with a little kick back on starting from a weak battery.
Top it off only when hot hot right after running is only safe way to not get too much.
When my plug popped out, no oil came out. And it did it with a little kick back on starting from a weak battery.
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Stellar HDF Member
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From: Unreconstructed
Thanks for all the info guys, I learned a lot.
So, what I plan to do now is:
So, what I plan to do now is:
- Check the breather bolts
- Check the oil when it's hot and make sure it's at the correct level
- Clean it up.
Road Warrior
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,871
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From: DeLand, Florida
My 2000 spit the oil cap off once. As stated, it put o-rings in the grooves of the plug and pushed it back in. Has never come loose again.
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Seasoned HDF Member
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From: Honah Lee
I assume you are going to check breather by putting a slight vacuum on the hose in the air filter box. . Should not hold. Pressure in will be stopped by one way poppet valves in the little breather boxes in the head.
If the dipstick is the problem, it will be loose with no resistance to pull. A new one or one with an o-ring on it will need to be rotated a little back and forth to come out.
If the dipstick is the problem, it will be loose with no resistance to pull. A new one or one with an o-ring on it will need to be rotated a little back and forth to come out.
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Thread Starter
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Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2019
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From: Unreconstructed
I assume you are going to check breather by putting a slight vacuum on the hose in the air filter box. . Should not hold. Pressure in will be stopped by one way poppet valves in the little breather boxes in the head.
If the dipstick is the problem, it will be loose with no resistance to pull. A new one or one with an o-ring on it will need to be rotated a little back and forth to come out.
If the dipstick is the problem, it will be loose with no resistance to pull. A new one or one with an o-ring on it will need to be rotated a little back and forth to come out.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 14,119
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From: San Diego, CA
As mentioned, check the dipstick friction fit. There were two dipsticks used by the MoCo for Twin Cam softails.
My 2001 & 2003 softails came OEM with dipstick #62845-00 (which has been superseded by #62845-00A in 2006). It has an o-ring on the cap #11345. If your cap seems loose, you can replace the o-ring with the HD part. Dipstick part #62845-00 is no longer available, but the 0-ring #11345 is (or was a few years ago).
In 2006 the dipstick #62845-00A, had no o-ring, but rather had molded ridges in the cap neck to hold it into the oil tank. If that one wears loose, you would need to add an aftermarket o-ring to snug it up.
Here is a popular fix for the #62845-00A dipstick:
Good luck with the fix...
My 2001 & 2003 softails came OEM with dipstick #62845-00 (which has been superseded by #62845-00A in 2006). It has an o-ring on the cap #11345. If your cap seems loose, you can replace the o-ring with the HD part. Dipstick part #62845-00 is no longer available, but the 0-ring #11345 is (or was a few years ago).
In 2006 the dipstick #62845-00A, had no o-ring, but rather had molded ridges in the cap neck to hold it into the oil tank. If that one wears loose, you would need to add an aftermarket o-ring to snug it up.
Here is a popular fix for the #62845-00A dipstick:
Good luck with the fix...
Last edited by hattitude; Jun 10, 2021 at 09:19 AM.