that is the funniest thing i've heard all day !!!

 

i didnt do the 500 either, went with the 1000 mile and at that time they checked and adjusted (took the front wheel off to access) the rocker bearings on the springer front end. this will also need to be done at 10000 mile intervals, per the service manual. the rest is routine maintenance. mine is an 08 too.

 

If the dealers do nothing at the 500 mile service on the front end I would be talking to the service manager! The owners manual is clear that the Springer requires maintenance at 500 miles. I had the dealer perform the first service at 500 miles on the XBones since I did not have the manual yet and didn't have a clear understanding of the Spring front end service. The 500 miler took 2.3 hours and costed $250. I watched it being done and it did take that long to do. I also had them quote just doing the front end service and me waiting until 1000 to do the other required things and they quoted 1 hour labor. What is required is adjustment of the lower rocker bearing which requires the front fender and tire to be removed Then the lower rocker bearing is torqued and verified to not exceed a certain value of torque to rotate it thru a 180 degree arc. Then reassemble everything. Also the head is filled with grease since the factory only lubes the bearing and does not fill the head. The fall out is also checked and the head bearings adjusted if required. If you don't have the right tools the lower rocker bearing would be difficult to do. There is a training video for the Heritage Springer that Ihave that shows step by step how to do the front end adjustments, but the same would apply for the XBones. I have asked on several HD Tech groups and HD techs online all highly recommend at least having the lower rocker bearing adjusted at the 500 miler. After that, the rocker bearing isn't readjusted until 10K.

 

yes, yes listen to tnharley7. he is correct, my uncle skiped all his springer svc. and it needs a rebuild now it was so stiff & slopy at the same time felt like **** untill the svc.
by the way I like your gloss bones it matches the frame I wonder why harley dont mat the frame on the denim bikes they only do it on the rocker

 

What lower kit did you get installed? That is next on my list.

 

Here's the lowering kit I used:

http://www.jpcycles.com/productdetail.aspx?PID=700-210

 

I have the '06 Springer Softail Classic. It has exactly the same springer front end as the Crossbones, from what I understand. I also do all my own maintenance and my bike's past the 40,000 mile mark. I would agree that the steering head should certainly get a dose of grease at 500 and 1,000 mile, and every 2,500 miles thereafter. You should check the rocker bearings at 500 and 1,000 miles, and adjust if necessary (you can do it yourself, it's not that hard. If I can do it, you can too, believe me), for the same reason that you break in an engine. After that, every 10,000 miles is what's called for in the manual, and that's plenty. Personally, I chose to do it when I changed out the front tire, which means the last time I checked them was at about the 20,000-25,000 mile mark. I'm probably about due now, but I'm waiting a few more miles to change the front tire again.

I know some people will blast me for saying this, but I think Harley's insistence that you need to do the fallaway test and adjust the steering head bearing every 2,500 miles is mostly just another way to get you into the shop for a few dollars more a few times more often. Grease it regularly and you should be fine. If you're really worried about the steering head bearing, do the fallaway every 5,000, when you do a regular servicing. Listen for squeaks in the rockers bearings. Springer front ends have been around a long time and they're a lot tougher than they appear; hell -- they fought in World War II, and the new ones are a big improvement over the old ones. One thing a lot of people do is change out the stock shock for an aftermarket, although I haven't.

Now I have a question about lowering a springer. I like Jisham's look and would like to do the same to mine. How low did you go? Also, have you considered lowering the front end, too? Several catalogs sell a kit that switches out the compressor springs, that is supposed to lower the bike as much as 1.5 inches. But I see that several catalogs say it works for the FXSTS and Crossbones, but won't work on an FLSTS like mine. Yet I've seen the installation directions at in the J&P catalog (http://www.jpcycles.com/instructions/new/230-566.pdf) and it is exactly the same springer as mine (the directions themselves, I point out, don't say the kit won't work on an FLSTS). Is there anyone out there who knows something about this kit and why it might not work on an FLSTS?

 

+1 on the j&p cycle lowering kit...that is the one i have and makes the bike look a whole lot different!

I guess i need to take my xbones in at the 500 mile mark too then for the checks up front...i didnt know that...good thing i read this thread!! I'm at about 450 now...

 

Beautiful bike.

 

Nice pipes pensacolaharley