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09 compensator, how is it suppose to work , Ive looked at the HD parts manual , Ronnies etc . I have not taken mine apart but I can not find any reference to springs or spring tension so how does this thing work
Thanks
Dave
Last edited by Big Dave; Jun 23, 2019 at 03:10 PM.
I've never had one apart but isn't the washer a Belleville washer ( spring washer )? Torque on the bolt sets the tension.
Why are you worried about it?
I broke down on a recent ride , My inner primary bearing scrambled . One post said to check the compensator as it can slam the chain hard when it wears out . Mine seems fine but every other style i look at has a spring pack of some sort
So if it's a heavy spring washer and it got weak, wouldn't tightening the bolt make it a solid compensator ( of course the bolt can't bottom out ) if it cant move it cant shock the chain , Just thinking out loud I do understand the reason of a comp but just wondering if a guy was stuck why wouldn't this work ?
The compensator acts like a shock absorber. As they get week and "fail" it's just like a regular shock and starts to bottom out. That's the knocking, bang, clunk noise people mention when they are going out. It's simply the compensator reaching it's limit. It is very rare for one to come apart or leave you on the side of the road. The two parts act like cams against each other and wear against each other over time which increases the slop and therefore clunk more often.Tightening the bolt wont help when the two pieces are worn. When it starts clunking regularly, then it's time to replace. You can go solid, many people have, but it's there for a reason. To relieve stress to the drive train for reliability and also to make it a more pleasant ride.
If you ride like a normal person, they last a long time. Especially the new one's. I replaced my first one at about 75,000 on my Road King and again at about 125,000 I put cams and bumped it up to a 103. I have fun with the new HP so the second didn't last as long. My limited has 45,000 on it I've never heard it clunk once.
To help clear up your confusion, the bolt and washer are torqued to 140 lbs always. But the gear and cam are on a splined sleeve and can move. Behind everything there is a multi piece spring pack. The larger pieces usually dont wear quickly. But the springs have been known to break and the spring packs can come apart. Ive had both happen to me but I have a lot of miles. If the springs arent broken and the large parts arent heavily worn theres not much to worry about. If you arent getting any loud banging noises when you take off and you dont have more than a stage one done to the engine I would inspect it and put it back.
I know some members in your previous posts have mentioned it, but I am not sure that all members understand that your ‘09 compensator is not built like the original SE or the later compensators.
Look at the photo cncmike posted.
On the ‘09 (and some earlier years, then thru 2010 except those equipped with the SE comp. like the trike) have the spring-pack built into the rotor. There are no separate springs like the later units, you can not separate the spring from the rotor.
I do not know if it is true, but I recall reading that HD no longer offers replacements for that rotor, you must replace the entire compensator and rotor if either goes.
So, if you need to replace your ‘09 comp. and it is the original (has never had an SE comp replacement installed) you must replace the rotor and the compensator, but you must get a compensator that has the included shims and springs that some of the SE compensators do not come with (the HD kit you would need is #40100061 which has everything including the rotor.) If you go to a Baker compensator you still must replace the rotor but it uses its own spring-pack set-up.
I know some members in your previous posts have mentioned it, but I am not sure that all members understand that your ‘09 compensator is not built like the original SE or the later compensators.
Look at the photo cncmike posted.
On the ‘09 (and some earlier years, then thru 2010 except those equipped with the SE comp. like the trike) have the spring-pack built into the rotor. There are no separate springs like the later units, you can not separate the spring from the rotor.
I do not know if it is true, but I recall reading that HD no longer offers replacements for that rotor, you must replace the entire compensator and rotor if either goes.
So, if you need to replace your ‘09 comp. and it is the original (has never had an SE comp replacement installed) you must replace the rotor and the compensator, but you must get a compensator that has the included shims and springs that some of the SE compensators do not come with (the HD kit you would need is #40100061 which has everything including the rotor.) If you go to a Baker compensator you still must replace the rotor but it uses its own spring-pack set-up.
Hope this clears things up a little.
.
You can still buy them. I bought one at the dealer in October. Surdyke and New Castle have them online for $175.00. The part number is 40356-07 (this information is for the spring pack only)
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